Analysis of Social Determinants Affecting Indigenous Health in Canada

This essay delves into the social determinants of health (SDOH) and their profound impact on Indigenous populations in Canada. It begins by defining Indigenous peoples and highlighting their historical and ongoing challenges, including the disruption of traditional education systems and the assimilation policies of colonial powers. The essay explores how lower levels of education, economic instability, and inadequate healthcare access contribute to health disparities. It examines the role of neighborhood environments, community contexts, and social discrimination in shaping health outcomes. The analysis considers the interconnectedness of these determinants, illustrating how they collectively affect mental health, access to services, and overall well-being. The essay concludes by emphasizing the need for community awareness, economic stability, health literacy, and culturally sensitive healthcare to improve the health and quality of life for Indigenous peoples. The essay highlights the importance of addressing these SDOH to achieve health equity and promote the well-being of Indigenous communities.

Running head: SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Disadvantages of being indigenous Individual in Canada
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Introduction to Canadian Aboriginals
Canada refers to First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities as Indigenous Peoples (or
Aboriginal Peoples). These are the pioneering people of the country named Australia. About
1.6 million Canadian people registered as aboriginal in the 2016 Census (Statistics Canada),
comprising 4.9% of the country's population. Although the indigenous culture, language and
social structures have been seriously threatened and, in some instances, extinguished by
colonial powers, the growth and prosperity of Canada has influenced and continued amid
significant adversities.
Social Determinants of Health
Social factors that determine health (SDH), which shape the conditions of daily
routine, are the circumstances under which people are born, growing, working, live and age.
These include economic and systems policies, development agendas, social standards, social
policies and political systems. The WHO-wide SDH network supports SDH action.
Impact of Lower Level of Education
The indigenous people taught their young people through traditional methods before
their encounter with Europeans: presentation, socialization of community, involvement in
cultural and spiritual practices, developing skills and oral guidance. The implementation of
schooling in Western classrooms as part of a greater goal of assimilation disrupted
conventional methods and contributed to ethnic disruption and dislocation. Reformers in
indigenous education policy are seeking to reintegrate traditional teaching to help indigenous
children in the school system in terms in cultural and language care. Training is the
foundation of the Canadian aboriginal struggle. The war is to bring them back under power as
cultures and as countries. For the last decade, Indigenous communities have been rising.

2SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH
Within Canada's major population areas, their largest population stays. Aboriginal people's
overall education requirements were behind Canada's overall education standards. The
number of Aboriginal students dropping out of the secondary school is estimated at 40
percent (2009), compared with 20 percent of the overall Canadian population. According to a
survey, there are approximately 40% of Aboriginal people who have left high school
compared with 20% of the total Canadian population. The job of aboriginal people has
evolved but stayed fairly low over the 20 years. The increase in number of aboriginal people
with high schools over the last ten years has resulted in an increase in their public image.
Educating the Aboriginals is also not quite effective given the improvements. The non-
Aboriginal school program does not respect the language and culture of indigenous people.
The program raises knowledge of some of these international talents, as it destroys the native
education system. That has culminated in a perception of low self-esteem and insufficient
retirement and poor performance in Native graduates. The non-Aboriginal system of
education therefore does not honor the vocabulary, culture and traditions of the Indigenous.
Economic Stability
Economic stability defines the economic status of an individual which dignifies that
either the individual is having a basic income to satisfy his daily demands or not. Each nation
defines therir own limit of economic line. The economic line of a nation is totally based on
the average annual income of mob in that nation. It defines that the basic need of the crowd is
fulfilled by the certain amount of income.
When a individual is not being satisfied with their daily need it defines that they are
lacking to afford a basic quality of life that is needed. Moreover, lacking the economic
stability pushes a crowd to mentally unstable situations which speaks of that the future of the
same community will also face deprivation that their ancestors are facing. The non meeting

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of economic line and over meeting of an economic line defines that poorer stays poor for ages
and on the other hand richer gets rich. The aboriginals in CANADA faced the same deficits
as they were totally placed in remote outskirts thus lacking thje availability of basic need and
also lacks basic opportunities of earning as equal potential as the non-aboriginals.
Health and Health care Education
Health need and health education is a prime need that the life of every individuals
demand. The health needs asks for proper mode of health care and also the mechanisms that
one need to avail to stay safe and lead a secure life. The health education speaks about the
rights to health needs of an individual which includes right to vaccinations, right to get
treated at any place and rights towards equality. The health education also teaches about
symptoms that when a person need to consult a physician, immediate remedies to required
help regarding health, major demands of during critical conditions, modes of contacting
authorities when needed and also asks about practices of healthy behavior in daily life
(Horrill et al., 2018).
Individuals with certain knowledge can have potentially better life in their future as
the knowledge gets inherited from one individual of the family to the other. Thus when it
comes about the indigenous population in Canada residing isolated from the culturally
benifitted crowd, the concern arises that they are standing at a position where they are not
even aware what can be and how can a healthy lifestyle practice can benefit them.
An example of such can be shown taking example of the Tuskegee community in the
United States where the residents suffered for four decades suffering from syphilis until a
Nurse went to treat them out of the sake of humanity (Horrill et al., 2018).

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Neighborhood Built
Neighbourhood and a community also put immense impact on the mental health and
behavior of an individual. The individual staying in a community can put up either healthy or
annoying habits based on the understanding of the community. These habits may include
either healthy practices of daily proper diet and exercise or unhealthy habit of smoking and
consumption of alcohol.Based on the neighbourhood an individual can also be prone to
mental illness like depression or anxiety. These factors prevail when the surrounding
community tends to fill with criminality and terror. If the locality of an individual remains
unprivileged then it can lead to non availability of proper education as well which may lead
to illiteracy of the family and the community even for their future tenure (globalnews.ca,
2020).
Social and Community Context
Being in a community cooperation is highly required. Being a social participant an
individual must be productive towards their community and hence be able to implement ideas
towards the development of their society. Government taking steps to put effort on removal
of backdrifting of these indigenous communities, however, the effort totally lies among the
individuals of these communities that when they are willing to support the government by
actively participating itn the policies being formed by them. Often it had been evident that
teenagers of the community commit suicide due to lack of availability of education and due
to being prone to discrimination. The formation of policies are to support these individuals,
but these are only effective when these communities are provided with the knowledge of
these policies.

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Impact of these determinants on health
Each determinant act majorly in order to impact the population. Impact of lower level
of education makes a community prone to bias and discrimination among the community of
non-aboriginals. Such factors impact the mental health of the indivduals making them much
prone towards mental illness. Social discrimination has shown multiple cases of depression
and anxiety among aboriginals. Thus, several survey concluded that aboriginal when made
their way towards education being in the region of non- aboriginals, several cases of sucides
had prevailed only as a result of social discrimination due to racial bias and difference in
languages.
Moreover lack of health education has shown how individuals are getting affected
with diseases due to having no knowledge regarding vaccinations. In addition, health
education also provides knowledge regarding healthydiet and remedies against chronic
illness, such as: cardiovascular disorders and diabetes milletus type 2. Chronic illness are
hazardous for a community as on a long run these can get inherited to their next generation
(Kolahdooz et al., 2015).
Conclusion
The community awareness allows residents to realize where to develop or attempt to
construct their property. It means that the area should be open to essential needs and
environmental standards should be protected throughout its stay. The construction of the
environment should be pure and be free of crime and violence. Based on a stable economy.
Enabling them to meet their basic life requirements and sustain a essential standard of living
or a quality of life in an individual's life. There is a strong desire for peace in culture. One
should make efforts to develop one's culture as a member in community. The policy alone is
not enough to help it unless the public demands its time. Knowledge of medical care and

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access to health care services helps the public to understand when the need occurs. Health
literacy demonstrates a person's rights to receive medical services and calls for immediate
action or a schedule for treatment as appropriate.Alone the government is not sufficient to
provide help unless the public emphasize their time for it. Knowing the health care and
accessing to the health care facilities leads thev crowd to understand when to avail the need.
Literacy towards the health care teaches the rights of an individual to avail health care needs
and allows to take immediate interventions or plot a care plan at the time of need
(healthypeople.gov, 2020).
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