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Unit 8 Health and Social Care Distinction
- Institution
- PEARSON (PEARSON)
A completed coursework unit at Distinction level.
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IntroductionPublic health officials use strategies to monitor the state of public health in the UK,
they often produce policies based on previous research to ensure that health issues
are managed as effectively as possible within the UK. This booklet will focus on the
public health in Cambridgeshire, it will provide an evaluation of certain public health
strategies and an assessment of how certain factors can affect patterns of health.
Public Health
Public health refers to “the art and science of preventing disease, prolonging life and
promoting health through the organized efforts of society” (WHO, 2019). Although
public health and subsequent health promotion campaigns often focus on the
prevention or eradication of disease, public health also focuses on the entire
spectrum of health and wellbeing. Promotion campaigns aim to focus on all aspects
of life to ensure that they are able to take the most effective approach in order to
reach their goal.
National Health Service
In 1948, the National Health Service was created with the aim that individuals in the
UK would be able to receive healthcare that was free at the point of delivery,
allowing for healthcare to become more inclusive and prevent discrimination from
influencing an individuals ability to seek and receive treatment. It quickly became
known as the NHS and was the first health service of its kind globally. Although prior
to the creation of the NHS, all male workers had medical care through insurance, this
did not cover their families which meant that only a minority group in England had
access to any form of healthcare.
Since not all individuals could afford health insurance, or did not have appropriate
access to it; in many areas of the UK health services funded by workers were
formed. During this time, the Tredegar Workmen’s Medical Aid Society provided 95%
of the local populations needs and this society acted as a model which inspired
Aneurin Bevan in the creation of the NHS.
An underlying principle of the National Health
Service firmly is that healthcare should be free for
all, regardless of age, income or social group which
is why it was set up in 1948. In an article published
by Tudor Hart, the inverse care law was introduced
which is used in a situation in which those most in
need of healthcare are the least likely to get it. For
example when those with lower incomes but ill
health are pushed to the bottom of waiting lists for
treatment due to their low income and despite their
state of ill health. Despite the NHS attempting to
overcome the inverse care law, individuals with a
lower income are still likely to experience health inequalities such as having reduced
access to healthcare despite having a likely higher rate of ill health.
Although the majority of the UK population were excited by the prospect of a
National Health Service that was free at the point of delivery, healthcare
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,professionals did not have the same opinion as that of the public. As before the NHS
was created, many healthcare professionals worked independently, meaning that
they were paid per patient, they disagreed with the prospect of the NHS due to it
meaning that they would be paid a salary, rather than a fee per patient. Despite
healthcare professionals supposedly working in the field in order to help others since
it was an area of great financial benefit, being compliant with the NHS would lead to
drastic financial loss for professionals.
Policy Aims
Multiple agencies work together within the UK to help ensure that public health
strategies are developed effectively, in a way that will help to target demographics
that are specifically affected by public health concerns. Strategies are developed in
order to meet a set of public health aims:
Planning national provision of healthcare and promoting the health of the
population
→ As the health needs of the UK change, as does the public health policy and
associated strategies to ensure that the safety of individuals remains
paramount to the government. In order to ensure that the healthcare services
provided are able to meet the changing needs of individuals and prevent
discrimination, the NHS provides services regardless of their characteristics.
In order to meet the needs of certain demographics, public health policy has
to be responsive to the health needs of today's society, as well as the needs
that may arise in the future to ensure that ill health can be prevented as well
as treated. Governments must plan public health policy in a way that takes
into consideration the changing needs of the public, as well as the factors that
may influence their ability to seek treatment from services. Considering all of
those factors ensures that national provision is planned and implemented in a
way that can suit the needs of everyone in society, rather than just the
majority and therefore helps to prevent health inequalities within society.
Identifying and monitoring the needs of the population
→ Public health policy also aims to identify and monitor the needs of the
population in a way that is effective so that new policy can be targeted at the
identified problems within the UK’s public health. In order for public health
policies to be effective, governments have to be able to predict social change
and identify how policies can be changed to meet the increasing needs of
today’s society. As there is currently a mental health crisis within society,
Theresa May has publicly shared the NHS long-term plan which has been
created to reduce inequalities. For the next five years, the NHS will receive
£20.5 billion more and “at least £2 billion of this extra funding will now be
allocated for new and vital improvements in mental health services, on top of
current levels of mental health spending” (The Kings Fund, 2019) which will
help to meet the increasing needs of individuals within society that have been
identified as being in need of support through using demographic data. This
policy was created as the government were able to identify the current needs
of society and therefore find ways in which health policy could help to monitor
and improve public health.
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,Identifying and reducing inequalities between groups and communities in
society
→ Health inequalities within the UK are also assessed by professionals in order
to ensure that public health policy improves the health of the whole
population, rather than just the select few that can afford care or understand
the policy. As the NHS aims to make healthcare free at the point of delivery
for all individuals, meeting and reducing health inequalities is vital to ensure
that the service continues to meet its aims. Throughout history, multiple
reports have been done on health inequalities within the UK such as the
Acheson, Black and Beveridge Reports, which allowed for professionals to
have a greater understanding of inequalities and how to minimise them. In
May 2018, Public Health England released a strategy aiming to reduce health
inequalities in England by screening individuals based on various factors of
the determinants of health including their: age, race, sex, society and
environmental conditions. The strategy aims to identify why health inequalities
arise by looking at a variety of factors such as structural issues, unhealthy
behaviours and access to services. Public Health England identified areas for
improvement within healthcare and then created activities that aim to reduce
the inequalities and subsequently improve the health of all individuals across
every region in England and therefore reduce inequalities.
Protecting individuals, groups and communities in society from threats to
health and wellbeing that arise from environmental hazards and communicable
diseases
→ Policy to promote public health is also vital in order to protect society from
threats to health and wellbeing that may arise from diseases or environmental
hazards. Within communities, the Director of Health is required to ensure that
local authorities are directly responsible for the health of the residents and
take the required steps to protect them from harm. Any communicable
disease must be reported through either a GP or hospital doctor who will then
report it to the regional health team to ensure that the disease can be
contained and does not spread to infect other individuals within a community.
Prior to a case of an infectious disease, immunisations should be promoted in
order to prevent diseases and therefore not only save lives, but also the NHS
resources. Immunisations are offered to all children in the UK and are
compulsory which further helps to safeguard the public as those who can be
safely immunised are which helps to provide her immunity for those who
cannot get immunised. Controlling the outbreak of diseases would typically
include a case definition report which includes information about the time,
place, person and illness so that professionals can understand how the illness
was spread and possible causes.
Addressing specific national health problems over a period of time
→ National health problems are often more prevalent in certain areas of the
country and in certain time periods, depending on the environment. Public
health policies aim to address health problems that are currently being
experienced nationally, as well as those that have been experienced and may
occur again due to not being eradicated. In 2014, the Government published a
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, list of official national health problems within England, providing alongside it
resources for health services to ensure that they are informed about the
problem and able to cope with it.
Developing programmes to screen for early diagnosis of disease.
→ Screening programmes are important to maintain the health and wellbeing of
everyone in the UK and are therefore often central parts of public health
policies. Public health policy can build on demographic data to understand
where there is a need for more effective screening programmes, and how
those could be developed in a way that would effectively meet the needs of
the UK.
Strategies
In the UK, there are various strategies for developing public health policies that are
specifically tailored to meet public health needs in the UK. The Department of Heath
is the part of the government that is responsible for identifying the national health
needs in the UK, they work with other agencies to develop programmes and
strategies that will be effective in reducing health risks. In England, the Department
of Health work using multi-agency working as they work with various other
departments in the Government, as well as with agencies from the voluntary sector.
In 2015, the Department of Health outlined their shared delivery plan which
highlights their aims which are: to improve out-of-hospital care, create safe services,
improve and maintain standards, improve service efficiency and enable individuals to
make choices about their own care.
Nationally and regionally, data must be reported relating to cases of illness,
especially if the illness is a notifiable disease. Having an understanding of the levels
of illness can allow for regions to assess their treatment of that illness and improve it
if required. Data from the GP surgeries or other primary care centres that experience
illnesses that may pose a serious threat to life must be reported to the local health
authorities who will then take appropriate action. Local authorities may then need to
report the information to the regional health authorities who will be able to offer
resources and guidance, they may then pass data to the Department of Health. In
extreme cases, the WHO will be notified and may be able to provide support on a
larger scale due to being alerted by health authorities on a smaller scale.
In 1980, the Black Report was published by the
Department of Health and focused on the health
inequalities experienced by different social classes
(GOV.UK, 2019). The report focused on how social
inequalities have developed over time in various
areas of life such as income distribution and then
gave recommendations on how to improve and
reduce the inequalities between social classes.
Furthermore, the Acheson Report which was created
in 1998, looked at inequalities between social classes and provided four types of
explanation for why three were health inequalities within social classes. Firstly, there
is a statistical artefact explanation which focuses on the fact that statistics may
produce a biased picture as inequalities are not truly about social class, but age
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