Harsh words

Vulnerability is a difficult term to pin down. Are we vulnerable to disease? Natural disaster? Emotional breakdown? Even with an understanding that we are constantly vulnerable to hardship, we do not consider ourselves to be a vulnerable population. This may be because of our socioeconomic positioning, our support network or simply our own will to persevere. An understanding of what makes us progress beyond hardship and into better situations is central to understanding why some of our population considers the vulnerable “weak” and why others consider them “victims”. In my opinion, I do not see how I would be able to continue to carry on without my social support network and the socioeconomic position I was blessed to have been born into. My will to persevere is a direct result of the constant support I receive on a regular basis. Without it, I would consider myself highly vulnerable to potential adversity. Because of this, I find it difficult to label an entire “vulnerable” population without knowing what experiences they have come from and what situation they are currently in. It is this labeling that limits our ability to see beyond a seemingly lazy population.

Vulnerable populations

I believe that the idea of "vulnerable populations" is very real, but difficult to define. As a society, much of what determines an individual's class level and circumstances to wealth, opportunities, and access to essential services such as health care can be due to chance alone. While this may be difficult to grasp, there is much truth to this statement. As a result, society must find a balance (especially when it comes to a topic like health care) to accommodate for their fellow man and be able to contribute to a system in which the masses can support these "vulnerable populations." More than anything else, I believe it takes a change in mindset to be able to buy into a "universal" health care system, and understand that "vulnerable populations" have just as much a place in a society as any other, and should have the same access to health care as any other individual as well.

I wouldn't view them as victims or as sinners. I guess there are issues that need to be addressed because of the demographics of vulnerable populations, but it would be unjust to prototype them as above. These are individuals that need the health care system more than any other section of society and really it is a measure of a systems very functioning whether it is able to care for its vulnerable.

These individuals may be different from others due to their individual dynamics but also due to their community dynamics and all these factors play an important role in their biology. Their physiology may thus vary depending on the built environment.

Also I think language barriers, employment, immigration status, education play a big role in determining their health outcomes. It affects the way they treat their health, stresses and reach out for help. Most of these factors can be overcome though not all.

both ways

I think this argument can have a middle ground. I feel though as the government is responsible to some point to take care of it's entire populations health. If an individual is unable to take care of his own needs beyond this point, the government then has the responsibility to go above and beyond to take care of those individuals.

This can be done in many ways such as subsidizing the cost of medical coverage, by more tightly regulating the cost of medical coverage, and by controlling the cost of pharmaceuticals. If the government became our health insurance provider, everybody would be paying into a system which is utilized by all. The government could subsidize the cost of medical care making treatments more affordable. People would then have to pay a fee for service (unless through some extenuating circumstance they are unable to pay), which would leave an incentive for the public to maintain their own health.

It's somewhere in the middle

There definitely has to be a middle ground. Especially in today's economic crisis, it is not uncommon to see hard working individuals struggling with the same issues as the not-so-hard workers. There are many reasons why vulnerable populations continue to remain vulnerable such as language barriers, physical or mental handicaps, legal status...etc. Although some of these issues can be addressed, many of these cannot thus causing individuals to struggle to excel in the work environment. But as a daughter of Colombian immigrants who came to this country at a very young age, I have witnessed first hand how people who really want to excel can do so. My parents came to this country neither of them college graduates, neither of them speaking english, and both of them extremely broke and teenagers. My parents many times had to chose between buying baby food to feed my sister and I or buying food to feed themselves. Needless to say, they experienced many days of hunger. Nevertheless, they continued to overcome barriers that were keeping them down. Today, my family owns a very comfortable home in San Marino, we have enough cars to keep us moving, and.... I won't say anymore or you all might think I'm bragging :) But the point is, I have personally seen how my family went from definitely being vulnerable to no longer having to struggle with the issue, all due to their perseverance and sacrifice. 

Better Access to Care for the Vulnerable Populations

When it comes to “vulnerable populations,” non-medical determinants such as SES, early life conditions as well as community and built environmental conditions, play a powerful role in the overall health status of these “vulnerable individuals.” The cost and logistical problems involved in visiting the doctor are the main deterrents for these people who need to see a physician. These vulnerable patients are even less likely to seek treatment when rising costs are coupled with an increased difficulty in securing an appointment, clinics with short hours or finding a suitable primary care physician. More children from low-income families are not getting preventive care, and their families are waiting longer to bring them in for sick visits in the hopes that the illness will resolve without medical intervention. However, the irony is that, if these kids had had adequate insurance coverage and gotten preventative treatment, they may have not needed an expensive hospital admission, which ultimately is much more costly to the health care system. In addition, many preventive procedures and screening tools are not paid for by most insurance companies, leaving sick patients with no choice but to wait until they are sicker before seeking treatment. The most direct way of improving the health indicators of these groups is to improve access to care and focus on preventive medicine, primary care and a focus on a doctor model, where patients have more options.

Better Access to Care for the Vulnerable Populations

When it comes to “vulnerable populations,” non-medical determinants such as SES, early life conditions as well as community and built environmental conditions, play a powerful role in the overall health status of these “vulnerable individuals.” The cost and logistical problems involved in visiting the doctor are the main deterrents for these people who need to see a physician. These vulnerable patients are even less likely to seek treatment when rising costs are coupled with an increased difficulty in securing an appointment, clinics with short hours or finding a suitable primary care physician. More children from low-income families are not getting preventive care, and their families are waiting longer to bring them in for sick visits in the hopes that the illness will resolve without medical intervention. However, the irony is that, if these kids had had adequate insurance coverage and gotten preventative treatment, they may have not needed an expensive hospital admission, which ultimately is much more costly to the health care system. In addition, many preventive procedures and screening tools are not paid for by most insurance companies, leaving sick patients with no choice but to wait until they are sicker before seeking treatment. The most direct way of improving the health indicators of these groups is to improve access to care and focus on preventive medicine, primary care and a focus on a doctor model, where patients have more options.

Assholes raise assholes

Unfortunately, the reality of social hierarchy is that it is very difficult to achieve a social status above that in which you were raised (with few exceptions). Why is this? Because assholes raise assholes. Everything about your place in life is strongly dictated by your upbringing. Highly educated parents are better about educating their children and they pass along smarter genes. Children raised in broken homes are more likely to raise their own children in broken homes. Unfortunately many of the children in these families are victims, though they may be the children of sinner. They have little control over their lives and without help are bound to become as useless as their sinner parents. So what can we do? We can intervene and help these vulnerable populations. 

We already help vulnerable populations in many ways, such as through programs like Medicaid, Headstart,  affirmative action, and big brother programs. And these programs have proven effective in changing the lives and opportunities of those enrolled. Unfortunately the reality of the situation is that some of our efforts will be lost on sinners in order to benefit the victims. But their is no way of knowing who is who. And so for the imrovement of all society we must help them all. 

Middle Ground

I definitely think there's a middle ground. At the hospital I volunteer at, there are a lot of single mothers who work as receptionists at the front desk of the emergency department. One of the "greeters" is in her late 20s, divorced, with a son. She works in the ER 5-6 days a week for 7 hour shifts and is attending school to become licensed in radiology. Although her parents help her take care of her child, they don't provide her with much money so she works at the hospital because not only does she need the money, but she gets free health insurance as well. In situations like this, I believe vulnerable populations are "victims" of an unfair life. 

However, there are many individuals who would not be this devoted and hard-working. For example, there's this new show on E! about models that are hired in music videos (I forgot the name). I watched part of an episode where one of the characters got upset because she thought she was going to get paid $700 for a video shoot but the pay ended up being $150. Rather than doing the shoot anyways because she's a single mother with a child, she didn't complete the shoot because she wasn't getting paid enough. I'm sorry but if you have a job that is paying you any sort of money, you shouldn't be picky about the amount. You should be willing to do ANY job for ANY amount of money if you need it that badly. There is no room for pride when you're low on cash. Of course I'm not saying you should become a stripper or a prostitute, but I do believe that you should go for any job that will bring in the money you need to take care of you child. For people like this, I believe they are "sinners" because they aren't willing to put in the hard work necessary to make money, they always want the easy way out.