( 1 of 20 ) Chapter 14 Health, Healthcare, and Disability

( 2 of 20 ) Health is not simply the absence of disease but is now a broader definition: –Health – a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being  Physical  Social  Psychological –Health care – any activity intended to improve health –Medicine – an institutionalized system for the scientific diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of illness

( 3 of 20 ) Life expectancy refers to an estimate of the average lifetime of people born in a specific year Infant mortality rate the number of deaths of infants under 1 year of age per 1,000 live births in a given year Differences in life expectancy and infant mortality rates  insufficient or contaminated food  lack access to pure, safe water  inadequate sewage and refuse disposal  lack of information about maintaining health  lack of qualified physicians

( 4 of 20 ) rankcountry lifespan lifespan lifespan lifespan lifespan Japan Sweden Iceland Australia Israel Switzerland France Canada Norway Belgium Spain Italy Austria Malta Greece Netherlands Cyprus United Kingdom Germany Singapore Finland New Zealand Luxembourg USA Barbados

( 5 of 20 ) –Social epidemiology – the study of the causes and distribution of health, disease, and impairment through a population Disease agents: –Biological agents (insects, bacteria, and viruses) –Nutrient agents (fats and carbohydrates) –Chemical agents (gases and pollutants in the air) –Physical agents Environment: –Physical (geography and climate) –Biological (presence of absence of known disease agents) –Social (socioeconomic status, occupation, and location of home) Human Host: –Demographic factors (age, sex and race/ethnicity)) –Physical condition –Habits and customs –Lifestyle Targets of Investigation

( 6 of 20 ) Chronic diseases – illnesses that are long term or lifelong and that develop gradually or are present from birth Acute diseases – illnesses that strike suddenly and cause dramatic incapacitation and sometimes death Two of the most common sources of chronic disease and premature death in the United States

( 7 of 20 ) Age Chronic disease incidence increase rapidly after age % of the population will be at least 65 by 2050 The number of persons aged 85 or over will have tripled from 4 million in 1995 to 12 million in 2050 Sex (2000) Life expectancy at birth was 74.2 years for males and 79.9 years for females Gender roles and gender socialization may contribute to the difference in life expectancy between men and women Race/Ethnicity and Social Class Socioeconomic factors trump race as influencers of health People with lower incomes are more likely to be employed in jobs that expose them to danger and illness Health in the United States

( 8 of 20 ) Lifestyle Factors Drug use and abuse A drug is any substance - other than food and water – that, when taken into the body, alters its functioning in some way Therapeutic Recreational –Alcohol Adults consume more beer than milk or coffee Among people who drink, 10 % account for 50% the total alcohol consumption –Nicotine (Tobacco) Responsible for about 1 in every 5 deaths in this country Is more addictive than heroin

( 9 of 20 ) This is Bryan Curtis. He started smoking when he was 13 years old. He then began to smoke about 2 packs a day and died just after his 34th birthday of lung and liver cancer. Also pictured is his wife and 2-year-old son Smoking cigarettes is your choice.

( 10 of 20 ) Illegal Drugs Marijuana is the most extensively used illegal drug in the United States About 23 million people over the age of 12 in the United States report that they have used cocaine at least once People who use cocaine over extended periods of time have high rates of infection, heart problems, internal bleeding, hypertension, stroke, and other neurological and cardiovascular disorders than do nonusers Taking drugs is a voluntary action on a person’s part.

( 11 of 20 ) Sexually Transmitted Diseases Having sex is a lifestyle choice gonorrhea, syphilis, genital herpes, HIV, HPV, AIDS, ART Anti-Retroviral Therapy

( 12 of 20 ) Facial Wasting Buffalo Hump Protease Paunch

( 13 of 20 ) The Professionalization of Medicine 1.Abstract, specialized knowledge 2.Autonomy 3.Self-regulation 4.Authority 5.Altruism Health Care in the United States Recent Medical Innovations Bloodless Surgery “Robotdoc” Fee-for-service – patients are billed individually for each service they receive, including treatment by doctors, laboratory work, hospital visits, prescriptions, and other health-related expenses United States’ “two-tier system”

( 14 of 20 ) Private Health Insurance Public Health Insurance Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) Managed Care The Uninsured and the Underinsured Universal Health Care System Socialized Medicine Paying for Medical Care in the United States

( 15 of 20 ) Holistic Medicine An approach to health care that focuses on prevention of illness and disease and is aimed at treating the whole person – body and mind – rather than just the parts in which symptoms occur Alternative Medicine healing practices inconsistent with dominant medical practice

( 16 of 20 ) Functionalist Perspective: The Sick Role (Parsons) People who are sick... 1)are not responsible for their condition 2)temporarily exempt from normal roles and obligations 3)must want to get well 4)must seek competent help from a medical professional

( 17 of 20 ) Conflict Perspective: Inequalities in Health and Health Care ability of all to obtain health care how race, class and gender inequalities affect health power relationships between doctors and other healthcare workers role of profit in the health care system

( 18 of 20 ) Symbolic Interactionist Perspective: The Social Construction of Illness we socially construct health and illness and how both should be treated the social definition of illness leads to the stigmatization of individuals who suffer from the disease medicalization refers to the process whereby non-medical problems become defined and treated as illnesses or disorders. demedicalization (the reverse of this process) homosexuality childbirth menopause

( 19 of 20 ) Disability knows no economic boundaries According to disability rights advocates, “disability must be thought of in terms of how society causes or contributes to the problem – not in terms of what is ‘wrong’ with the person with a disability.”

( 20 of 20 ) Questions? Comments?