Meanings of Health
The idea that an individual evaluates their level of health in reference to others or their own level of health at another time is referred to as:
A relative health
B dynamic health
C personal health
D individual health
A relative health
The dimensions of health include:
A social, emotional, mental, biomedical and spiritual
B social, emotional, mental, physical and spiritual
C love, shelter, peace and nutrition
D media, income, culture, environment
social, emotional, mental, physical and spiritual
Identify a limitation of using epidemiology to analyse population health
It fails to:
List the 4 social justice principles
Participation
Equity
Access
Rights
Outline how an individual’s circumstances, such as socio-economic status, can affect their health outcomes
People living in different circumstances can have vastly different perceptions of health. Socio-economic status and cultural differences can affect this and their health outcomes.
Education has a direct link to health as being more aware of health issues can increase the control a person has to make positive health-related decisions. Education also leads to increased chances of strong employment and people with tertiary education often have higher health outcomes.
Employment provides a sense of purpose and belonging. Being unemployed can be stressful and can lead to depression if work is hard to find. Long-term unemployment is linked with many poor health behaviours. Strong employment increases a person’s disposable income. Stressful work can also have a negative effect on a person’s health. For example, if they have a lot of pressure at work and work for long hours.
Income has a substantial effect on individual health. Greater income leads to less financial stress and increases the amount of free and disposable income that can be spent on things such as gym memberships and preventative health services.
External social and cultural forces that they are surrounded by will influence a person’s health as well. This shifts the blame away from the individual and to the broader society and governing bodies. It promotes better health promotion and strategic development to address these issues, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes and decreased health in equities. For example, some groups may not see smoking as a great threat to their health, whereas other groups clearly understand the risks. A person’s health-related perceptions, attitudes and behaviours are largely shaped by powerful and.
WHO defines health as ‘a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity’. Explain why individuals may have differing interpretations of health.
answers will vary - meanings of health - cultural, spiritual, placing purpose on social health over physical health
How does health change over time?
As people age, their meaning of health changes. A fit and young 18-year old will value different things about their health in comparison to an elderly person living with heart disease. It is natural that people’s priorities and behaviours change over time as their definition of health changes.
The number of new cases of a disease in a population during a specific time period is referred to as:
A prevalence
B morbidity
C case numbers
D incidence
A prevalence
The use of telehealth within rural and remote communities is an example of which principles of social justice?
A participation and environment
B socio-economic and equity
C access and equity
D rights and sociocultural
C access and equity
Outline the personal biomedical factors that influence health.
The personal biomedical factors that influence health are body weight, obesity, high blood pressure, abnormal blood lipids (cholesterol), impaired glucose regulation, immune status and the likelihood of developing diseases such as cardiovascular disease, heart disease and diabetes.
Explain how the dimensions of health interact to influence an individual’s health status. Support your answer with specific examples.
The dimensions of health (physical, social, cultural, mental, emotional and spiritual) can interact with one another in positive and negative ways. An improvement in one area can positively affect another area. For example, losing weight can increase a person’s self-esteem and confidence in social settings. It can also be a negative impact. For example, breaking your leg might restrict your ability to connect socially through sport, leading to isolation and even depression. A person’s perception of their health is largely determined by the social and cultural circumstances in which they have grown up in and live in. This can be a very powerful influence. It can positively change health-related attitudes and behaviours. Evidence of this is in the large degree of difference that is found in the health status and behaviours between different population groups.
Define these epidemiological measures: mortality, morbidity and infant mortality
Mortality is the number of deaths from a specific cause or in a specific population over a period of time (usually one year).
Morbidity is the incidence of illness, injury and diseases that do not result in death in a specific population.
Infant mortality is the number of deaths in the first year of life per 1000 live births.
What determinants can be modified?
Modifiable health determinants are things that people are able to control and change through behavioural adjustments. For example, diet, physical activity, smoking habits, alcohol consumption and regular GP visits.
Using relevant examples, describe the concept of good health and the health continuum.
Good health means different things to different people. Some common perceptions include being:
The idea of viewing our health on a continuum, with optimum health at one end and poor health at the other, can help us to understand its relative and dynamic nature. Judging where we fit on the continuum at any one point in time is highly subjective and is the product of many varying factors. A person’s perception about the level of health can be placed on a continuum from very low to very high. Someone may feel like dimensions are at different levels. However, when an assessment of all of these are combined, they have assessed their holistic health.
Justify the use of epidemiology as a key component in improving the health status of Australians
The use of epidemiology by public health researchers, governments, health organisations, manufacturers of health products and professionals assist in improving the health status of Australians. The study of epidemiology cannot provide an accurate representation of the inequalities in health status between population sub-groups, reasons as to why these inequalities exist, the impact a disease or injury can have on the equality of life and the impact that socio-cultural, environmental, socio-cultural, environmental, socio-economic and individual determinants have on health.
When specific health trends have been identified, health priorities can be established, such as resource allocation and programs.
Assess how social justice principles, including participation, equity, access and rights, impact the health status of both individuals and communities.
Participation – for individuals and communities to achieve good health they must be provided with opportunities to participate in decisions that relate to their health. Participation recognises the diversity that exists between population groups and is an effective way of ensuring that the specific needs of those groups are met.
Equity – the fair allocation of funding and resources and taking action to reduce the level of inequality in society.
Access – the significant impact that access to basic necessities like fresh water, sanitation, food and health services has on the health of individuals and communities. Access should not be hindered by factors such as geographic location, language, socio-economic status and the availability of health services.
Rights – everyone has the basic human right to health in addition to the rights to security, shelter, clothing, housing, medical care, social services and the resources necessary for health and wellbeing.
What determinants are difficult to modify or cannot be modified?
Determinants that are difficult to modify or cannot be modified are factors which are set and not able to be changed. For example, age, genetics and gender.