'How far do you agree that poverty has a direct link to health' Essay

'How far do you agree that poverty has a direct link to health' - Essay Example Karl Marx, a great philosopher, believed that societies progress through a coherence of class struggle between the rich who controls societal systems and underprivileged members of society who act as their subjects. According to Marx, the scenery of societal systems could be improved through the idea of socialism where all members of the society enjoy a fair and equal share. The essay will examine how the societal systems contribute to poverty whose impacts are felt in access to health care. This essay offers valuable and elaborate guidance for health service providers. The assessment of the aspects poverty in relation to access to health care shows a close link both abstractly and operationally. Link between Health and Poverty Access to good health care is dependent on the financial status of an individual. Poor people have limited access to health care facilities as compared to the rich people. It is worth noting that material deficiency and the numerous social disadvantages associ ated with poverty makes it impossible for poor people to access health care (Pieratt-Seeley, 2002, p. 232). Due to the strong connection between poverty and health, there have been deliberate efforts to reduce poverty as one of the ways to make it possible for all people to access health care. ... These mechanisms can help clarify why the impacts of poverty on health may continue to hit if poverty is considered in relation provisions rather than as an absolute deficiency (Saunders, 1998, p. 13). Assessing the links between poverty and health is significant for policy makers since it draws consideration to the likelihood that poverty can be associated with adverse health outcomes. It also helps in examining the distribution of income and health inequalities. Moreover, social aspects of health and social environment give rise to the values and practices that control health conditions and costs (Saunders, 1998, p. 17). Since the health sector has minimal authority over most powerful influences on health, such as education, food, shelter, environmental risks, and work conditions, it meets the practical difficulties of recognizing how it can successfully work to disrupt the brutal cycle of poverty to access to health care (Pieratt-Seeley, 2002, p. 234). Marx criticized capitalism s ystem arguing that it resulted in class struggle where some enjoyed prime services at the expense of the underprivileged (Pieratt-Seeley, 2002, p. 234). The basic principle of human rights, which include health, upholds all people equally. The issue of the guidelines to be adopted in human rights has been controversial due to differing policies, culture and beliefs in the society (Young, 1999, p. 269). Marx stipulated that the human dignity should be respected including other necessities of life. He argued that capitalism results in discrimination, which may cause high poverty levels in a country due to poor policies and implementation of the government policies, high incidences of impunity, skewed