Location and population
East New York comprises of a population of approximately 183,971 people. Regarding race and ethnicity, the community is made up of 52 percent blacks and 37 percent Hispanics (Anger et al., 2016). Other minority groups include the Asians, whites, and other groups. Life expectancy is 77.7 years.
Social and economic conditions
Conventionally, higher levels of education are usually associated with better health outcomes. In East New York, approximately one in every five adults is in possession of a college degree while one in every four people does not complete high school. Regarding economic conditions, almost one in every seven people in East New York aged 16 or more is unemployed. Also, half of all residents use more than 30 percent of their monthly earnings on rent. According to statistics, about a third of residents of East New York live below the Federal level (Karpati, 2014).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Image 1: Percentage of people living below poverty line in comparison with the neighborhood.
Health issues
The primary cause of preventable death in East New York is smoking which causes many illnesses, including stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and emphysema. About one-fifth of East New York residents smoke. However, many methods to stop smoking are available, with more than half of East New York smokers trying to stop the habit. Another prevalent disease in East New York is heart disease. According to reports, the rate of heart disease hospitalization increased in the past decade by 35 percent (Anger et al., 2016). Apart from smoking, high blood pressure, and high blood cholesterol, other factors that place individuals at risk of suffering from heart disease is lack of physical activity and obesity.
Healthcare access
Many foreign-born residents of East New York remain sidelined from the chance to get sufficient access to healthcare. The inaccessibility is caused by a myriad of barriers comprising of cultural norms, language as well as affordability. Due to these reasons, a significant proportion of residents of East New York including those who have acquired lawful immigration status do not have medical insurance and do not have regular access to affordable healthcare. Such barriers to access of healthcare have a negative impact on their immigrants, their families, and even the community. Without consistent access to affordable healthcare, many immigrants, as well as lawful citizens from minority backgrounds, continue to suffer from illnesses and injuries that can be prevented. It results in unnecessary individual hardships and diminishes their capacity to provide for their families and contribute positively to the community.
Prevention and screening
Through an initiative known as "Take Care New York," health institutions in East New York offer vaccination programs for diseases such as polio and influenza. The immunizations are not just administered to kids, but also adults. Cancer screening is also conducted by the Take Care New York initiative in an attempt to detect the disease in early stages and provide opportunities for treatment. Some of the types of cancer that is screened include breast, cervical, and colon cancers.
Crime
Statistics reveal that the rate of assault in East New York approximately doubles the citywide rate. In 2015, it was reported that in every 100, 000 people, about 120 non-fatal assault hospitalizations happen in East New York (Karpati, 2014). These statistics thus indicate that there is relatively a high rate of violence in the location; hence it is not so safe.
Health outcomes
People who are diagnosed with HIV and begin getting antiviral medications live for a longer time, have healthier lives and have little likelihood of transmitting HIV. Some hospitalizations from conditions such as asthma and diabetes can be prevented by having quality outpatient care, exercising, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Screening of cancer in its early stages helps the victims to seek treatment early enough. At such stage, the condition can be treated.
Conclusion
In general, it is accurate to deduce that East New York community does not have the best healthcare programs. It could be speculated that since the population mainly comprises of immigrants who have lawful status as well as those that have illegal status, the government and other stakeholders are unable to offer a comprehensive healthcare plan. Therefore, a lot of effort needs to be directed towards improving the health needs of the community.
References
Anger, H., Proops, D., Harris, T., & Ahuja, S. (2016). New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Karpati, A., Kerker, B., Mostashari, F., Singh, T., Hajat, A., Thorpe, L., & Frieden, T. (2014). Health disparities in New York City.
