Reducing the Health Gradient

The impact of socio-economic status as a determinant of health.

Is a policy focus on youth unemployment the key to combat persisting health inequalities?

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Svenja M. SchneiderE-Mail: Svenja-Schneider@gmx.de

Table of Content

• Global Health Inequalities

• Socio-economic Determinants of Health

• Youth as Target Group of Intervention

• Building blocks of successful intervention

• Conclusion

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Global Health Inequalities

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9W_e-tBfSs

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Whitehead & Dahlgren’s model of the interacting determinants of health

4Source: Reprinted from Health 2020 policy framework and strategy (EUR/RC62/8) (p. 31), by World Health Organization, 2012, Malta: WHO Regional Committee for Europe.

Projected crude death rates per 100 000 by World Bank income groups for all ages, 2005 and 2015

Group 1: communicable diseases, nutritional deficiencies, perinatal & maternal conditionsGroup 2: chronic, noncommunicable diseases. Group 3: injuries

Source: Reprinted from “Preventing chronic diseases: how many lives can we save?,” by K. Strong, C. Mathers, S. Leeder and R. Beaglehole, 2005, Lancet, 366(9496), 1580. Copyright 2009 by Elsevier B.V.

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Does it really have to be like this?

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Youth as Target Group for Intervention

Building blocks of successful intervention

• focus on enhancing disadvantaged people’s chances for occupational advancement in order to improve their living conditions, as well as their health status

• Increasing job availability, training or re-training to every young person within a reasonable time period after becoming unemployed or leave formal education

• Ensure equal opportunities for young people in the labour market as a countermeasure to the growing levels of youth unemployment

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Conclusion

To reduce health inequalities, it is insufficient to only buffer the health-damaging effects of poverty and marginalization - correction of the fundamental causes

Life course perspective suggests focus on preserving young people‘s health toprevent many health problems in later life before they occur

Health status is highly influenced by the socio-economic determinants (e.g. income)

Raising socio-economic status of young people by counteracting youthunemployment: Youth Guarantee

Better health outcomes among disadvantaged population groups

Reduction in health inequalities

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Thank you for your attention!

• Questions?

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Let‘s hope everyone will be able to reach the finish line in the future!!!

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