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Promoting Positive Health Outcomes

Student's First Name, Middle Initial(s), Last Name

Institutional Affiliation
Course Number and Name
Instructor's Name and Title
Assignment Due Date

Promoting Positive Health Outcomes

Health Topic Area and Specific Health Issue
The Healthy People 2020's goal is to increase the overall quality of healthcare services to
ensure that everyone has access to adequate medical treatment. Given that most people face
problems related to health care access, it is essential to address such issues. It is, therefore, a key
concern for Healthy People 2020 to address the underlying issues to ensure that all people in the
United States have equal access to healthcare services. A critical evaluation of the Healthy
People 2020 objectives aids in gaining a deeper understanding of this specific concern. The
initiative taken up by Healthy People 2020 has the intention of eradicating existing inequities in
healthcare access. There are various obstacles identified by Healthy People 2020 that can be
attributed to the resulting disparities in healthcare. When looking at the general population, a
critical assessment of the American population reveals that some American demographic groups
cannot obtain sufficient healthcare.
As a problem, some populations in the United States are considered disadvantaged
because they cannot obtain quality healthcare due to traditional and cultural practices or
traditions. Also, due to a lack of good communication, many groups are unable to access medical
treatments. According to Elder (2019), some cultural groups may find it difficult to attain
effective communications with medical departments due to their norms and demographic
characteristics. Besides, the communication is further hampered by the group's lack of access to
information and technology that causes the observed healthcare inequities. Native Americans and
African Americans make up the majority of such cultural groups. As observed in these
populations, poverty and unemployment have been identified as major factors in the lack of
access to medical care. In reality, these two factors block these ethnic groupings' access to
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important information about gaining equal access to medical treatments. Betancourt et al. (2014)
observed that inequality and disparities in healthcare delivery and coverage in the United States
are exacerbated by a lack of access to the available information. Accordingly, the frequent lack
of access to available medical information by these ethnicities and cultural groups is a big
problem in the United States.
Causes of Disparities related to the Health problem
For a variety of reasons, it is critical to recognize that not all cultural groups in the United
States have equal access to healthcare services. Unfortunately, it is less likely that the minority
cultural groups will have adequate access to services by healthcare personnel. In reality, they
already possess less information regarding healthcare. Moreover, discrimination against such
ethnic and cultural groups is prevalent among the white community, which may sometimes
extend to the medical personnel. While racial discrimination may not be visibly evident, but it
has a complex way of affecting how different populations relate to each other. Often,
discrimination disadvantages the non-white minority races and ethnic groups. As a result, these
minority groups in the United States are always underserved due to this factor. Also, groups that
are poor and socially unstable economically are included in the underserved communities in
terms of healthcare (Cutilli et al., 2018). It has been observed in the United States that the rate of
infectious diseases is higher in underserved areas, such as African Americans and Native
American' populations (Betancourt et al., 2014). Therefore, due to disparities in medical services,
some communities are unable to obtain better care. In order to adequately address the problems
faced by these populations, it is important to consider establishing effective communication.
In gaining a better understanding, it is vital to investigate the reasons for communication
disparities. According to research, the lack of access to information devices is one the most
important factors that distinguish ethnic groups in terms of gaining access to healthcare (Cutilli
et al., 2018). Most healthcare information can be obtained from e-health portals and online
conversations. Therefore, the devices to access such information are essential. Still, another
barrier that may prevent the community from obtaining adequate information is the financial
instability that may make it difficult to access computers and internet access. When certain
diseases strike, it is possible that certain cultural groups may not receive the appropriate
information due to the unavailability of these services. Considering a disease like COVID-19
which is a global pandemic, access to timely information services becomes very important. It is
the only way people can learn about the disease to become aware of signs, symptoms, and
preventive actions. Socioeconomically vulnerable groups, such as African Americans and Native
Americans, are usually unable to receive proper information about the disease, which might be
fatal to them, under such terrible conditions (Betancourt et al., 2014). On the other hand, the
socioeconomically stable population can properly receive healthcare services since they can
afford to acquire a gadget. Due to the good communication connection, these persons can also
discuss their concerns with medical personnel effectively. However, for the disadvantaged
cultural groups, their incapacity to read or write, this group may not understand or interpret some
specific information on e-health portals effectively.
Strategies for Promoting Communication in Public Health
A close review of healthcare disparities reveals that the government must raise public
awareness of socioeconomically disadvantaged groups like Native Americans and African
Americans. The problems faced by the underprivileged populations need to be addressed through
solid mechanisms implemented through healthcare policies. Effective strategies can be applied
through the government's health department to ensure that the underserved population is
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provided with healthcare services. Also, in raising awareness among the socioeconomically
vulnerable people, the government should adopt efficient communication tactics. As a
communication approach, this strategy should be effective for all United States citizens,
regardless of their socioeconomic status.
Moreover, the development and use of new technologies such as telehealth can help the
general public in the United States gain access to accurate information about health care services.
It's worth noting that telehealth as a communication technology can increase knowledge among
the underserved community through raising healthcare awareness (Greenberg-Worisek et al.,
2019). Of the groups that are most likely to suffer significantly from diseases like cardiovascular
complications, minority cultural groups have been observed to bear the biggest impact. However,
various cultural groups can be informed about the indications, symptoms, and how such diseases
can be prevented using telehealth. These groups may be able to receive e-health services and
medical personnel through the use of telehealth services and other information technologies.
Outline a Plan for the Communication
In order to reduce health care disparities, it will be critical to develop a communication
plan for various ethnic groups and minorities, such as Native Americans and African Americans.
A formulated strategy can help reduce the observed discrepancies in healthcare.
Firstly, the ethnic minorities must be made aware of health care services that are
available and accessible to them. These people will be aware of healthcare services thanks to
radio advertisements and information collection. For instance, the unemployed or low-income
people can be encouraged to register for Medicaid through radio announcements.
Also, the application of telehealth as an information technology system can be
instrumental in delivering specific healthcare information to these cultural groups. These
individuals will be informed on how to respond to a specific medical complication using
telehealth. As a strategy, the approach will be extremely effective in decreasing disparities and
fostering equity in healthcare access.
The communication preferences of these socioeconomically unstable communities should
be taken into account by health care providers. Effective communication tactics should be used
to provide health care services (Elder, 2019). Using the same communication method with
diverse cultural groups might not be productive. Therefore, medical workers should develop a
communication strategy that incorporates all of a cultural group's required values and cultural
norms. This will help in the reduction of inequities in healthcare access.
Communication Evaluation Plan
Users who used telehealth applications can be evaluated to see if minorities and
socioeconomically unstable groups have access to healthcare services. Besides, people enrolled
in any healthcare plan sponsored by the government can assist in the evaluation of the
communication plan. Therefore, it will be possible to appropriately evaluate the effectiveness of
various techniques by comparing this data.
Target Communication
Nevertheless, targeted communication will introduce telehealth services for
socioeconomically unstable groups like Native Americans and African Americans to generate
awareness among these communities. Such communications will help these cultural groups
comprehend the importance of signing up for Medicaid services. Accordingly, training these
cultural groups through the e-health site, radio broadcasts, and gatherings will contribute to
promoting equity in healthcare access.
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Reflection on the Project

I have gained lots of insights regarding the aims and goals of Healthy People 2020 by
undertaking this assignment. The task has helped me comprehend the United States
demographics in terms of the underrepresented groups in medical services like the Native
Americans and African Americans. I have also learned that reducing the disparities in healthcare
is the main aim of Healthy People 2020 for the general population in the United States. From this
project, I have further learned about the value of effective communication in the nation's
healthcare. All in all, the project has been instrumental in highlighting the demographic
characteristics of certain cultural groups and how access to healthcare within such groups can be
increased to reduce healthcare inequities.

References
Betancourt, J. R., Green, A. R., Carrillo, J. E., & Owusu Ananeh-Firempong, I. I. (2016).
Defining cultural competence: a practical framework for addressing racial/ethnic
disparities in health and health care. Public health reports.
Cutilli, C. C., Simko, L. C., Colbert, A. M., & Bennett, I. M. (2018). Health literacy, health
disparities, and sources of health information in US older adults. Orthopaedic Nursing,
37(1), 54-65.
Elder, T. (2019). The Language Barrier as a Detriment to the Healthy People Initiative.
Greenberg-Worisek, A. J., Kurani, S., Rutten, L. J. F., Blake, K. D., Moser, R. P., & Hesse, B.
W. (2019). Assessing electronic personal health information use: An update on
progress toward healthy people 2020 objectives. Health Policy and Technology,
8(3), 211-220.