Y1 Political and Economic Influences

Question 1

What are political or economic factors which could influence health?

Answer 1

Institutional power (government, businesses etc)
Social inequities (class, race etc)
Living conditions
Risk behaviours (smoking etc)
Disease and injury (e.g. communicable disease)
Mortality (infant mortality, life expectancy)

Question 2

What can be done to target inequalities in healthcare?

Answer 2

Health inequalities audit

Health policies produced by the government

Question 3

What impact can economic/political variables have on public health?

Answer 3

Level of resources available for allocation to public health
Resources allocated to public health
Efficiency of health system
Exposure of population to risk factors

Question 4

What factors do WHO take into account to rank health care systems?

Answer 4

Health (disability-adjusted life expectancy)
Responsiveness (speed of service, protection of privacy, quality of amenities)
Fair financial contribution

Question 5

What is a health policy?

Answer 5

Any policy which has a direct bearing on health, includes income security, employment, education, housing, business, agriculture, transportation, justice and technology

Question 6

Political, economic and military variables which may have an impact on factors affecting health

Answer 6

Democracy
International rivalry
Civil conflict
Ethno-religious cleavages
Income inequality
Rapid urbanisation
Level of education attainment
Level of economic development