Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala

Running head: HEALTH SOCIOLOGY 1
Health sociology
Students name
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Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 1
What insights do post-modernist perspectives provide, and what might this mean for
health practice?
Postmodernist perspective on the general wellbeing and health of human beings
emphasizes that the diseases and illnesses experiences is not a direct cause and effect
comparison. Instead, postmodernist perceives health based on the fact that life experiences
are based on a myriad of cultural, physical, economic, and social contexts that are unique to
every individual (Holmes, 2016). Therefore, postmodernist perception towards health
anticipates a holistic view of well-being and health and the credence in a personal
responsivity for achieving health. Postmodernist individuals are against medical authority and
hold consumerist values, with the preference of natural products in place of chemical-based
medication (Frie & Orange, 2013). In addition, they are of the opinion that most prescription
drugs have side effects and that not all illnesses require drugs from physicians (Holmes,
2016). The post-modernists have anti-technology sentiments regarding health and wellbeing.
People make judgments regarding their health in terms of existing cultural standards.
Postmodernists have a negative approach to modern scientific medicine, which makes
it hard to offer solutions to their problems. The postmodernist perspective regarding health
has significant implications on the way in which physicians handle their patients. The
physicians should apply an individualized approach towards health and wellbeing when
undertaking treatment; however, they should use the scientific basis of health and disease for
reasonable medical care (Davies & Kelly, 2014).

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 2
Despite increases in funding, explain why, in Australia, Indigenous health outcomes are
still an issue? Provide examples to illustrate your argument.
In Australia, indigenous people have poor health status compared to non-indigenous.
The indigenous also are the majority amongst the disadvantaged and poor and have lower life
expectancies. Despite increases in funding, the success of improving disparities is still
limited, attributed to various factors. The gap in health status is attributed to cultural and
social determinants of health, which have been seen to hamper the indigenous individuals
from accessing healthcare (Durey & Thompson, 2012). In Australia, several social and
cultural determinants, for instance, unemployment and level of education, are significant
factors that influenced whether the individual patient, families and the community at large are
able to access health care.
Besides the relative social, economic disadvantage experienced by the Australian
indigenous populations places them at significant risk of exposure to environmental and
behavioral risk factors (Durey & Thompson, 2012). For instance, a considerable number of
indigenous individuals do not live in conditions that support wellbeing. The population does
not have adequate access to equal access to health infrastructure. For instance, there is
inadequate of clean drinking water, working sewerage systems, healthy housing, and trash
collection facilities (Davy, Harfield, McArthur, Munn & Brown, 2016). Additionally, the
current health practices and policies in Australia favor standardized care where the needs of
the marginalized are not met.

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 3
Psychiatry can be viewed as an institute of social control. Draw on sociological theories
and examples to discuss this statement.
Mental health services have shifted towards a model of an individual informed consent
and autonomy; however, social control has a significant impact on psychiatry. Different theories
have been developed to discover the aetiological role of society in psychiatric disorders
(Bhattacahrjee, Singh, Rai, Kumar, Verma & Munda, 2011). For instance, Faris and Dunham
hypothesized that poor communication and social isolation among individuals in different societies
in urban settings could make individuals vulnerable to mental disorders (Mohler & Earls, 2018).
Negative factors, for example, stress and adversities experienced by individuals of lower social
class, have a significant influence on an individual (Bhattacahrjee et al., 2011).
The social constructivism theory explains the social etiology of psychiatric illnesses. The
theory states that an individual develops their own understanding and knowledge of the world by
undergoing things and reflecting on the experiences (Mohler & Earls, 2018). For example, when a
person comes across a new experience, they try to associate with past experiences and either try to
refute it or refurbish it as per their past experiences (Bhattacahrjee et al., 2011).
The Social Selection Theory states that some genetically predisposed individuals tend to
drift down to or fail to rise in social situations and consequently become vulnerable to the
psychiatrically ill (Bhattacahrjee et al., 2011). The model suggests that mental disorders are
significantly higher in the low social, economic strata due to impaired social mobility of the
population in the low socioeconomic strata (Bhattacahrjee et al., 2011).

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 4
What are the key benefits and limitations of e-health?
Benefits
E-health is efficient and convenient as the medical practitioners and office administrators do not
have to spend time sorting through bulky papers of patients' records. The users can access the records
quickly and efficiently in the office (Minichiello, Rahman, Dune, Scott & Dowsett, 2013).
Electronic health recording has helped the hospital providers to improve productivity and work-
life balance as most of the time is spent on the patients.
E-health has promoted improvement in the quality of care. The computerized records are often
easier to access and read compared to the handwriting of the doctors. This reduces the risk of errors
and misinterpretations, which can affect the quality of patient care (Minichiello et al., 2013).
Limitations
E-health is prone to potential security and privacy issues. The e-health records are vulnerable to
hacking or access from unauthorized individuals; hence, the patient's records could end up to
unintended individuals (Blusi, Dalin & Jong, 2014).
Inaccurate data may be used- due to the instantaneous nature of electronic health records transfer;
there is a need to update the patient's records after every visit immediately. Failure to update could
lead to medical practitioners relying on inaccurate information to determine treatment approaches
(Blusi et al., 2014).
Patients can access the data easily, which can lead to misinterpretation. This can lead to undue
alarm or panic (Blusi et al., 2014).

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 5
How does ideology and politics shape health outcomes? Draw on examples such as the
PBS to illustrate your points.
Politics and ideology have a significant influence on health outcomes. Health is a
radical option, and politics is an unceasing struggle for power among opposing ideologies.
The policy decision made by national, state and tertiary institutions, churches, and other
organizations for a given demographic have significant impacts on society's health and
wellbeing (Gore & Parker, 2019). The effect of policies that fail to take a holistic perception
of the marginalized societies' health reflects a political failure of the system in regard to
fundamental human rights of a given group's health.
Government organizations and political history, associations between society and
state, and relations in a community are among the influences that majorly shape health policy
and systems. Therefore, the actors that hold power, device how they exercise, derive, and
experience power. People are likely to incline to the political ideologies of their political
affiliation (Gore & Parker, 2019).
For example, PBS has been in use for more than fifty years, which has made it gain a
positive repute. It is considered affordable as it offers subsidized drugs; however, due to the
higher number of users, it faces a risk of overutilization, which may make it unsustainable in
the future (Clarke, 2012). The ideology that PBS is affordable has made available to almost
everyone, which consequently affects the capacity of drug subsidy.

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 6
Certain mechanisms of the functionalist theory are utilized today. Discuss what they are
and highlight the main assumptions and limitations of functionalism.
The functionalist theory is one of the hypothetical viewpoints in sociology, that
interprets each part of the society in regard to how it leads to the stability of the entire
civilization (Mulkay, 2014). In the functionalist model, diverse parts of a community are
basically encompassed by social organizations. Each of the organizations is created to meet
diverse wants, where each of them has specific implications for the shape and form of the
whole society. The significant organizations defined that it is essential to comprehend the
theory include, government, economy, media, education, and religion (Lavenex, 2014).
According to the theory, an organization exists only because it is meant to serve an
essential role in the function of society. The theory states that when new needs emerge, new
organizations are created to meet the new needs (Lavenex, 2014). The theory assumes that
societies strive towards equilibrium and that the organizations are independent and should be
viewed individually (Mulkay, 2014).
The functionalist theory is limited since organizations in the society are interlinked,
and the study of the theory should incorporate the network of relationships that exist between
the organizations (Mulkay, 2014).
The theory neglects to define the negative implications of social disorder and does not
influence individuals to take an active role in transforming their social setting even when the
transformation is beneficial to them(Mulkay, 2014).

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 7
What is medical dominance, and how does the medical profession achieve medical
dominance in Australia?
Medical dominance in the control of the medical profession over the content, terms,
and conditions of its autonomy, control over other health occupations and the health division
labor, control over consumers, and control over the broader context of healthcare (McNeil,
Mitchell & Parker, 2013). Medical dominance a boundary of medical knowledge and
expertise of professional physicians from nurses (Humphreys, Thomas & Martin, 2014).
Hence doctors are at the top of the professional hierarchy in medicine.
The professionalization of the doctors has consolidated the dominance of medicine
over all other medical occupations in Australia. The primary cause of doctor’s dominance in
the specialized medical field is attributed to the degree of expert knowledge they have and the
definitive level of control and power that they exercise through the use of this knowledge
(McNeil et al., 2013).
The framework of the nurses' role in the making of decisions and supplementary
aspects of their profession serves as the primary source of medical dominance. Nurses have
limited power as the doctors have a superior exercise of the medical profession, for instance,
in decision making (Humphreys et al., 2014). In addition, medical dominance is grounded in
the interest of the medical profession, coinciding with those of the dominant class (McNeil et
al., 2013). Hence the high interest in the medical profession raises increases medical
dominance.

Watakatiye Rajapskaha Gedara Janaki Achala W. S306820
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Question 8
Explain the concept of discourse and explain how it is relevant to health and biomedicine
in Australia. Draw on examples to highlight your points.
Discourse refers to the way in which people communicate and think about other
individuals, things, the social association of the society, and the association amongst the three
aspects (Flatt, 2013). Discourse arises out of social organizations, for instance, media and
politics. It structures and orders individual lives, relationships with others, and society (Flatt,
2013). Information regarding the distribution and causes of illnesses is gathered through
personal observations, mass media, social work and is utilized to develop a hypothesis as to
the etiology and risk of suffering a disorder (Purdy, Little, Mayes & Lipworth, 2017).
In Australian society, popular health and discourses regarding health and disease are
interlinked. Different medical phrases are extensively used in debates on illness and health,
and biomedical descriptions of body functions are given extensive validity (Flatt, 2013).
Similarly, medical practitioners remain members of the general civilization, sharing the same
social knowledge (Purdy et al., 2017). General physicians often share with their patients a
comprehensive view of illness and health than that which is strictly biomedical (Flatt, 2013).
For example, both medical practitioners and common individuals in society express
the same understanding of the significance of stress in relation to the disorder (Flatt, 2013).

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Question 9
What is multi-culturalism, and how might health needs differ for immigrants and
refugees to people who are born in Australia?
Multiculturalism is the view that races, and ethnicities mainly those of the minority
communities, deserve special acknowledgment of their differences within a dominant pollical
culture. The cultural and social constructs, for instance, race, language, education, ethnicity,
religion, and economic status, are key influences on individuals’ health and wellbeing
(Maginn & Hamnett, 2016). Minority groups, for instance, the very old, and the poor, newly
arrived immigrants, and individuals living with a disability among the minority communities
are mainly Australian's most susceptible and in need of support at a significantly greater level
than the rest of communities (Maginn & Hamnett, 2016). In comparison with those who have
social and economic advantages, the minority communities in Australia are more expected to
have shorter lives, advanced levels of illness risk influences, and minor use of defensive
health facilities (Maginn & Hamnett, 2016).
The health needs of the individuals born in Australia differ with those of the refugees
because the Immigrants may have undergone through severe scarcity, shock, and agony that
can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a disease that can strongly affect an
individual’s health and capacity to relocate (Maginn & Hamnett, 2016). Therefore, the health
needs of the refugees are significantly different from the rest of the population who may not
have any hardship encounters.

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Question 10
What are the social determinants of health, and how do they help us understand the
dynamics of globalization and inequity? Draw on examples in the Australian context to illustrate
your key points.
Social determinants of health are the complex situations that individuals are born in and
dwell in that have implications on their health. The determinants include intangible factors
such as social-economic, political, and cultural constructs (Ferguson, 2014). Other factors such
as accessibility to education and healthcare, safe dwelling environment, and availability of
healthy foods. Using the social determinants of health, one can comprehend the dynamic of
globalization and inequality, which encompasses geographical scope, volume, and density of
transaction and pace of transformation (Marmot & Allen, 2014).
The social determinants of health are generally responsible for health inequalities - the
biased and preventable disparities in health status evidenced within and between nations
(Marmot & Allen, 2014). There are various forces that drive globalization and inequality.
Drivers of globalization of different types, groups, and persons have varying drivers, for
instance, technology, weather, and diseases (Ferguson, 2014). These conditions are formed by
the distribution of power, money, and resources at an international, national, and local levels.
For example, the marginalized communities and the refugees live under the poor social,
economic state, which is highly attributed to their poor health status (Ferguson, 2014). Their
state is attributed to inequality and resource deprivation due to their lack of influence.

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References
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