Removing weeds is an integral part of gardening, as this keeps the garden clean. Pulling out the weed along with its roots prevents it from regrowing. Likewise, in order to achieve health equality, one can eliminate the weed of health disparities by understanding its root causes.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a health disparity is a difference between population groups in the way they access, experience, and receive healthcare. The United States is recognized for its population diversity, consisting of a variety of minority groups. They all have different kinds of disparities, but all these disparities have a main common cause — socioeconomic status (SES), which measures one’s social and economic position in society. Stanford Professor Donald A. Barr describes how income and education complement each other in his book Health Disparities in the United States: Social Class, Race, Ethnicity, and Health. Barr suggests that people should “...view income and education as two sides of the same SES coin” and that they both “...will in turn be closely associated with occupational status” (Barr 46). 

Throughout history, SES has been crucial in determining who receives the better healthcare. Those with a higher SES tend to enjoy more healthcare benefits than those with a low SES. Professor Barr, in his book, provided two scenarios of how SES can impact one’s health. There’s Mimi (from the opera La Boheme), a poor seamstress in Paris, and Hans Castorp (from the novel Magic Mountain), the son of a financially strong German family. Both Hans and Mimi are affected with Tuberculosis, but only Hans survives (Barr 7). How? Hans happens to have a higher SES than Mimi, allowing him to access more healthcare benefits present at the time and therefore increasing his chances for survival. Unfortunately, this pattern continues to only grow.

The burning fire of health disparities can also ignite due to increased discrimination. Many patients have been discriminated against due to factors including but not limited to race, sex and age. According to the American Hospital Association, about half of U.S. healthcare workers have said that discrimination against patients is a major problem. For example, adults in the LGBTQ+ community are more likely to mention that they have been treated unfairly or disrespectfully in a healthcare setting. Ethnic minorities also face similar situations, with Asians, Hispanics, AIANs and blacks experiencing more unfair treatment in seeking healthcare compared to whites. Some physicians simply refuse to treat particular minority groups, making it harder for them to find someone willing to help them. What’s so difficult in helping those who genuinely need it? Is there anything that could be done in support of these minority groups? 

The National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), originally established in 2000, addresses and researches minority health and also hopes to reduce health disparities across the country. Currently, the NIMHD has been working on multiple different projects. For example, the Community-Based Participatory Research program (CBPR) hopes to foster collaborative research and implement research projects targeting health disparities in racial and ethnic minorities, rural populations and those who have a low SES. The NIMHD also has the Exploratory and Comprehensive Centers of Excellence Programs, which hopes to reduce health disparities from priority diseases/conditions, like HIV/AIDS, infant mortality, diabetes, etc. These initiatives not only help those who suffer from any kind of health disparity, but also provides them with a sense of renewed hope — that they, just like everyone else, will soon receive the valuable benefits of proper healthcare. 

The fight to gain health equality continues today, and who knows how long it will last? This battle will not end anytime soon, but when it does, its long lasting impact on society will never fade. The garden will forever remain spotless, allowing everyone to enjoy it happily and healthily.

This article was edited by Amaan Musani