PEARLS+: Putting the Social Determinants of Health into Practice

By: William Ventres, MD, MA, clinical attending, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine; Jay D. Kravitz, MD, MPH, assistant professor (retired), Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University; and Shafik Dharamsi, PhD, dean, College of Health Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso Understanding the social determinants of health, including their upstream causes and downstream health outcomes, is a difficult task. Contemplating the complexity of these issues can often feel overwhelming, leaving medical students, residents, and clinician–educators feeling frustrated and helpless. Feelings of frustration commonly arise out a sense of indignation in response to observing injustice and inequity. Feelings of helplessness come from a perceived lack of power relative to the influence of culturally ingrained societal forces. Many ask themselves, can we really alter health outcomes when such forces so seemingly so big? For some, the answer is to study and practice within the confines of strict biomedical boundaries rather than to approach that same study and practice from a broader perspective, inclusive of such topics such as culture, class, politics, and environment. For many, it is to situate themselves in settings that limit uncertainty, settings that are mostly distant from the effects of adverse social determinants, which are unduly experienced and keenly felt by...
Source: Academic Medicine Blog - Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Tags: Featured Guest Perspective health outcomes PEARLS professionalism social determinants of health social responsibility underserved communities Source Type: blogs