The time is now: Addressing health inequities in rural minority populations

In 1966 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech to the Medical Committee for Human Rights and said “of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane.” In 2017 inequality in healthcare still exists and the consequences are striking. Health inequities or disparities in urban communities are well known and in some cases more resources may be available to address them than in a rural community. In rural previously homogenous communities these issues are even more significant as the minority community begins to grow but the healthcare systems have not changed or are not moving fast enough to keep pace with diversity. Ethnic disparities in health care cost the U.S. billions of dollars. African Americans, Hispanics and Native American Indians experience higher rates of chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension than other populations.  In many cases, these increased costs and reduced quality of life and mortality are preventable with wellness programs or disease state management that takes into account the specific population needs. A May 2017 data summary from the  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows African Americans ages 18-49 are twice as likely to die from heart disease than whites and African Americans ages 35-64 years are 50% more likely to have high blood pressure than whites. The data shows that African Americans are dying younger from diseases like cancer, diabetes and heart disease than whites. 1 The ...
Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Source Type: blogs