Reflecting on the “IHI Module TA 102: Improving Health Equity,” describe two causes of health disparities in the United States, or in your local community, that lead to health inequity. What ethical issues inhibit access and quality for care for these issues? Outline an initiative, integrating your faith and ethical principles surrounding practice, to reduce these health inequities and sustain the change within the health care system.
SOLUTION
There are diverse causes of health disparities in the US. One of them is poverty. Healthcare services are very expensive in the US. This means that people without health insurance and those living in poverty will be unable to receive high-quality healthcare outside the ER. Another one is education inequalities. According to Summers-Gabr (2020), dropping out of school is directly related to multiple health problems. This is because people with limited education are prone to certain health risks such as substance abuse and obesity. Certain ethical issues inhibit access and quality for care for these issues. For instance, people from minority races are more susceptible to these healthcare inequalities. Consequently, racial discrimination tends to penetrate the healthcare service delivery healthcare.
An initiative that can reduce these health inequities and sustain change within the healthcare system entails coming up with a Universal Healthcare system where all citizens in the country are offered free comprehensive healthcare (Martin et al., 2018). In Christianity, the Bible asks people to love their neighbors as they love themselves. Ensuring every individual in the country has access to free healthcare is a prime way of displaying love for others. Furthermore, it is unethical to deprive people of the basic right of healthcare access under the guise of capitalism. Deprivation of healthcare may lead to human suffering and even death.
References
Martin, D., Miller, A. P., Quesnel-Vallée, A., Caron, N. R., Vissandjée, B., & Marchildon, G. P. (2018). Canada’s universal health-care system: Achieving its potential. Lancet (London, England), 391(10131), 1718-1735. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30181-8
Summers-Gabr, N. M. (2020). Rural-urban mental health disparities in the united states during COVID-19. Psychological Trauma, 12(S1), S222-S224. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000871