phc 181 sociology of health illness and health care
Based on the results of below given research study, please explain following points;
‘Variations in health: What can the Department of Health and the NHS do?
- Discuss the kinds of explanation for these observed variations in life expectancy
– Life expectancy at birth is currently around seven years higher in the registrar General’s social class I than in social class V.
– Children in social class V are four times more likely to suffer accidental death than their peers in social class I;
– Of the sixty-six major causes of death in men, sixty-two were more common among those in social classes IV and V combined than in other social classes;
– Of the seventy major causes of death in women, sixty-four were more common in women married to men in social classes IV and V;
-Women in social class I have a registered incidence of breast cancer 1.5 times higher than women in social class V.
- Could it be argued that the lower social classes are responsible for their higher mortality rates? What alternative explanations can you give?
