What illnesses show disparities?
Some illnesses have been shown to be more common in certain groups of people. Some of the higher burden of illness, injury, disability or mortality has been measured in asthma, cancer, diabetes, infant mortality and heart disease.
What about asthma disparities?
Asthma affects many households. Some people experience asthma more severely than others. Significant differences in asthma exist for some racial and ethnic groups. For example, due to asthma attacks black children are hospitalized at twice the rate of white children. Children from low-income or minority families are at greater risk to have the disease and for more severe symptoms. TheDepartment of Health’s Asthma Management Initiativeworks to promote lung health and reduce asthma disease and disparities. TheEnvironmental Protection Agency’s asthma webpagepromotes understanding and management of asthma. Both webpages have resources and toolkits available children, parents, providers, schools and communities. Places can be designed and maintained to reduce environmental asthma triggers such as secondhand smoke to help reduce the burden of asthma.
What contributes to environmental disparities?
Some communities have a higher burden of environmental hazards such as air pollution or hazardous waste sites. Here are some factors that may contribute to environmental disparities:
- cumulative or multiple exposures to environmental hazards,
- low social and economic status,
- limited access to community resources,
- land-use patterns,
- quality of and access to health care,
- substandard housing,
- crowding,
- community stress,
- residential segregation, or
- lack of resources such as grocery stores with healthy foods.
What tools are available?
Health disparities affect quality of life in vulnerable communities. CDC and TDH promote best public health practices to safeguard all people.Health Impact Assessments(HIAs) are a tool to bring potential public health concerns to the decision-making process for plans, projects and policies that fall outside the traditional public health arenas, such as local transportation and land use. HIAs help vulnerable communities reduce health costs by recommending proven public health approaches that meet their needs while offering training and technical assistance.
What can schools do about disparities?
Health disparities are related to inequities in education. Since educational attainment is connected to health, schools can be a place to reduce disparities. According to theCDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, schools help to evenly distribute social, political, economic and environmental resources. For example, dropping out of school is associated with social and health problems. Individuals with higher educational attainment often have less health risks from smoking, substance abuse, obesity and injury. Schools can be a place for children and adolescents to start learning how to understand and access health information and services needed throughout life to make health and health care decisions.
Are there health disparities in my community?
Communities with unstable housing, low income, unsafe neighborhoods or substandard education are more likely have health disparities. Understanding what health disparities may exist can help your community locate data. One place to look for data is the Tennessee Department of Health’s2015 Drive Your County to the Top Ten special reports. Each report shows the rank each county holds compared to other counties on a number of health outcomes. TheHealthy People 2020 Objective Data webpagelists several social determinants of health. Refer to theHealthy Places Data and Indicators webpagefor more ideas.
