Vulnerable Groups – Elderly and Men over 35

The chosen Healthy People 2030 objective pertinent to the elderly is the reduction in the hospital admission rate associated with diabetes for older adults, while the objective chosen for the men over 35 years vulnerable group is a reduction in the death rate associated with prostate cancer.

Access to healthcare among the elderly in Sunrise is greatly reduced, especially due to the coronavirus disease outbreak. The government and state councils are encouraging all elderly people to stay at home. This directive has detrimental effects, especially for those with co-morbidities like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, blood pressure disease, and arthritis. This minority group usually has scheduled visits to see their practitioners for medical care. This has led to a rise in the mortality rate among this group. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, the elderly experienced several barriers to accessing health care. These include situations where doctors were not responding to the patient’s concerns, the cost of transportation, especially for patients with mobility challenges, and high healthcare costs. Those with low income and who lacked supplemental insurance were hindered from accessing healthcare.

Disparities in the health of the elderly in the Sunrise community are very evident during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. There is a shifting focus and attention to the management and containment of the pandemic. The overall health outcome among the elderly in Sunrise, Florida, is greatly improving. Unfortunately, a minority of elders are affected by the differences in accessing care and hence end up not receiving routine care. According to Byrd, L. (2021), poor case management, misdiagnosis, and delayed medical attention have led to complications that may be avoidable, having detrimental impacts on the health of individuals.

This group is the most nearly missed. In my community, this group rarely visits hospitals and will only visit when the condition has worsened. This group is so much involved in getting over-the-counter prescriptions. A majority of men over 35 years engage in unhealthy lifestyles like smoking cigarettes, excessive alcohol intake, and lack/fewer sessions of physical activity. In addition, most individuals in this group engage in unhealthy eating lifestyles. They are at a higher risk of developing non-communicable diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer, hypertension, and heart diseases. Just like the elderly, men aged over 35 years face challenges in accessing healthcare. These challenges include high costs of care, lack of medical coverage, and information concerning a particular disease. The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (2021) states that it is important for this group to be educated on healthy living habits like smoking cessation, engaging in physical activity, early screening, and diagnosis of diseases for better management.

In my community, following the outbreak of COVID-19, the government provided COVID-19 relief resources to help alleviate the suffering caused by the outbreak. People were given rent relief, and mortgage relief, among others. The community also has shelter resources for the needy and the homeless in Broward County, Salvation Army Fort Lauderdale, and food distribution centers at various locations, including Sunrise Church of God and prophecy church. These resources are easily accessible. Other resources include affinity resources for providing jobs, energy resources, and drug, alcohol, and treatment resources where addicts are taken through guidance and counseling to help overcome addiction.

Health facilities need to build and maintain linkages with different groups of stakeholders in the community to ensure that the needs of vulnerable populations are met. Collaboration in the assessment of the health of a community will form a basis for identifying and addressing health needs. Hospitals and community stakeholders are expected to work together to ensure that the needs of vulnerable populations are met. Improving access to care among vulnerable populations will aid in developing innovative ways to transform care aspects for these populations.

References

Byrd, L. (April 2, 2021) Health Disparity Affecting Minority Elderly Populations. Medscape. Retrieved from https://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/550265

Centres for disease control and prevention (January 5, 2021) Promoting Health for Adults: National Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/promoting-health-for-adults.htm

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