How To Understand Health Equity

Health equity is the gap in health outcomes between people with lower socioeconomic status (SES) and those with higher SES. It is the second most important contributor to health inequality after SES itself. Also known as social determinants of health,equity examines how inequalities in access, financial resources, and other factors impact a community’s health. Health equity has become more relevant with the rise of chronic diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes, that disproportionately affect low-income communities. Instead of fighting against these diseases, it is now essential to understand how they are perpetuated through different levers of society outside of individual control. This article provides an overview of what health equity is, why it matters for healthcare systems on both individual and macro levels and how it can be addressed from a policy perspective.

What is Health Equity?

Health equity is the social and demographic level of the population that determines eligibility for healthcare services, the extent of those services, and the level of those services. It includes both the health status of the population and the access to healthcare services. Health equity is a multidimensional concept that is difficult to define in terms of a single number. For example, comparing the health of a community with a certain percentage of low SES people with a different community with a different percentage of low SES people will yield a different health equity score, depending on the chosen metric. Health equity can be examined using a variety of metrics and concepts. Here are a few examples: – Access-to-care metrics include the percentage of people with insurance, the number of people who are uninsured, the distance to a provider, or the cost of care. – Health outcomes metrics include mortality rates, the percentage of adults who smoke, the incidence of chronic diseases, and the number of deaths from certain causes. – Health system factors include the percentage of people with a high school degree, the availability of community resources such as healthy foods and physical activity facilities, and the use of complementary and alternative medicine.

Why is Health Equity Important?

Health equity is important for several reasons. First, it reflects a basic human right to receive the best possible care at all times regardless of race, socioeconomic status, or other factors that might separate people. A person’s health is at the very core of who she and he is as a person. If a person is not able to reach their full potential because of health issues, then that person is not able to reach their full potential in all aspects of life. Health equity is important because all people deserve the same basic rights to health care as others regardless of their socioeconomic status. Only if all people have the same rights to health care will all people be able to reach their full potential.

How to Achieve Health Equity in Healthcare Systems

Health equity is ultimately a societal issue, and therefore must be addressed at a societal level. However, healthcare systems and organizations can take a number of steps to improve their health equity. One of the best ways to improve health equity is to introduce and utilize a health equity assessment. A health equity assessment is a process that examines the health of a community and then uses that data to develop and implement a equity strategy. A equity assessment can be used to identify the factors that are contributing to health inequity and what can be done to address those factors. Medical schools and other health facilities that provide healthcare education and care should incorporate an equity component in their curriculum. Healthcare organizations can also utilize an equity lens by asking questions about the scope of services, the quality of care provided, and the access to care to understand and address systemic health inequities. Healthcare organizations can also partner with community organizations to collaborate on initiatives that address equity.

How To Measure Health Equity

Health equity is a multidimensional concept that is difficult to define in terms of a single number. For example, comparing the health of a community with a certain percentage of low SES people with a different community with a different percentage of low SES people will yield a different health equity score, depending on the chosen metric. Health can be examined using a variety of metrics and concepts. Here are a few examples: – Access-to-care metrics include the percentage of people with insurance, the number of people who are uninsured, the distance to a provider, or the cost of care. – Health outcomes metrics include mortality rates, the percentage of adults who smoke, the incidence of chronic diseases, and the number of deaths from certain causes. – Health system factors include the percentage of people with a high school degree, the availability of community resources such as healthy foods and physical activity facilities, and the use of complementary and alternative medicine.

The Gap Between Objective and Subjective Measures of Health Equity

One of the issues with measuring health equity is that the measures are often “objective” in nature, meaning they are based on data, but they are also “subjective,” meaning they are based on the perceptions and values of the person conducting the measurement. This “subjective-objective” divide has been widely studied in social science, and many methodologies are now attempting to bridge this divide. There are many different ways to measure health equity, and a health assessment is an in-depth method of measuring health equity. However, a health equity assessment can be costly and time-consuming, and not all communities have the resources or time to embark on such an assessment.

Conclusion

Health equity is the difference in health outcomes between people with lower socioeconomic status (SES) and those with higher SES. Health can be evaluated by looking at the amount of health care that people with lower SES receive relative to those with higher SES, the amount of health care that people with different SES receive, and the amount of time it takes for people with different SES to receive care. Health equity can be improved by ensuring people have access to quality health care, including preventive care, access to food and healthy lifestyles, and access to insurance, health care providers, and housing.