Cultural and Social Diversity in Health Care

CULTURAL AND SOCIAL DIVERSITY IN HEALTH CARE
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Introduction
Different groups of people in Australia have diverse cultural practices. For instance, the
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s way of life is not similar to the culture and
lifestyle of other community groups such as the refugees and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) community. The individual experiences of each particular
cultural group affect their behaviors and habits which impact health-related risk factors.This
essay discusses the current and historical events of two cultural groups; the Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander people and Australian refugees and how these occasions have impacted
risk factors related to their health. A risk factor is any attribute, constituent, theexposure that
enhances the likelihood of development of disease or injury. The essay also pronounces the
policies and frameworks set aside to improve the groups’ health, highlighting and care provision
and policies influence their health outcomes (Eldredge et al., 2016).
Refugees in Australia usually originate from other regions as a result of war, persecution or
violence and head on to the specified country in search of a permanent home. The health of this
group of people is affected by specific risk factors which are mainly environmental aspects. Most
refugees’ housing facilities are provided for by the government. They, therefore, do not have the
chance to live in the environmental conditions they would like which leads to limited access to
various factors such as clean water and sanitation (Mallett et al., 2011). Air pollution is also a
common problem among the refugees’ abiding places. Other risk factors include genetic risk
factors that depend on an individual’s gene makeup and thus he or she has no control over them.
While genetic risk factors lead to chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, environmental
features cause health issues such as vitamin deficiencies, latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI),
hepatitis B and schistosomiasis (Masters et al., 2018).

Refugees and asylum seekers are usually forced to flee their respective countries or regions of
residence due to the crisis and hardships they face there. They leave behind land, resources and
sometimes their families in search of peace and harmony in their lives. The majority of refugees
in Australia come from Iran, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka. Conversely, others arrive from Syria,
Iraq, Sub-Saharan Africa, Myanmar and many other countries in the world. Historically, a major
percentage of asylum seekers arrived by plane. The number of those arriving by boat has,
however, been increasing in the recent years of the early 2010s and late 2000s (Phillips &
Spinks, 2013).
The crisis they face from home lead to their displacement which adversely affects the emotional
as well as their physical health and wellbeing. The crisis in Syria, for instance, led to millions of
Syrians being displaced internally or emigrating to other places, making Syria the largest forcibly
evacuated population in the world (Gatrell, 2015). Years of insecurityand political instability has
led to the emigration of many people from Afghanistan. South Sudan has had one of the largest
crisis in Africa leading to the emigration of many people seeking peace and a safe place to
reside. During this crisis, homes were burnt and resources destroyed whereby the people left with
nothing. Decades of ongoing conflict and war has led to many Somalis leaving their homes with
their families to live in refugee camps in other places.As a result of all these catastrophes, people
immigrate to new places, mostly with no possessions. The Asylum seekers are housed by the
government, most times in destitute camps where there are inadequate basic necessities such as
water, sanitation,and education. Clean sanitary accommodations in these places are almost
unheard of. Refugees in Australia suffer from communicable ailments due to air pollution and
their health is very poor as they are more vulnerable to illnesses and diseases.