Lilac Module 1 (L1 - L8) Flashcards
Lecture 2: What determines health status of population?
The distribution of health is influenced not only by factors specific to individuals, such as age, sex and lifestyle, but also by the broader social determinants of health that exert their influence on both individuals and groups of people. The social determinants of health include factors such as income, poverty, levels of wealth and income inequality, education, occupation, ethnicity, socioeconomic position, housing, access and availability of healthcare, and so forth.
So basically the determinants of health - that diagram
Lecture 2: Briefly describe the distribution of health in NZ
- What groups experience the inequality?
- What is the social gradient of health?
There is inequality in the distribution of good health experienced by many groups within NZ pop. People from lower SES and of Maori + Pacific ethnicity tend to experience poorer health outcomes in comparison to other groups within NZ.
The term ‘social gradient of health’ is used to describe the fact that as the level of deprivation increases the level of overall health decreases when observing groups within a population. This highlights that good health is not distributed equally across socioeconomic groups in NZ.
Lecture 2: Briefly describe the NZDep measure and how health is patterned by NZDep.
- What is it?
- What do the numbers mean?
- What is it derived from?
- In New Zealand there is a pattern of health by….?
- The New Zealand deprivation index (NZDep) is an area-based measure of socioeconomic deprivation.
- This index runs from decile one to decile ten, with a decile one area being an area with the least deprived NZDep score and a decile ten area being an area with the most deprived NZDep score.
- NZDep is derived from questions asked in the Census of Population and Dwellings and is based on small areas of approximately 100 people.
- In New Zealand there is a pattern of health by socioeconomic deprivation. Many poor health conditions/outcomes have a higher prevalence among people living in areas with the most deprived NZDep scores compared with people living in areas with the least deprived NZDep scores.
Lecture 3: Describe the broad patterns of change in epidemiological and demographic transitions
The epidemiological transition explains the change in disease burden over time. Historically communicable disease dominated the disease burden in populations but over time there has been a decreasing burden of communicable disease and an increasing burden of non-communicable disease. Non-communicable disease levels have now increased to a point where they are the dominant disease burden in most populations.
The demographic transition explains the changes in populations over time from having high birth and death rates and low total population numbers, to having low birth and death rates and increasing total population numbers. This helps to explain why there are increasingly larger proportions of the population in the older age groups.
Lecture 3: What is double burden of disease?
It is a period of time during the epidemiological transition when both communicable and non-communicable diseases are IMPORTANT AND OCCURRING in a specified population. It is more likely to be clearly evident when countries are experiencing both the demographic and epidemiological transitions in a short period of time. Inequalities within population groups are very evident during the double burden period of time as some groups within the population will be at later stages of the transitions and some at earlier stages of the transitions.
Lecture 3: Briefly describe some of the implications of an “ageing population”
- What happens in a ageing population? Like what is it?
- Why do we need this group to age well?
- What will ageing well enable this population to do>
- In an aging population large proportions of the population will be living into older age.
- We need this group in the population to age well so that they are not only living longer but also that these years are lived in good health.
- Ideally ‘aging well’ will enable this population group to continue to be ACTIVE PARTICIPANTS in their families and communities as well as potentially economically, well into the older ages and therefore DECREASING THE PERIOD OF DEPENDENCY on other working age groups in the population.
Lecture 4: Why is evidence-based practice important?
EBP guides clinicians when deciding who to treat, when they should treat and how they should treat patients by using sound epidemiological evidence.
Lecture 5: How could you potentially reduce the prevalence of a disease?
We could potentially reduce the prevalence of a disease (or slow its increase) by reducing the incidence of the disease (preventing it), and/or by reducing the duration of the disease (faster recovery/killing people more quickly).
Lecture 6: Explain why it is important to consider inequalities in oral health.
Many of the inequalities in oral health are caused by modifiable risk factors. This means it may be possible to develop and promote oral health interventions that could specifically target groups with poor oral health, as well as the general New Zealand population.
As mentioned in the answer to question one, most oral diseases are progressive and irreversible. Therefore, for those groups currently experiencing inequalities in oral health outcomes it is even more important to develop interventions designed to prevent oral diseases from developing, as an early onset and ongoing progression of disease will promote the growth of inequality between groups.
Lecture 6: Which groups in New Zealand are most likely to be affected by inequalities in oral health?
Groups most likely to be affected by inequalities in oral health include lower socio- economic groups, Māori and Pacific ethnic groups, people with lower levels of education, populations with limited access to fluoridated water supplies, and populations that are more geographically isolated in New Zealand.
Lecture 6: Explain the concept of proportionate universalism as it relates to interventions to reduce inequalities in oral health.
Proportionate universalism aims to reduce health inequalities by decreasing the steepness of the social gradient of health within a population. To achieve this, interventions endeavour to target an entire population (universalism), but adjust the intensity and scope of the intervention to reflect the different levels of disadvantage within the population (proportionate). In practice, this means that populations/groups with the greatest need will benefit more from the intervention than those who are less in need.
Lecture 7: Why is it important to consider Pacific health?
Pacific peoples make up 7 % of New Zealand’s total population and they suffer disproportionately from poor health outcomes as presented using selected health indicators. Those working within the health sector have a responsibility towards improving outcomes for all New Zealanders.
Lecture 7: Describe the relationship between socio-economic status and Pacific health
The evidence suggests that socio-economic status influences health outcomes. Those who live in the most deprived areas of New Zealand (Decile 8-10) have poorer health outcomes compared to those in the least deprived areas (Decile 1-3). Pacific people are over-represented in the most deprived areas of New Zealand.
Lecture 7: What are the approaches required to improve the health of Pacific peoples in New Zealand?
A collective approach is required to improve outcomes for Pacific peoples. Efforts are required at the government level, health organisations and providers, Pacific communities, families and the individual level.
Lecture 8: Why is it important to consider Māori health?
The Treaty of Waitangi is the foundation document for New Zealand society. As applied to health, one of the core Treaty principles is to ensure that Māori have at least the same level of health as non-M ori, while safeguarding M ori cultural concepts, values, and practices.
As a group, Māori commonly experience worse health outcomes compared to people who identify as NZ European. Many of the causes/risk factors influencing the experience of inequalities in health outcomes by Māori are modifiable, and if appropriate interventions are developed and implemented, these may result in the closing of the gap between Māori and NZ European health outcomes. This will result in an increase in the overall level of health for Māori people.
