Social Determinants of Health

This assignment is a 2–3 page summary intended to help leadership in a local health center understand how social determinants of health have contributed to a growing public health crisis in their community.

Base your summary on the following scenario:

You have been asked to orient the new supervisor of a local health center to the changing needs of a typical American community in which approximately 50 long-term patients can no longer afford necessary medical care. You may choose a name and  relevant characteristics of the community based on the public health concerns and social determinants of health you have studied thus far.

Preparation

• Refer to the required readings in this unit for the information needed to answer the following questions.
• For assistance in formatting your report, refer to the APA Paper Tutorial linked in Resources.
• An APA Paper Template is also included for your convenience.

Instructions

Using the following outline, discuss the impact of social determinants in terms of the scenario. Include all four categories:

• Descriptions of the health access issue and the affected population: 
  • Explain why access to health services is an important issue for today’s communities.
  • Identify the three elements that comprise access to health services.
  • Discuss specific barriers that affect a person’s health status.
• Health indicators:
  • Describe the leading health indicators that demonstrate the lack of access to care, using information from Healthy People 2020 (linked in Resources),.
• Public health interventions:
  •  Describe various public health interventions that have been used to address the issue.
• Social determinants:
  • Identify the social determinants that impact the quality of health.
  • Describe how increased understanding of the social determinants of health has changed or influenced public health interventions over time.

Additional Requirements

• Page count: 2–3 pages of content plus cover and reference pages.
• Font: Times New Roman, 12 points.
• APA formatting: Resources and citations are formatted according to current edition APA style and formatting.
• Number of references: Cite all sources. Include at least two peer-reviewed sources.

Note: Before submitting this paper, you should refer to the Guiding Questions (linked in Resources) to ensure you have addressed all of the grading criteria.

Resources

• Social Determinants of Health Scoring Guide.
• Guiding Questions: Social Determinants of Health .
• HealthyPeople.gov: Access to Health Services.
• 2015 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report.
• Healthy People 2020 Midcourse Review.
• Anatomy of a Reference | Transcript.
• Capella University Library.
• Public Health Undergraduate Library Research Guide.
• APA Paper Template [DOCX].
• APA Paper Tutorial.
• APA Module.