SHDS2308 Sociology for Health Studies Lecture 1 PDF

SHDS2308 Sociology for Health Studies Lecture 1: Introduction * Basics of Health * Basics of Sociology * Basics of Medical Sociology © Copyright: Dr. Vi...

SHDS2308 Sociology for Health Studies Lecture 1: Introduction * Basics of Health * Basics of Sociology * Basics of Medical Sociology © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 1 Introducing Health Studies Broad Interdisciplinary Draws on theoretical perspectives from a wide range of disciplines Strengths of Health Studies Focuses on health Without any a prior ranking of different disciplines Allows for exploration around: health needs healthcare Encourages interventions among different disciplines, professions & organisations simultaneously (Naidoo & Wills, 2015, pp. 1-2) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 2  Basics of Health © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 3 Health - Definitions A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being (Macionis, 2017, p. 432) The state of complete well-being, not just the absence of disease or infirmity (Hoeger & Hoeger, 2014, p. 3) To be healthy means without illness or to be without disease (Little, 2018, p. 4) A product of reciprocal interactions between individuals and their environments (McMurray & Clendon, 2015, p.5) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 4 Wellness - Definitions A state of harmony between the physical, emotional, social and spiritual health of the individual and their environment (McMurray & Clendon, 2015, p. 8) The constant and deliberate effort to stay healthy and achieve the highest potential for well-being Encompasses 7 dimensions: Physical Emotional Mental Social Environmental Occupational Spiritual life (Hoeger & Hoeger, 2014, p. 13) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 5 Diseases – Definition & Causes Disease A social disorder that impairs a person’s normal physical &/or mental condition (Benokraitis, 2017, pp. 272-273) Causes of Diseases (Aetiology)(病因) (1) Who becomes sick or is most likely to be affected by a disease or condition? (2) Why do particular people become sick? (3) When are people more likely to be affected? (4) How effective are the available treatments & preventive strategies? (Naidoo & Wills, 2015, p. 79) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 6 Healthcare – 3 Levels (1) Primary Healthcare (PHC) The first point of contact Offering generalised care Provide at the grass roots or community level Consists of a basic or essential package of health services Including: facility-based outpatient & outreach services within the community Gatekeepers to secondary services (2) Secondary Healthcare Specialised care provided within local or district hospitals Consists of specialist diagnostic facilities & expertise Include outpatient & inpatient services (3) Tertiary Healthcare Highly specialised care provided in regional or national hospitals after referral from secondary healthcare facilities The most sophisticated & resource-intensive level of services (Nicholson et al., 2016, p. 28) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 7 Public Health vs Medicine Public Health Public policy and infrastructure to prevent the onset and transmission of disease among the population, with a particular focus on sanitation and hygiene such as clean air, water and food, and immunization (Germov, 2019 p. 7) Differentiating Public Health Medicine Factors Focus Population Individual Ethical basis Public service Personal service Emphasis Disease prevention & health Disease diagnosis, treatment, promotion for communities & care for individuals Intervention Broad spectrum that may Emphasis on medical care target the environment, human behavior, lifestyle & medical care © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 8 Basics of Sociology 9  No one is an island… Family Institutions/ Friends Organisations (Public or private) Self Schools Various Groups (e.g. cultural, religious) Nation/City/Society © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 10 Society - Definitions A group of people who share a culture & a territory (Henslin, 2017, p. 3) People who live in a defined territory & share a way of life (Macionis, 2017, p. 3) A complex pattern of social relationships that is bounded in space and persists over time (Ritzer, 2021, p. 5) The largest scale of human group that shares a common geographic territory and common institutions (Corrigall-Brown, 2021, pp. 3-4) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 11 Society - Features Larger transnational and global social structures are growing in importance, e.g. United Nations (UN) European Union (EU) Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Multinational corporations (MNCs) e.g. McDonalds, Apple, IBM, Microsoft, Samsung, Cheung Kong Holdings (Ritzer, 2021, p. 5) Not necessarily the same as states State: United Kingdom (UK) Societies: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales (Corrigall-Brown, 2021, pp. 3-4) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 12 Sociology - Definitions The systematic study of human behaviour in society (Benokraitis, 2017, p. 2) A scientific way of thinking about society & its influence on human groups (Andersen et al., 2017, p. 4) The systematic study of the ways in which people are affected by and affect the social structures and social processes associated with the groups, organizations, cultures, societies, and world in which they exist (Ritzer, 2021, p. 3) The systematic study of human society (Corrigall- Brown, 2021, pp. 3-4) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 13 Sociology – 3 Foci & 3 Tasks 3 core foci of sociology: (1) The study of social inequality (2) The role of social institutions (3) The study of a social change (Corrigall-Brown, 2021, p. 14) 3 tasks of sociologists: (1) See general themes in everyday life (2) Assess critically what seems familiar and common sense (3) Examine how individuals both shape society and are shaped by society (Corrigall-Brown, 2021, p. 18) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 14 Sociological Perspectives Analyse how social content influences people’s lives (Benokraitis, 2017, pp. 4-5) Reveal the social factors that shape society (Andersen et al., 2017, p. 8) Determine the chances of success for different groups (Andersen et al., 2017, p. 8) Seeing the general in the particular, i.e. look for general patterns in the behaviour of particular people (Macionis, 2017, p. 3) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 15 Levels of Influence within a Social Ecology of Behavior Political/Economic/Structural Cultural/Societal Community/Population Group Family/Social Group Behavior Behavior Individual Influences Influences Influences Behavior © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law (Edberg, 2015, 2015, p. 7) 16 Why Study Sociology? Making informed decisions Understanding diversity, difference in: gender, social class, marital status, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, beliefs, behaviour, experiences, etc. Shaping social & public policies & practices Many jobs require understanding of society & research to create social change Thinking critically Help understand how our individual lives, choices, & troubles are shaped by race, gender, social class, & social institutions (e.g. economy, politics, education) Expanding career opportunities (Benokraitis, 2017, p. 6) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 17 Basics of Medical Sociology Question: Is health affected by policy, economic environment, or social environment? (Photos: Poor children at Nepal; Courtesy by Vincent Law) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 18 Medical Sociology (1) Definition The study of the social causes of health and illness and of the operation of the health care system Recognises that: Health & illness: have social causes not just individual phenomena are social phenomena Quality of health is important: not only for the treatment of diseases & illness but also for their prevention (Barkan, 2017, p. 1) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 19 Medical Sociology (2) 3 Major Themes: (1) The sociological perspective The social environment influences people’s bahaviours, attitudes, and life outcomes e.g. their chances of achieving a college degree, of having a satisfying, good-paying job, etc. Social environment includes: (a) Social backgrounds e.g. social backgrounds, gender, social class, race, ethnicity, age, religion, social networks (b) Place of residence (Barkan, 2017, p. 2) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 20  Medical Sociology (3) 3 Major Themes: (2) Social inequality Unequal distribution of wealth & other important resources valued by a (Yau Oi Estate, a public estate in Hong Kong) society Fundamental dimensions: e.g. gender, social class, race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (A building with sub- Examples: divided Men enjoy more social, political, & houses (劏房) economic advantages than women at Jordon, Hong Kong) Wealthy people enjoy more advantages than low-income people Younger people enjoy more advantages than the elderly Straight people enjoy more advantages than LGBT persons (Barkan, 2017, p. 3) (A disabled beggar at © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law Kathmandu of Nepal) 21 Medical Sociology (4) 3 Major Themes: (3) Social Institutions Socially organised systems of behavior that help a society satisfy its basic needs Key social institutions in modern societies: Family Religion Education The economy The political system Certain medicine (Barkan, 2017, p. 3) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 22  Social Institutions (Photo Courtesy: Vincent Law) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 23 Death - 4 Main Causes (1) 4 Main Causes of Death: (1) Traumas (創傷) e.g. burns, car accidents remove more tissue than we can replace & challenge our homeostasis so far that we cannot recuperate (2) Infections By microorganisms e.g. bacteria or viruses destroy tissue & create toxic levels of chemicals or foreign cells in our bodies (Naidoo & Wills, 2015, p. 33) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 24 Death - 4 Main Causes (2) 4 Main Causes of Death: (…continued) (3) Degenerative diseases Caused by ageing, or Lack of vital nutrients (malnutrition) or water, where more cells are lost or energy expanded than can be replaced or repaired (4) Cancerous growths Where more cells are made than are needed Thus replacing functioning tissue (Naidoo & Wills, 2015, p. 33) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 25 Social Factors of Health Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) The social, cultural, political, and economic factors that impact living and working conditions, which directly and indirectly influence individual and population health (Germov, 2019, p. 3) Social Gradient of Health A continuum of health inequality exists in most countries from high to low, where the poorest group of people have the worst health status, and each group above it has progressively better health, with the most socio-economically advantaged group having the best health status (Germov, 2019, p. 4) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 26  Social Gradient in Life Expectancy Social Gradient in Life Expectancy Higher Life Expectancy Upper Upper Class Lower Middle Middle Class Working Lower Life Class Class Lower Expectancy Class (Cockerham, 2022, p. 96) 27 Social Causation of Health & Disease SOCIAL FACTORS Social Causation of The experience patterning of health & of illness population disease health & disease (Cockerham, 2013, p. 9) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 28  Health - Conceptual Model of Determinants (Factors) of Health Biology Social-economic Age Status (SES) Sex HEALTH Education Gender Income Place Neighbourhood Social Interaction Workplace Social support Social network Risk Factors Behaviour Diet Stress (Davidson, 2015, p. 62) Access to health care © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 29  WHO’s Conceptual Model for Social Determinants of Health Socioeconomic & Political Context Governance Socioeconomic Material Position Circumstances Impact Macroeconomic Policies Social Class (Living & working on Social Policies Gender Ethnicity conditions, food equity availability, etc.) (Labour market, (racism) in Behaviors & housing, land) Biological Factors health Public Policies Education Psychological & well- (Education, health, Factors being social protection) Occupation Social Cohesion Culture & societal & Social Capital values Income Health System STRUCTURAL DETERMINANTS INTERMEDIARY DETERMINANTS SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH INEQUITY SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH (World Health Organization, 2018, p. 6) © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 30 References (1) Andersen, M. L., Taylor, H. F., & Logio, K. A. (2017). Sociology: The essentials (9th ed.). Cengage Learning. Barkan, S. E. (2017). Health, illness, and society: An introduction to medical sociology. Rowman & Littlefield. Benokraitis, N. V. (2017). SOC 5 (2nd ed.). Cengage Learning. Cockerham, W. C. (2013). Social causes of health and disease (2nd ed.). Policy Press. Cockerham, W. C. (2022). Medical sociology (15th ed.). Pearson Education. Corrigall-Brown, C. (2021). Imaging society: An introduction to sociology. SAGE. Davidson, A. (2015). Social determinants of health: A comparative approach. Oxford University Press. Edberg, M. (2015). Essentials of health behavior: Social and behavioral theory in public health (2nd ed.). Jones & Barlett Learning. Germav, J. (2019). Second opinion: An introduction to health sociology (6th ed.). Oxford University Press. © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 31 References (2) Henslin, J. M. (2017). Sociology: A down-to-earth approach (13th ed.). Pearson. Hoeger, W. W. K., & Hoeger, S. A. (2014). Principles and labs for fitness & wellness (12th ed.). Cengage Learning. Little, T. (2018). Fundamental concepts and skills for the patient care technician. Elsevier. Marcionis, J. J. (2017). Society: The basics (14th ed.). Pearson. McMurray, A., & Clendon, J. (2015). Community health and wellness: Primary health care in practice (5th ed.). Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier. Naidoo, J., & Wills, J. (2015). Health studies: An introduction (3rd ed.). Palgrave. Nicholson, B., McKimm, J., & Allen, A. K. (eds.). (2016). Global health. Sage Publications. Ritzer, G. (2021). Essentials of sociology (4th ed.). SAGE. World Health Organization. (2018). A conceptual framework for action on the social determinants of health (Social Determinants of Health Discussion Paper 2). https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/44489 © Copyright: Dr. Vincent Law 32