Disparities in Provision of High Quality Heath Services

Disparities in Provision of High Quality Heath Services to the Minority

2. Identify Hazards.
   Find 4 hazards anywhere at…….
3. Potential risks.
4. Priority of risks.

(a) Calculate the Priority of the risks by first assessing the consequences, exposure and probability using

the Risk Level Calculator below
(b) Complete the Safety Sign Check List

5. Control Methods. Describe how you would control each hazard and or risk using the hierarchy of

control and any induction and training necessary.

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DISPARITIES IN HEALTH CARE PROVISSION

Abstract

The United States of America offers the best health care services in the world. It is
however unfortunate that some Americans still lack the best of the services due to varied reasons.
Differences are evident along the lines of ethnicity and race. The less fortunate are mainly the
non-white Americans, the blacks and the Indians. The situation has indeed attracted attention
from researchers and academicians all over the globe. Quality health care should be available for
all Americans regardless of their skin color. The health care system therefore needs to be more
inclusive and available to people of different beliefs, sexuality, and religion among others. In
general, a better health care system is needed to offer equal services to the entire population.
Humanity is endorsed with intelligence that enable hem realize inequality and launch uprisings
to fight for their rights. However, the affected groups are unable to air their concerns as a
competent leadership is lacking in the system to call for quality health services to the groups.

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Introduction

It is evident that change is required in health care but the lack of efficient leadership to
drive the transformation offer the greatest challenge. Researchers have been reluctant in
addressing the issue especially from the perspective of implementing changes that would result
to equal services to people of different ethnicities. In some research works, however, researchers
only point out the relation between health care for the public and emotional feelings. In this
project, the role of appropriate leadership in driving transformations for provision of equal health
care services to all Americans is discussed as a measure to ensure that the disadvantaged groups
get their fair share. Studies carried out aim at improving health care services to all ethnic groups
and races. Generally, emphasis is put on the minority groups

Disparities in the Provision of Quality Health Services to the Minority
In the US, ethnicity has been noted to influence access to health care with more
difficulties for the non-whites. The research project takes a critical position and exhaustively
examines the existence of disparities in access to health care for the minority groups.
Transformation leadership is taken as the most appropriate vehicle in conveying the inevitable
change required in the sector. In the paper, the influence of disparities in the health care sector on

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the implementation of the Affordable care act is examined and recommendations made on the
best ways of handling the unacceptable situation. Extensive research is done to ensure that
reliable evidence is used in the call exploration of the issue.

Research and review

Disparities in the health care sector as The Kaiser Family Foundation termed them entail
inequality in care provision for Americans of different origin, religion, beliefs among other
aspects of life (2013). With the disparities, different groups receive different levels of care and
for the US skin color is among the leading factors leading to the differences. Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality wrote that differences are evident in the means in which
diseases are handled in different populations as expected, disease outcomes also take the trend
initiated by the variations in care provision (2012).
To further illustrate, the disparities also cause differences the type of diseases, injuries as
well as disabilities and mortalities that different groups experience. From another perspective,
differences result from insufficiency of health care services and cultural practices as a result of
differences in social; and economic backgrounds. A link is noted between the disparities,
emotions as well as the societal issues for different populations. As Deng and Gibson (2008)
noted, people with poor economic background receive poor quality care as compared to their rich
counterparts. It is also noted that financial instability plays a role in destabilizing the emotional
status of individuals. Economic factors are noted to be one of the leading contributors in

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determining the quality of care people receive regarding their health. People with poor
socioeconomic status often get low quality care and end up being emotionally discouraged.
Disparities in access to health care are translated in the life expectance for people in
different categories. The minorities are generally found to lead a shorter life as compared to the
more abled majority of the Americans. The Affordable Care Act initiated by president Obama
has nevertheless achieved in minimizing the gap in health care access between people in
different groups. Since its establishment, disparities in the health sector are noted to have
subsided with an approach toward equality.
To solve the problem of disparities in the sector, it is important for the leaders to bring
changes by collaborating with the framers of policies in the sector. by developing appropriate
strategies, leaders would lead their subjects out of the emotional setbacks that result with
inequality in access of high standard care in health institutions. It would be important if leaders
for example, enact policies that would bring the poor closer to the rich. The policy makers also
have the responsibility to solve the issue and end the long-felt disparities. By improving the
socioeconomic status of the minority, All Americans would afford the current insurance plans
and access to care would be generally be equaled for all. As the Agency for Healthcare Research
and Quality wrote, Americans would afford quality health care and there would be minimal
pooling of funds into healthcare (2012). It should be noted that most of the shortcomings in
ensuring equal access to quality health care are financial in origin.
Research shows that transformational leadership is the best tool in identifying change,
formulating a vision as well as executing the changes from an authoritative position to obtain the
required changes. (Assanova & McGuire, 2009). To create equality, leaders should institute

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essential reforms that create coordination and supervisory guidelines for the care of the minority
groups (Alino & Alban, 2011). By taking the measure, leaders would be at a better position to
evaluate their progress and implement the policies provided on the eradication of the disparities
in the health sector. Leaders are in addition expected to understand the need of emotional
intelligence as well as its influence on the lives of their subjects. In the mode of leadership,
leader’s performance should go beyond the anticipations. This would be achieved by
encouraging integrity and fairness through support provision and recognition. As Deng and
Gibson (2008) wrote, leaders in transformational leadership try as much as possible to avoid self-
interest and would therefore steer up toward elimination of the disparities and lead to the
achievement of equal care for people of varied backgrounds.
Gap in the literature

In this research, a gap is noted to exist at the level of leadership and therefore needs to be
filled. Assanova and McGuire noted that there exist volumes of leadership that can address the
healthcare disparities for the different groups (2009). It is important to address the gaps as by so
doing, the transformational leadership and an approach to emotional intelligence forms the basics
in achieving curbing the disparities evident in health care provision.
Problem Statement

Disparities in the health sector involve provision of care between for people of varied
races, ethnicities, religions and many other divisions. The imbalance existing in the sector results
from social, economic as well as cultural factors. Disparities are seen in many forms. Among
them is the access to health care, attendance given for various diseases, as well as genetic and
ethnic factors. Disparities eventually lead to differences in disease outcomes for different

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populations. In most cases, the outcome is more adverse for the disadvantaged minority groups
as compared to the outcome seen in most other Americans. According to research, a link exists
between disparities and low birth weights, and premature miscarriages among other reproductive
health abnormalities. These issues often have significant effect on emotions and hence social
activities undertaken by the different individuals.

Identifying Gaps to Impact Change

General health includes optimal body functionality inclusive of one’s mental status and
functioning. Emotional senses also comprise the general wellness. It is therefore important that
people’s emotions are protected from by offering the quality services to them without incidences
of discrimination based on skin color, race, ethnicity, religion or any other factor likely to create
divisions. It is necessary that leaders realize the impact of emotions on ones health. People often
experience emotional destruction from discriminative treatment based on their status in the
society. Obstacles noted to affect quality care provision to people include geographical locations,
ethnicity, race, gender as well as one’s social status. Health disparities have effect on the
psychological states of people and their performance is often influenced. Among personal factors
affected by disparities are abilities, acquaintance as well as skills. In addition, health disparities
are known to predispose people to chronic diseases and high death rates (Agency of Heathcare
Research and Quality, 2012). Research has shown for example that African Americans have a
10% higher risk to cancer as compared to their white counterparts. The same case is seen with
diabetes and other common chronic illnesses.

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It is also notable that minority groups are less likely to consult private doctors as
compared to the people in the majority groups. Poor access to health services is one of the factors
that predispose the minority to diseases. Again, the problem roots from the economic status of
the people. It is however saddening that the gap between the rich population and their poor
counterparts often widens instead of narrowing. The whites in America continue to access health
services with increasing efficiency while the situation worsens for the blacks. Such situation as
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality wrote impacts negatively on the livelihood of the
minority groups. Minimizing the disparities in the sector would boost emotions at the personal
level leading to improved health conditions for the minority groups. Transformational leadership
that aims to care for emotional intelligence would lead to better lives for the minority groups and
they would in turn enjoy a longer life span.

Personal Public Health Leadership Theory

One of the key pillars of an organization is its leadership. There has been intensive
research to explore on appropriate forms of leadership. Researchers have developed multiple
theories explaining leadership. Qualities that distinguish quality leaders have been outlined in
many research works. Transformational leadership is one of the theories that offer explanations
on most appropriate leadership practices. The theory emphasize on individual achievements. The
theory for instance indicates that charisma is a necessary trait for leaders. Together with the
ability to lead people toward high productivity, charisma makes a leader more appropriate to
execute transformations (Lang, 2010). The bond that exists between transformational leaders and
their subjects is a motivational factor and reduces incidences of distrust between the parties. In
transformation leadership therefore, behavior of the parties is modified to allow healthy

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interactions between the parties. The mode of leadership in addition orients employees toward a
common goal making it easier for organizations to run smoothly. A serving interaction is
established in the organization rather than that dominated by a feeling of power (Bass & Riggo,
2006). In addition, the leadership depicts direct relation with personal characteristics. Confidence
and emotional feelings are depicted in transformational leadership. In this way, leadership
integrates personal attributes with management. It is therefore necessary that transformational
leaders be constituted in the management of organizations that require reforms. The style of
leadership would work for situations requiring behavioral change in addition to improved
management.

Nature of Organizational Change in Healthcare using transformational

Leadership approach

Professionals in health care provision are working to ensure that improvements are noted
in the sector. Differences in care provision based on ethnicity, race, religion and color are
intolerable for the profession. Leaders in health care are expected to be skillful and to depict
competence by being emotionally supportive. The disconnection between leadership and
emotional competence should be corrected for the best outcomes on the move to improve equal
access to quality health care.
It is important for the framework employed in closing the gap to ensure that health goals
are pursued. The framework should offer strategies to which leaders are expected to base their
decisions. Such strategies should see to the reduction of individual interests and prioritize on
achievements as an organization. By using such leadership methods, the disparities seen in
quality health care provision would be solved.

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A Representation of the Public Health Leadership Theory
Set Directions: Mission, Vision and Strategy

5: Execute
Changes using
Emotional
Intelligence
1: Set Directions

2: Establish the
Foundation.

3: Build
Will

4: Generate Ideas

Fig.1 Transformational leadership style cycle using emotional intelligence

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SELF MYSTERY

The personal awareness and acumen in
the qualities and styles of leadership
necessary to lead in a given context

Transformational
Leadership Approach

Fig 2 The Nature of Organizational Change in Healthcare using transformational Leadership approach.

How the Visual Representation addresses the Literature Gaps
The system addresses gaps by development of concepts from scientific methods of data
collection (Les & Magdelena, 2008). Among the developed concepts are theories that that
explain different situations in from a scientific approach. The representations are scientific in
origin and are the concepts are therefore reliable to refer to in order to understand scientific
issues. After identification of the relevant issues, leadership strategies can be formulated to help
solve the problems. Generally, visual representation offers proper understanding of situations
which in turn allow for development of appropriate leadership techniques to handle the issues.

Method of Data Collection and Analysis

Data was collected by the use of structured questionnaires. Data analysis was enabled by the
use of the SPPS statistical software as well as Monkey Survey.com. Data evaluation on the other

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hand was done through T-test. To maintain the validity of the research, randomization was used
in selection of participants in the study. To evaluate transformational leadership, the Pearson
coefficient was used together with ordinal and nominal measurement scales. By the use of the
tools, the impact of transformational leadership on the lives of the minorities in the US was
determined.

Significance of the Study

The research study addressed a problem that is often neglected by researches. The
research may open the way for more comprehensive studies regarding provision of quality
services to the American minority groups. The study also offered transformative leadership as an
approach to overcome the disparity. The research outcome provides important information and
strategies that would help in handling the disparities.
Ethical Considerations

All activities in the study were bound within ethical requirements. To further guarantee
privacy, standard guidelines regarding information handling will be strictly adhered to. As a
requirement, the study will be approved by Public Health Department of Walden University.
Permission will also be sought from relevant authorities in the community under test.

Conclusion

The health sector in the United States has been characterized with disparities for long. As
observed, the disparities root from differences between the rich and the poor. The larger the gap
between the two classes, the more the disparities observed in the health sector. Among the key
factors resulting to the disparities are socioeconomic status of the people, ethnicity, race,
religion, values and beliefs among others. The best means of addressing the disparities as seen in
this research involve the use of transformative leadership. Such leadership should see to

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increased social welfare among the minority and increased wages to close the gap. All
Americans are entitled to equal access to quality health care and leaders should ensure that
citizens enjoy the right. Emotional intelligence should also be coupled with transformative
leadership for fast achievements in provision of equal access to services.

References

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (2012). National Health Care Disparities Report.

Leadership Questionnaire . The Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology,
74, 1 – 27 .
Assanova, M. & Mc Guire (2009). Applicability Analysis of the Emotional intelligence
Theory.Indiana University.
Creswell, J. (2011). Research Design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approach
Custom Ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publication.

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Deng, L. & Gibson, P. (2008). ” A Qualitative Evaluation on the Role of Cultural Intelligence in
Cross-Cultural Leadership Effectiveness,” in International Journal of Leadership Studies,
Vol. 3 Iss. 2, 2008, pp. 181-197, 2008 School of Global Leadership & Entrepreneurship,
Regent University. URl.
Lang, M. (2010). Transformational leadership: fundamental, models, differences and impact on
employees Norderstedt. Germany. Duck und Bindung.
Les, Z & Magdelena, L (2008) Shape Understanding System: The First Step towards the Visual
Thinking Machines. Heidelberg. Springer.