Social Determinants of Health: Impact on HIV Prognosis Study

This assignment delves into the significant role social determinants of health play in influencing HIV prognosis. It highlights that early disease detection improves prognosis, while gender has less definitive impact. Factors such as high school education, economic stability, and a supportive environment contribute to better outcomes by increasing therapy adherence and mental well-being. Conversely, social exclusion, lack of health insurance, and inadequate sex education worsen prognosis by limiting access to treatment and increasing risky behaviors. The assignment also considers the long-term and short-term consequences of HIV prevalence among different demographic groups, including children, women, the workforce, and older adults, emphasizing the potential strain on healthcare systems and societal structures. Desklib is your go-to resource for similar assignments and study tools.

Running head: SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Social Determinants of Health
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Answer: a
Yes.
If the disease is detected at an early age then there occurs an improvement in the
overall disease prognosis. For example, HIV detected at an early age leads to earlier
administration of the anti-retroviral therapy which helps in better disease prognosis. The
gender does not play any significant role in disease prognosis. In HIV, survival disadvantage
of women in comparison to men should be confirmed and more research is required to be
undertaken in the underlying disparity. The mode of transmission does not holds significance
in the prognosis of HIV or other diseases like cancer however, co-infection can worsen the
disease prognosis as it further suppress the immunogenic strength of the body.
Answer: b
The social determinants which are associated with the better prognosis of HIV
infection include proper high school education, economic strength and the surrounding
environment. With better education, proper healthcare awareness is achieved and this helps to
increase the therapy adherence. With better economic strength, access of proper healthcare
becomes easier and this promotes improved disease prognosis. A supportive surrounding
environment like co-operation coming from parents, spouse and children helps to promote
better mental health well-being and this help in proper disease recovery. This social support
helps to reduce the HIV-related risk behaviour.
The social determinants, which are associated with worse disease prognosis in case of
HIV infections include social exclusion or social marginalization, lack of proper health
insurance and lack of basic sexual education. Social marginalization is a significant factor,

2
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
which affects the prognosis of HIV. Socially marginalized people who are marginalized just
because of HIV infection fail to receive proper treatment of fail to seek out for proper
treatment for HIV and this hampers the disease prognosis. The lack of proper health
insurance also affects the disease prognosis and regular health checkups in HIV take a tool in
the financial capacity and this creating a burden. Lack of proper sex education especially
among the minority group increase the tendency of having unprotected sex with multiple
partners this not only affects the disease prognosis but also increases the count of HIV
infected person.
Answer: c
When the large number of HIV infected population are children, the long term issue
will be a huge health burden over the upcoming young generation. The short term issue will
be hamper in the basic education and healthy childhood due to their immune-compromised
state. When the majority of the population is women then the both the long and the short term
issue will be negative relationship among the other members of the society and major portion
of the society look down upon or do character assassination among women who are infected
with HIV due to unprotected sex. When the main workforce are affected with HIV the long
term consequence is disruption in the equilibrium of the economic structure of the family and
the society and this also extends as the long-term affect. When older people is infected with
HIV then in the short term affect is limited access of the healthcare service as the majority of
the people feel that HIV spreads through contact. This lack of proper access of healthcare
disrupts the overall family structure.