University of Tasmania CNA151 Report: Social Determinants of Health

This report analyzes the social determinants of health, focusing on a case study of a 54-year-old woman named Carla and her family. The report examines the socio-demographic characteristics of the individuals, including their age, education, employment, and living conditions, and how these factors impact their health. It identifies key social determinants of health, such as educational attainment and financial stability, and their influence on individual well-being. The report also explores the impact of factors like lack of education, head injuries, and early pregnancy on the health of the individuals in the case study. Additionally, the report discusses potential strategies to improve access to healthcare, such as psychosocial support, and highlights the role of health professionals in addressing social determinants of health at the individual, practice, and community levels. The report emphasizes the importance of understanding and addressing the root causes of ill health to promote health equity and deliver patient-centered services, referencing various studies and resources to support its findings.

Running head: Social determinants of health
Social determinants of health
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Social determinants of health
Socio-demographic characteristics of the individuals in this case study:
Socio-demography is nothing more than the features of a society. Characteristics such as
age, class, race, educational degree, employment, years of service, place, etc. are typically called
socio-demographics (Jalali-Farahani et al. 2017). For example, Carla lives in a rural area.
Evidences show that people living in the rural area are more prone to several chronic diseases.
Those who are a racial / ethnic group, reside in rural areas or have a weaker socio-economic
standing are particularly impacted. Individuals with chronic illnesses are at increased risk of
injury, lack of independence and decreased quality of life, and these elevated risks may
contribute to a reduction in employment and a rise in health care expenses and the stress on
caregivers (Bobitt et al. 2019). Approximately 7 million people — about 29 percent of the
population live in rural and urban regions (Aihw.gov.au 2020). Due of their cultural distance,
many Australians experience particular difficulties and sometimes have worse health and
wellbeing conditions than individuals live in big cities. The percentage of people involved in
unhealthy health-related behaviours such as consuming cigarettes and heavy alcohol
consumption is greater in rural and urban regions than in metropolitan cities, as is (usually) the
incidence of medical diseases. Such lower health results could be attributed to causes such as
educational deficiency, job conditions, wages and access to care (Aihw.gov.au 2020).
Social determinants of health that are evident in the case study:
Individual’s health is affected by poor economic and social circumstances throughout life
(Braveman and Gottlieb 2014). People placed at the extreme end of a vertical social ladder, are at
an increasing risk of developing illnesses and thus, premature mortality than those who are at the
top. Thus, among the various classes of individuals living in the society, middle-class workers

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and lower ranking staff suffer from different diseases and are at an increasing risk of premature
death. Thus, the case study represented here, depicts socio-demographic characteristics of the
individuals involved in the case study and builds a connection of social determinants with their
health.
Carla- As it is depicted in the case study, the 54 year old woman, Carla, struggled since she was
21 years old. Carla could not complete her studies as well. She got married at a very young age.
Upon Carla’s separation with her husband, she became the sole parent of her children. As a
result, Carla’s responsibility towards taking care of her children also increases and she became
ignore ignorant of herself and her health. She worked in grocery and retail positions around
town. However, the money she earned got tighter as the children grew up. Also, Carla’s husband,
John has no work and he often faced financial issue. Carla might have helped John in this time
since it is mentioned in the case study that Carla often stood behind his husband during crisis.
She also worked as volunteers at the RSPCA and made a little money cleaning at the post office
and the town hall. After Carla’s children grew up, they moved to the city to look for
employment. Carla wanted to help her daughter during her crisis and thus, she was saving money
by eating toast for her evening meal that is not maintaining a proper diet, thus, increasing the risk
of development of different chronic diseases. These hardships and struggle can contribute to
various diseases and premature death. Also, lack of education can have significant effects on
health of an individual. Educated people lead safer and happier life than their less qualified
people and they enjoy better lives (Zajacova and Lawrence 2018). Education has been the key
road to financial stability, steady jobs and social progress over the past few decades. Critical
elements of safety include basic education experience and abilities, which involve essential

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awareness, reasoning capacity, autonomy and engagement. In addition, education is an essential
health social determinant, the upstream health source (Hahn and Truman 2015).
John- John had sustained a head injury and lost his job. He also became forgetful and later
developed depression. John had significant financial crisis and therefore, he is at an increasing
risk of developing chronic conditions.
Robbie- Robbie has not continued his studies after 12 and thus, it is highly possible that due to
lack of awareness he can suffer from various illnesses.
Annie- Annie lived with her boyfriend and get pregnant at an early age however, they are
worried about how to afford rent. She also developed gestational diabetes. Annie and Josh
struggled to live in a tiny room apartment and Josh managed to both work and go to school.
However, he decided to quit school later on.
Social determinants of health are factors in the social setting in which individuals are
raised, stay, study, operate and play, impacting a broad variety of safety, working and quality of
life consequences and threats (Short and Mollborn 2015). Such social and/or cultural features of
people, classes, communities and environments have been found to have a significant effect on
safety and well-being at the adult and community levels. Examples of person or group-level
social determinants include gender, race / ethnicity, Socioeconomic status (SES), social
background, schooling, wages, profession, job status, residential status, immigrant status,
language usage, disability status, and social resources (Singh et al. 2017). Thus, the above social
determinants of health of these characters signify their health condition and also measure the rate
of risk they have towards developing certain health condition.

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Social determinants of health
One of the social determinants identified:
One of the social determinants identified is educational attainment. Educational
attainment is related to improved health in adulthood. Knowledge equips individuals to obtain
decent jobs, to provide a healthy wage, to stay in sufficient homes, to cater for families and to
deal with poor health by helping them make better decisions regarding health care. The degree of
education of an adult affects not only his or her own wellbeing, but also that of his or her family,
particularly dependent children. Occupations have a direct correlation to the socioeconomic class
and are frequently correlated with higher employment and higher wages. More schooling raises
the possibility of further success, as these jobs also provide higher salaries. Employment as
earnings plays a part in the socio-economic condition and, thus, wellbeing. In addition to
improving the role of the economy, higher incomes often provide better access to resources and
services which provide health benefits, such as better food and accommodation, supplementary
medical care options and increased choice for healthier purposes (Aihw.gov.au 2018).
A Strategy can be implemented to improve access to health care and get positive
outcomes. For example, psychosocial support to improve mental health. Psychosocial support
services help individuals with serious mental illness build improved mental disease coping
abilities, strengthen interactions with their families and other individuals as well as promote
social and economic engagement.
The Australian Legislation requires psychosocial treatment for individuals with extreme
psychosocial disorders, who are often not covered by the National Disability Insurance Scheme
(NDIS), to be compensated with psychosocial assistance. psychosocial assistance is supported by
the following three programmes:

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 National Psychosocial Support Transition (NPS-T)
 National Psychosocial Support Measure (NPS-M)
 Continuity of Support (CoS) (health.gov.au, 2018).
Primary Health Networks (PHNs) have been invited to request customized psychosocial
counseling programs to address the desires of their local populations. Commissioning services is
told regarding the desires of local consumers. PHNs will also assist clients in seeking appropriate
behavioral wellbeing and healthcare care through wider funding plans for mental wellness
(health.gov.au, 2018).
Health professionals role to address social determinants of health
There is ample data from across the world that people who are disadvantaged and less
trained have more health conditions and die faster than others that are wealthier and more skilled,
and that such inequalities also occur in wealthy nations. In order to have an effect on increasing
health equality and delivering more patient-centered services, it is important to properly identify
and resolve the root factors of ill health. But doctors still feel powerless and overwhelmed when
faced with the diverse and interconnected health and social problems of their patients. Many stop
answering concerns regarding societal issues, opting to rely on medical care and health
recommendations. It is widely understood that enhancing public wellbeing ought to be a focus in
the health sector and that steps to mitigate inequality to be incorporated into health systems and
services (Braveman and Gottlieb 2014). Educating doctors, nurses and other allied health
professionals to tackle social determinants of health is perceived to be one of the main criteria for
achieving more inclusive health. Doctors and other allied health professionals are now involved
in a broad variety of professional preventive practices, early detection with the goal of illness
reduction and wellness promotion. Addressing social determinants is a significant and evolving

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field of research that includes beginning early and broadening the spectrum of treatments,
rendering entire families and communities safer (Solomon and Kanter 2018). There are several
ways in which doctors and other allied health professionals may focus on social determinants of
health at the individual, practice and group level. At the patient stage, doctors should be
responsive to health symptoms, inform patients about societal issues in a compassionate and
supportive manner, and help them navigate advantages and support resources (Andermann,
2016). At the level of practice, doctors should provide culturally sensitive programs, utilize
patient navigators whenever feasible, and insure that treatment is available to those most in need.
On the community level, doctors will also collaborate with local agencies and public safety,
engage in wellness policy and strive for a more inclusive environment for patients. Increasing
quantities of professional decision-making guides, treatment recommendations and other
resources are already accessible to support doctors and allied health professionals tackle social
determinants in their day-to-day treatment (Andermann, 2016).

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References
Aihw.gov.au, 2018. Social Determinants Of Health. Aihw.gov.au. Available at:
<https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/11ada76c-0572-4d01-93f4-d96ac6008a95/ah16-4-1-social-
determinants-health.pdf.aspx> [Accessed 15 April 2020].
Aihw.gov.au, 2020. Rural And Remote Populations. Aihw.gov.au. Available at:
<https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/0c0bc98b-5e4d-4826-af7f-b300731fb447/aihw-aus-221-
chapter-5-2.pdf.aspx> [Accessed 15 April 2020].
Andermann, A., 2016. Taking action on the social determinants of health in clinical practice: a
framework for health professionals. Cmaj, 188(17-18), pp.E474-E483.
Bobitt, J., Aguayo, L., Payne, L., Jansen, T. and Schwingel, A., 2019. Geographic and Social
Factors Associated With Chronic Disease Self-Management Program Participation: Going the"
Extra-Mile" for Disease Prevention. Preventing chronic disease, 16, pp.E25-E25.
Braveman, P. and Gottlieb, L., 2014. The social determinants of health: it's time to consider the
causes of the causes. Public health reports, 129(1_suppl2), pp.19-31.
Hahn, R.A. and Truman, B.I., 2015. Education improves public health and promotes health
equity. International journal of health services, 45(4), pp.657-678.
health.gov.au, 2018. Department Of Health | Psychosocial Support For People With Severe
Mental Illness. Www1.health.gov.au. Available at:
<https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/psychosocial-support-mental-
illness> [Accessed 17 April 2020].

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Jalali-Farahani, S., Amiri, P., Bakht, S., Shayeghian, Z., Cheraghi, L. and Azizi, F., 2017. Socio-
demographic determinants of health-related quality of life in Tehran lipid and glucose study
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Singh, G.K., Daus, G.P., Allender, M., Ramey, C.T., Martin, E.K., Perry, C., De Los Reyes,
A.A. and Vedamuthu, I.P., 2017. Social determinants of health in the United States: addressing
major health inequality trends for the nation, 1935-2016. International Journal of MCH and
AIDS, 6(2), p.139.
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