According to Thornton et al. (2016), “Despite improvements in medical care and in disease prevention, health disparities persist and may be increasing for chronic conditions such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, and cancer” (p. 1416), but health policy can serve as a form of intervention to address these health disparities. Whether the policy is directed at funding, education, or specific healthcare practices, identifying the health disparities, why they exist, and to whom they impact is a necessary component to improving overall public health.
During the next week, you will explore the how healthcare policy can help to address disparities that impact vulnerable, marginalized, or stigmatized populations. You will continue to explore the population you identified in Week 1 in order to determine a specific policy advocacy priority.
Identifying barriers and challenges that impact vulnerable and marginalized groups is an important first step, but advocates cannot stop there. What can be done to address the inequities, the challenges, and the barriers? How might an advocate use policy to enact change?
The Allegory of the Orchard required you to consider the barriers and challenges of specific vulnerable or marginalized populations. In our Week 1 Discussion, you identified a specific population connected to your practice, organization, or experience. This week you will explore that population further by determining a specific advocacy priority for the population.