Social Determinants of Health: Guide For Nurse

Environmental and neighborhood circumstances while it may seem cliché, a practical nurse’s superpowers are more relevant than ever when dealing with social determinants of health.

What would happen if an evil villain was lurking in every test area? An unnoticed performer could be scheming to shape. Health similarly to a mischievous conductor. However, nurses are working to bring these factors to the forefront of medical attention. Enrolling in a hybrid practical nursing program with exclusive clinical hours & practical training helps students to build a bright nursing career, understand vital signs & acquire a nursing license in the medical field from private schools.

Continue reading to get a wide range of knowledge about this important topic and get suggestions on how professional nurse practitioners can assist.

What Are the Social Health Determinants?

The social determinants of health are environmental conditions that influence health outcomes and quality of life.

According to nurse anesthetist Nick Angelis, you can consider them “aspects of our lives which seem to have merely influenced our health but are statistically liable for the possibility of poor performance outcomes and health.” Social determinants of Health can affect the lives of patients. Cultural biases can perpetuate inequities. Social isolation and economic disparities can hinder education and healthcare.

Why is It Critical for Nurses to Be Aware of the Social Determinants of Health?

The social determinants in clinical settings are important because they show us that health is not just about personal choices and interventions in medicine. It is also about your community, where you live, and your parents and their parent’s income.

Understanding the importance of social determinants and their impact on nurses or learning from the school of nursing, nurses can adopt a whole-person approach and tailor their services to address the causes of inequities they encounter when possible.

Influence of Social Determinants on Health Disparities

According to the World Health Organization ( WHO), social determinants play an important role in influencing disparities in health. This determinant, rooted in economic, social, and environmental factors, can create unequal opportunities and circumstances, impacting health outcomes for several people and populations.

The circumstances of our lives have a huge impact on our health. When there are disparities and hurdles within a population, it is more likely that they will experience differences with chronic diseases and a reduced life expectancy. Take prerequisite courses from LPN programs near me to understand the scope of practice.

The Five Areas of Social Health Determinants and Their Effects

Each social determinant factor forms a complex web of causes and effects that bleed into one another.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and human services, social determinants of healthcare can be classified into five distinct domains or groups:

• Economic stability
• Education access; Quality
• Health Care Access; Quality
• Built Environment and neighborhood
• Context social and community
• Economic stability

The economic area emphasizes the key elements like income, employment, and poverty that affect an individual’s financial stability and security in the nursing field.

Examples:

• Income
• Employment
• Services in healthcare (therapies and screenings in nursing homes) 
• Education

1. Education

Education is a powerful factor in determining a person’s overall Health. It plays a vital role in determining the outcome of the patient.

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Examples:

• Health literacy and literacy
• Educational attainment
• Accessibility to education
• Educational opportunities

2. Access to Quality Healthcare and Access to

According to the National Library of Medicine, access to healthcare is defined as “having timely access to individual medical services to attain the best possible health outcome.” “

This is how they interact:

Examples relating to accessibility to healthcare and customer satisfaction:

• Health insurance
• Healthcare costs (Affordability)
• Accessibility of healthcare facilities
• Provider shortages
• Continuity in care

3. The Built Environment and Neighborhood

According to the National Academy of Medicine, “Environment impacts health more than individual behavior.” Maintaining good Health is your responsibility. But your options are limited.

Examples:

• Supportive housing quality
• Neighborhood safety
• Access healthy food
• Transportation infrastructure
• Air quality

Context Social and Community

We consider health-related social needs,  social norms, social networks and values, community support, resources, and cohesion in the social and community domain. These factors have a great impact on population outcomes and resource access.

Examples: Social and Community Context Factors

• Discrimination, marginalization, and marginalization
• Language and cultural barriers
• Social integration
• Participation and engagement of the community

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Conclusion

Nurses play an essential role in understanding social determinants of health, such as education. Education provided through private nursing schools and LPN programs or online programs with a focus on clinical rotation plays a pivotal role in shaping healthcare outcomes; with this knowledge in hand, nurses can effectively address disparities while providing holistic medical care in clinical sites as they prepare for the NCLEX-PN exam, that creates healthier communities overall.