Social Determinants of Health

Question 1

Define and list the social determinant of health (8 of them)

Answer 1

The general aspects of one’s living conditions that can affect health.
People, lifestyle, community, local economy, activities, built environment, natural environment, global ecosystem.

Question 2

Health promotion

Answer 2

Promoting individual health through campaigns

Question 3

Health field concept and its 4 aspects

Answer 3

Addressing the social factors beyond individual control that affect health. Outlines human biology, environment, lifestyle and health care.

Question 4

Health care organization

Answer 4

Nature of health care system

Question 5

The Lalonde Report

Answer 5

Created in 1981 and introduced the health fireld concept

Question 6

Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion

Answer 6

Created in 1986 and defined health promotion. Outline the prerequisites of health

Question 7

The Epp Report

Answer 7

Late 1980s. Supported to Ottawa Charter and included 3 mechanisms for health promotion: self-care, mutual aid and health environments

Question 8

Action Statement for Health Promotion in Canada

Answer 8

Created in 1996 during the time that population health was introduced

Question 9

Population Health

Answer 9

Approach to health that focuses on the health of the general population and the social determinants that affect it

Question 10

What are the criticisms against population health?

Answer 10

Promoites epidemiology and empirical approaches, theoretical and political, neglects unique situations within the population and doesn’t allow for much community involvement

Question 11

Biomedical approach

Answer 11

Belief that illnesses are causes by biological/physiological factors. Health can be obtained through medicine and other biological treatments.

Question 12

Behavioural approach

Answer 12

Belief that illnesses are causes by one’s actions. Health can be obtained by changing one’s behaviours.

Question 13

Social-environmental model

Answer 13

Observes how social structures affect one’s health and behaviours

Question 14

Downstream vs upstream approach

Answer 14

Downstream = trying to help patient when they’ve already gotten sick
Upstream = resolving/reducing issues that could make someone sick

Question 15

What is the biggest contributor to health issues?

Answer 15

Income inequalities

Question 16

Material deprivation

Answer 16

Not having access to basic necessities to meet a certain standard of living

Question 17

Psycho-social stress

Answer 17

Stress due to one’s social status

Question 18

What is the correlation between a country’s income inequality and life expectancy?

Answer 18

Negative correlation: Countries with higher income inequalities have lower life expectancies

Question 19

Why does mortality increase when income inequality increases?

Answer 19

The rich and the poor spend on different things, which leads to a lack of social services that are accessible to almost everyone (e.g. education and health care)

Question 20

Social capital

Answer 20

The strenght of a society’s social structures and interactions

Question 21

Neo-materialist approach

Answer 21

Observes how the distribution of wealth and resources deterimines the population’s health

Question 22

Welfare states

Answer 22

How much gov provides social and health services to citizens

Question 23

Social democratic

Answer 23

Firm commitment to redistributive policies and has lowest income inequality

Question 24

Christian democratic

Answer 24

Low support for redistributive policies and has a sort-of high level of income inequality. Includes other social support for elderly and universal health care coverage.

Question 25

Liberalism

Answer 25

Low support for redistributive policies and income inequality is higher. Social services are weaker and limited.

Question 26

Conservative/fascist

Answer 26

Welfare states aren’t supported and has the greatest level of income inequality

Question 27

How do neighbourhoods affect health?

Answer 27

Services in that neighbourhood, location compared to health care facilities, and its design

Question 28

How do cars affect health?

Answer 28

Don’t get enough exercise, contributes to air pollution, increases accidents and allows people to live far away from each other, reducing social cohesion

Question 29

What factors contirbute to eating behaviours?

Answer 29

Social (families, friends, peers)
Physical (availability of food and quantity of it)
Economic (foods that are marketed)

Question 30

Knowledge-attitudes-behaviour prevention

Answer 30

Changing one’s knowledge will change their attitudes and therefore change behaviours

Question 31

Ecological models

Answer 31

Focuses on ecology of health behaviours

Question 32

Explain the “people and places” framework

Answer 32

• Divided into people and places
• People aspect focuses on social capital, social cohesion and collective efficacy
• People aspect includes individuals, social networks and populations/communities
• Place aspect focuses on availability of products and services, physical and social structures,and messages of the media and culture
• Place aspect includes local (immediate) and distal (broad) environments

Question 33

Health promotion vs population health

Answer 33

Population health focuses on wealth to increase health rather than changing structural factors.
Population health doesn’t address the politics and economic factors that influence health.
Population health thinks that funding in health care should be redistributed in other government funds to strengthen the economy rather than using funds to help individuals.

Question 34

Epidemology

Answer 34

The study of states of health by lookking at its distribution and determinants

Question 35

What are the three levels of cause? Define them and provide an example.

Answer 35

Distal: Societal aspects that influence health (e.g. government policies)
Intermediate: Community-related aspects that influence health (e.g. school and peers)
Proximal: Individual influences and behaviours that affect health. (e.g. hygiene)