Health Behavior

Jasmine Fields

Columbia Southern University

Health Behavior PUH 5304

Dr. Williams

October 25, 2022

Determinants of Health and Diabetes

Impact of Determinants of Health on Diabetes

Several elements influence community health. The CDC classifies five determinants of health, all of which have a significant impact on health and well-being (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021). All these determinants impact the prevalence of diabetes in Columbus, Georgia. However, not all of them have significant impacts, with some having a nearly negligible impact on the illness. According to the CDC, the five determinants of health impact diabetes in Columbus (O’Conner, 2017). These factors are genetics, behavior, environmental and physical influences, medical care, and social factors.

Genetics influences health by predisposing individuals to certain diseases. Some individuals are genetically predisposed to diabetes. For example, type 2 diabetes can be passed down genetically, and this increases the risk of those whose parents have diabetes (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021).

The environment can promote diabetes by encouraging poor dieting. The environment does this by blocking access to healthy foods by making them too expensive or placing them beyond reach for some residents (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021). The environment can also promote diabetes by encouraging habits that increase a person's risk of diabetes. For example, the environment can motivate smoking by promoting smoking through easing access and promoting its use. Physical influences also have an impact on diabetes. Obesity, which is one of the primary causes of diabetes, is exacerbated by a lack of physical exercise. This is why physical influence is so important in the development of diabetes (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021).

Medical care contributes to the rise in diabetes prevalence in two ways: prevention and healthcare delivery (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021). Modern healthcare plays a role in not speaking on measures to promote healthy living and offer diabetes-preventative measures. The prices of insulin also make the management of diabetes difficult, which is why diabetes claims so many lives per year in the region.

Social factors include economic and social conditions such as financial resources, power, and political factors (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021). The social factors that influence diabetes in the region are low education standards, poverty, and age. These factors influence diabetes by limiting access to treatment, information, and facilities that promote physical exercise. This leads to the development of diabetes by promoting traits such as poor diet, lack of physical activity, and smoking.

Determinants of Health and the Target Population

In Columbus, the main determinants of health are behavior, environmental and physical influences, medical care, and social factors. These four are responsible for the significant rise in the prevalence of diabetes in the region. In Wynnton, these health determinants have the most impact, which is a reason why the region has one of the highest rates of diabetes (O’Conner, 2017).

In Wynnton, behavior and physical influence play a role in demoting physical exercise (O’Conner, 2017). Many of Wynnton’s residents do not exercise and this behavior is rooted in their ideals and lack of physical influence. Despite the facilities in Georgia that promote physical activity such as the Chattahoochee Riverwalk, many of the state’s residents do not take part in any physical activity (O’Conner, 2017). Behavior also influences the prevalence of tobacco use in the region.

Environmental and social factors also affect diabetes in the target population. The environment in Wynnton does not encourage healthy eating. This is because the stores in the region do not sell wholesome foods, often selling foods that are saturated in fats and sugars (O’Conner, 2017). The healthy foods provided to residents in this region are expensive and this hinders the population’s access to them. Social factors such as poverty block the residents of Wynnton in the target population from access prevents these residents from accessing these foods. A lack of education also hinders a person's ability to choose their diet well.

Medical and social factors play a role in promoting diabetes by denying access to medical services to those in the target population (O’Conner, 2017). This includes pre-diabetes screening, preventative measures against diabetes, and care for people living with diabetes. This helps to increase the mortality rate of those living with diabetes in the region and promotes its prevalence.

PRECEED and PROCEED Model Implementation and Determinants of Health

Planning models are an essential part of interventions. They help to ensure that the intervention does what it is supposed to, which is to reduce the prevalence of an illness. The PRECEED and PROCEED planning model is highly used in the medical field to plan interventions for certain diseases (Gorina et al., 2019). For an educator planning to utilize the model to change the prevalence of diabetes in Columbus, Georgia, the determinants of health play a crucial role in planning.

The health determinants assist in preparing the epidemiological assessment (Saulle et al., 2020). This is the phase of planning that is responsible for identifying the problems and setting the goals as part of the PRECEED part of planning. The health determinants also impact the ecological assessment to determine how best to reach society and the best way to implement actions that can impact society (Saulle et al., 2020). Medical care contributes to the rise in diabetes prevalence in two ways: prevention and healthcare delivery (Hill-Briggs et al., 2021).

The health determinants also help to provide a base for the impact evaluation of the policies, regulations, and organizational constructs implemented as part of the ways to implement change (Gorina et al., 2019). These determinants present the current state of the situation, and when the policies have been implemented, they serve as a bar to assess their impacts. It also helps in outcome implementation and how the outcome benefits society.

References

Gorina, M., Limonero, J. T., & Álvarez, M. (2019). Educational diagnosis of self‐management behaviors in patients with diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia based on the PRECEDE model: Qualitative study.  Journal of clinical nursing,  28(9-10), 1745-1759.

Hill-Briggs, F., Adler, N. E., Berkowitz, S. A., Chin, M. H., Gary-Webb, T. L., Navas-Acien, A., & Haire-Joshu, D. (2021). Social determinants of health and diabetes: a scientific review.  Diabetes care,  44(1), 258-279.

O'Connor, J. (2017). Chronic disease prevention as an adaptive leadership problem.

Saulle, R., Sinopoli, A., Baer, A. D. P., Mannocci, A., Marino, M., De Belvis, A. G., & La Torre, G. (2020). The PRECEDE–PROCEED model as a tool in Public Health screening: a systematic review.  La Clinica Terapeutica,  171(2), e167-e177.