Santa Monica College Health Disparities and Covid 19 Discussion

Canvas Discussion Board Assignment #2 [F23]: Health Disparities and Covid-19 – Canvas Discussion Board Assignment Group 12

Description:

• This assignment is an opportunity for you to demonstrate what you have learned in our class this week and apply it to your life outside of the classroom.

Due Dates:

You must post your own comment before you can see comments from any group members.If no group members post an original comment by 11:59 PM on Saturday, you do not have to post a response. It would be unfair to expect students to constantly check Canvas to see if/when group members post their original comment.

Word Requirement:

• Original comments must be at least 500 words or more to earn full credit (remember, this is a writing-intensive GE class!)
• Response to a group member must be at least 200 words to earn full credit
• Not meeting the word requirement will result in a 10% deduction of points from the overall assignment grade. I suggest going a few words or sentences over to be safe.
• However, going significantly over the word requirement will not necessarily result in a better grade. I prefer clear and concise comments over unfocused and verbose comments.

Citation of Course Content Requirement:

Your comments must include information that you learned from class. If you do not cite specific information from the chapter, slides, articles, videos, or other course content, you will not get credit.

Use bold font to highlight the course materials (e.g., articles, videos, etc.) and course concepts that you incorporate in your post. There is an automatic 10% deduction for not doing so.

CITE any articles, videos, etc. in the text of your original comment.The first time you cite an article, include the title, last name of the author(s), year of publication, and news outlet, like this: According to the New York Times article, “Senate Takes Major Step Toward Repealing Health Care Law” (Kaplan, 2017), . . . .For any/all subsequent citations of the same source, just use an APA in-text citation, which includes the last name of the author(s) and publication date, like this: Kaplan (2017) highlights….

You do NOT need a separate references page for this assignment. Only in-text citations are needed.

Topic: Health Disparities and Covid-19 (500 words)

1. For your original comment, first, identify two health disparities in the United States that were discussed in the Unnatural Causes videos posted on Canvas. You can use any of the Unnatural Causes videos posted thus far in the semester.

Healthy People 2020 defines a health disparity as “a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage. Health disparities adversely affect groups of people who have systematically experienced greater obstacles to health based on their racial or ethnic group; religion; socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory, or physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic location; or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion”.See: https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/foundation-health-measures/DisparitiesLinks to an external site.

2. Next, link what you learned about heath disparities from the “Unnatural Causes” videos to at least TWO news articles I posted on Canvasthat highlight how pre-existing health disparities contributed to higher rates of death from Covid-19 among minority populations in the United States. If you use another source, you will not get credit for the assignment.

3. Finally, discuss what we can and/or should do to help improve health outcomes in these communities, now and/or in the future. This can be as short as 2-3 sentences, or longer if you wish.

4. Respond to at least ONE group member (200+ words):

Post a reaction to your group member’s post. Here are some suggested topics for your response, but you can cover others as well:Did you learn something new? If so, what?Did their article cover similar or different pre-existing health disparities as yours?Did their article cover similar or different populations as yours?What was your reaction to their suggestion regarding what we can and/or should do to help improve health outcomes in these communities, now and/or in the future?Any additional thoughts or reactions to their post?

Videos to help with discussion

Covid-19 & Health Disparities Videos and Podcast

PBS News Hour. December 24, 2020: You only need to watch from 24:00 until 40:16

“It took a pandemic to reveal racial health inequities that have always been there,” said Dr. Blackstock, Founder and CEO of Advancing Health Equity, on the year 2020.

https://www.pbs.org/video/december-24-2020-pbs-newshour-full-episode-1608786002/Links to an external site.

Battered by the pandemic, communities of color experience sharp drop in life expectancies.PBS News Hour, Feb 18, 2021 6:45 PM EDT https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/battered-by-the-pandemic-communities-of-color-experience-sharp-drop-in-life-expectancies?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=pbsofficial&utm_campaign=newshour&utm_content=1613761264Links to an external site.n Tuskegee, Painful History Shadows Efforts to Vaccinate African Americans. NPR Podcast February 16, 2021

https://www.npr.org/2021/02/16/967011614/in-tuskegee-painful-history-shadows-efforts-to-vaccinate-african-americansLinks to an external site.

https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/-the-impact-has-been-colossal-native-american-tribes-hit-especially-hard-by-covid-19-96643653638Links to an external site.

Links to an external site.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/we-need-help-say-latina-workers-hit-hard-by-pandemic-job-lossesLinks to an external site.Links to an external site.

Note: I do not expect you to read all of the articles below.Instead, select 6 of the articles that interest youThe articles typically take no more than 10 minutes to read. Thus, this part of the class should require about 60 minutes of your timeYou can choose which articles to read. They all focus on inequalities and disparities, especially during the pandemic, among:individuals who identify as Black or Hispanic/Latina/o/xseniors (older adults)those living in rural communitieslow-income individualspeople with pre-existing health conditionsIncarcerated persons‘People can’t ignore it anymore’: Across the country, minorities hit hardest by pandemic:No matter where the virus strikes, communities of color bear the brunt.Politico: 07/08/2020 BY: Laura Barron-Lopez, Elena Schneider, & Alice Miranda Ollstein.https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/08/racial-disparities-coronavirus-political-divide-353226?cid=apnLinks to an external site.Mayors, governor call out racial health disparities highlighted by coronavirus: Preliminary data suggest Covid-19 is hitting black and brown Americans particularly hardPolitico, 04/12/2020 BY David Beavers.https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/12/dc-mayor-coronavirus-african-american-health-disparities-180890?cid=apnLinks to an external site.Early Data Shows African Americans Have Contracted and Died of Coronavirus at an Alarming RatePropublica, April 3, 2020, BY: Akilah Johnson and Talia Buffordhttps://www.propublica.org/article/early-data-shows-african-americans-have-contracted-and-died-of-coronavirus-at-an-alarming-rateLinks to an external site.The fear I’ve been living with all my lifeFri December 18, 2020 Opinion BY Andrea Hoffman.https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/18/opinions/cystic-fibrosis-fear-covid-19-normalize-public-health-practices-hoffman/index.htmlLinks to an external site.A Crisis of Undiagnosed Cancers is Emerging in the Pandemic’s Second YearPropublica, May 4, 5 AM; BY: Duaa Eldeib.https://www.propublica.org/article/a-crisis-of-undiagnosed-cancers-is-emerging-in-the-pandemics-second-yearLinks to an external site.Lagging Vaccination Rates Among Rural Seniors Hint At Brewing Rural-Urban DivideNPR. April 20, 20212:50 PM ET; BY: Austin Fasthttps://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/04/20/988871651/lagging-vaccination-rates-among-rural-seniors-hint-at-brewing-rural-urban-divideLinks to an external site. ‘You can’t trust the government’: Spanish-speaking social media spreads COVID-19 vaccine disinformation, adds to hesitancyUSA Today. March 29, 2021 5:30 Am ET. BY: Nada Hassaneinhttps://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/03/29/covid-19-vaccine-infodemic-social-media-spanish-disinformation-coronavirus/4592379001/Links to an external site.Older Adults left behind in desperate dash for vaccine shotsPBS News hour. March 4, 2021https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/older-adults-left-behind-in-desperate-dash-for-vaccine-shots?fbclid=IwAR2VgURWvq95hTdOqLK9LIYojUmiKqNIPCNVQgF82XJs1reOXheFjid2BV4Links to an external site.Today’s Headlines: California’s new vaccine strategyMarch 5, 2021 5 AM PThttps://www.latimes.com/world-nation/newsletter/2021-03-05/california-new-vaccine-strategy-todays-headlinesLinks to an external site. PDF: HCOM Cali new vaccine strategy 3-5-21-1.pdfActionsIn Mississippi, Black residents are desperate to get vaccinated. But they face access barriersNBC News. Feb. 4, 2021. BY: Bracey Harrishttps://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/mississippi-black-residents-are-desperate-get-vaccinated-they-face-access-n1256652Links to an external site. Early U.S. data indicates Black and Hispanic Americans lagging in COVID-19 vaccinationsFebruary 1, 2021. By: Reuters Staffhttps://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccines-ethnicity-idUSKBN2A13F8Links to an external site. Many Latinos Are Hesitant To Get A COVID-19 VaccineNPR, February 1, 20214:01 PM ET BY: Brenda Leon *Click the Blue “Play” button to listen, or read the article. The information is identical.https://www.npr.org/2021/02/01/962905232/many-latinos-are-hesitant-to-get-a-covid-19-vaccineLinks to an external site.Racial disparities create obstacles for Covid-19 vaccine rolloutNBC News. Dec. 4, 2020. BY: Alicia Victoria Lozanohttps://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/racial-disparities-create-obstacles-covid-19-vaccine-rollout-n1249627Links to an external site.