Health Care Disparities Coursework Example

Health Care Disparities
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Health Care Disparities
The IOM summary report explains different factors that contribute to healthcare disparities. I have gained knowledge and clarity on several issues regarding the topic. First, the socio-economic difference is not a key contributor to racial differences in the quality of healthcare services. The information I gained from reading healthcare related documents suggests that socio-economic factors such as a person’s income level, the area of residence and its proximity to healthcare centers, and education level are major contributors to health care disparity. On the contrary, this report indicates that many studies find little correlation between socio-economic differences and healthcare disparities.
I have also discovered ethnic and racial inequalities in healthcare come from multiple sources. Patients, administrative officials and managers, healthcare systems, and providers contribute to this problem (Nelson, 2002). Contrary to what many people believe that the problem lies just between the healthcare providers and the patients, other parties are also responsible. For instance, managers may fail to implement programs that develop culturally competent nurses and doctors, thus, breeding a group of practitioners who are stereotypic and biased when offering their services. The patients, therefore, respond by developing mistrust towards physicians and having a negative attitude towards the healthcare services.

Lastly, one way of reducing healthcare inequality is to limit the division in service delivery. Health insurers and providers should work together and find ways of restricting the differences in services given to patients in public and private hospitals. The minority groups in the society always enroll for affordable health care plans which offer a limited number of services. Usually, these individuals have to utilize the services they can afford or find ways of upgrading their plan. However, this article argues that the insurers and healthcare providers should be at the forefront in fighting inequality by offering high-quality services to both the minority and majority groups in the society (Nelson, 2002). In conclusion, this report provides practical solutions to the problem of healthcare disparities.

Reference
Nelson, A. (2002). Unequal treatment: confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Journal of the National Medical Association, 94(8), 666.