As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many social health problems have intensified. This paper is a discussion of the current situation in Ruskin Vale and the causes of factors exacerbating social inequality. Among the three aspects discussed, the authors distinguish poor housing, unhealthy or poor diet. Ruskin Vale plans to build and redesign its technological and digital infrastructure to promote health and well-being through digital inclusion. The context in which it is supposed to be done includes numerous aspects of social life.
First of all, the authors note changing demographics, which means shifting the number and structure of the human population. In particular, it is caused as a result of processes such as mortality exceeding the birth rate (Beech and Porteus, 2021). At the moment, the predominant segment is the aging population with complex health care needs. The ratio between the number of generations born recently and those born a long time ago is shifting in favor of the latter (WHO, 2018). In proportion to the increase in life expectancy, the number of diseases in the elderly also increases, which is why there is a special need for enhanced medical care.
Moreover, among the trends playing a role is the rapid fall in the birth rate. The cost of medical care for the aging population should also be noted, which is noticeably increasing. Older people are more likely than young people to have health problems, which is why they often need expensive medical care. Patient and service user expectations are constantly growing. In this case, the authors are talking about how the patient represents the process and the result of the service provided. This makes it difficult to analyze the quality of medical services based on patient expectations.
Geographical factors in the case study determined the percentage of minorities in the population and their access to various means of communication, which has an impact on various factors of social inequality. Innovation and technology are new and competitive technologies for the production and use of medicines and diagnostic medical research, as well as the latest methods of patient treatment (Barlow, 2017). Key legislative and policy initiatives that provide Ruskin Vale with a foundation for innovation and entrepreneurship have a great impact. The legal structure of innovation regulation is based on their division into industries, institutions, and other structural elements.
In the context of this paper, legislation means a system of regulatory legal acts in healthcare. It regulates organizational, property, and non-property relations that arise in connection with the provision of medical and preventive care to citizens, the conduct of sanitary and epidemic measures. The three pieces of legislation are preventing, delaying, or reducing hospital admissions. They are applicable to the Russian Vale case study because the implementation of each of these points will reduce social inequality in the health sector.
The Ruskin Vale HealthCare initiative does meet the guiding principles of the Care Act 2014 (Bessant and Tidd, 2021). It presupposes financial assistance to provide medical and social assistance to citizens who are unable to work due to their age. I do think it will enrich the lives of the patients, service users and customers. This is due to the expansion of medical care opportunities and access to previously too expensive medical services.
The Ruskin Vale HealthCare initiative will reduce isolation and loneliness among elderly patients. Large financial difficulties often accelerate the departure from the active life of the old people. This initiative is aimed at maintaining the economic condition, which will positively impact the possibilities of social activity, allowing to overcome loneliness. It will promote active participation because the organization of medical care will take into account the peculiarities of the psyche of elderly and senile people and an understanding of the mechanisms of aging.
The other acts link to regulating medical activities: they reflect the legal relationship between the institution and the patient, the insurance company, and the clinic. In addition to this initiative, other documents regulating certain aspects of medical activity participate in the regulation of the medical practice. The Social Value Act 2012 benefits the public healthcare sector based on the patient’s economic and social environment (Bessant and Tidd, 2021).
The characteristics of The Equality Act 2010 are the protection of citizens from discrimination (Lorenzo et al., 2018). In a narrower sense, this legislative initiative is also applicable to healthcare. It helps to create equal opportunities for access to medical care for different groups of the population. The case study mentions social, environmental, and economic inequalities. They respond by putting forward various legislative initiatives that regulate the current situation and reduce the gap between different segments of the population and access to quality medical care.
The Health and Care Bill adopted in 2021 changes many of the positions implemented by the Health and Social Care Act 2012 (Lorenzo et al., 2018). This is due to the fact that, as a result of changes in many social factors, half of the points of this act are outdated. Thus, the influence of environmental, social, and economic factors changes over time and, if not regulated by law, it affects the increase in inequality in the field of public medicine.
Reference List
Barlow, J. (2017) Managing innovation in healthcare. London: World Scientific.
Beech, L. and Porteus, J. (2021). ‘The TAPPI enquiry report: Technology for our aging population’, Panel for Innovation, 1, 1-56.
Bessant, J. and Tidd, J. (2011) Innovation and entrepreneurship. UK, West Sussex: Wiley.
Lorenzo, O., Kawalek, P. and Wharton, L. (2018) Entrepreneurship, innovation and technology: A guide to core models and tools. Oxford: Routledge Focus.
World Health Organization. Aging and health: Key facts. (2018) Web.