Ethnic group
Health disparities can be defined as differences that exist between different groups of people living in the United States in attaining their full health potential. Health disparity can be measured through differences in mortality rate, the burden of disease among other adverse conditions, according to the health of people in 2020, age, race, disability status, gender influences a person’s ability to receive the best health care. Race and ethnic background are argued to be among the cause of health disparities in the US.
African Americans have been experiencing health disparities for years due to racial and social injustices. For years African Americans have been subjected to slavery where they were tortured and brutalized. They were seen to be unequal in the eyes of the Native Americans, and until today, disparities still exist in the provision of essential services such as health. Some factors have contributed to health disparities among the African American first is social factors such as poverty, education, violence education, among others. According to a statistical report released in 2016, the rate of unemployment for black was higher (8.8%) while the whites were (4.3%); furthermore, black graduates were fewer compared to the white graduate. African Americans are the poorest group in the US hence hindering them from achieving adequate and optimum health care, nutrition, education, among others. Poverty is associated with poor health and also increased mortality. Poor people are susceptible to heart diseases, diabetes, and obesity, among others.
Current health status
According to health data, 79% of African Americans had health coverage compared to the native American, who was 88%. Additionally, 46% of active African Americans do not have insurance cover, and many of them have chronic illnesses. Many African Americans are susceptible to hypertension, heart disease, and 15% of this ethnic group have diabetes compared to whites. Morality rates of African Americans are the highest among other minority groups, with an excess death of more than 42%.
Race and ethnic influences health
Despite advances made in the treatment and diagnosis of prolonged diseases, race and ethnic groups tend to receive a lower quality of treatment compared to Native Americans. African Americans tend to experience more mortality from various chronic illnesses compared to white. According to the institute of medicine, race and ethnics health disparities also include communication difficulties between a patient and a health practitioner, access to health insurance, their geographical location, among others. The issue of race and ethnic health disparities remains a complex issue that needs to be solved.
Barriers to effective healthcare
Interrelated factors resulting from socio-economic, political, environmental have contributed to the health disparities for African Americans. Some of the social, economic factors bring about disparities include unemployment, medical bills, little income, stress, language barrier, among others. The status of African Americans tends to be lower than that of whites. In summary, the socio-economic status of African Americans has greatly impacted its mortality rate as they cannot afford quality healthcare. Insurance is another major issue that has affected many African Americans, as many of them do not have health insurance hence affecting their chance of receiving quality health care.
Nutrition challenges
. A study by the Public Health Institute( PHI), many African Americans has poor eating habits. They do not exercise regularly hence making them susceptible to chronic diseases such as cancer, obesity, diabetes, among others. According to the University of Medicine Science (CDU), this trend among African Americans is worrying as African teens spend an average of 188 minutes each day watching television compared to their counterparts who spend 130 minutes.
Behavioral Change approach
This can be the best approach that African Americans can implement to improve their care plan. This approach is beneficial as it is based on altering the way a person perceives things and help them implement a healthier lifestyle. For example, one to be cautious of what they are eating: exercising regularly, which is the primary prevention.
Secondly, the approach educates a person about the importance of a healthier lifestyle to fight chronic diseases hence bring about secondary and tertiary prevention.
Cultural practices
It is essential to understand that as a caregiver, one does interact with people from different backgrounds, which may hinder the delivery of quality services. As a caregiver, one should be culturally competent to give quality services hence eliminating issues of disparity in healthcare. One should understand a patient’s beliefs and the values he or she upholds first.
Campanha-Bacote Model of Cultural Competence in Healthcare Delivery
A competent cultural model can be referred to as a process that aids a nurse in delivering quality services to patients regardless of his or her cultural background and believes. Cultural competence is essential to a patient as he feels that the health care team respects his beliefs, values, and customs, and at the end, reducing disparities and improving his outcome. In using this model, a nurse has five components for her to deliver quality and competent service. First, he or she should recognize that there are cultural differences and respect that, secondly, is to conduct a test to obtain cultural knowledge of a patient. Thirdly, is understanding the perspective of a patient about his disease from his opinion
and fourthly, is avoiding stereotyping, and lastly is a cultural aspiration.
This model can be important for Black African Americans as they can feel that they are not judged, and they are appreciated for preserving their culture and norms. This can give them a sense of securing as they will learn to understand that they can receive quality service without being victimized.