The Importance of Societal Factors on Health

Photo by John Cameron on Unsplash

In the United States, we have viewed health as an individual matter, whether because of genetics or individual behaviors that affect health such as smoking, a sedentary lifestyle, what we eat, and so on. We spend trillions of dollars each year on a health care system that embraces this perspective. Meanwhile, we are lagging behind other peer countries on things like longevity and maternal mortality. But there is a growing movement to recognize the role of an entire community as a factor in the health of individuals, shaping even individual health behaviors. The social determinants of health are societal factors in a community that have been shown to play a greater role in shaping the health of individuals than does health care itself. For example, access to healthy foods, adequate housing, education, and even the arts have been shown to be key in creating healthy individuals, families and communities. One organization in the Catskill region of New York that exemplifies this perspective is the Pine Hill Community Center. HealthCetera in the Catskills producer and host, Diana Mason, PhD, RN, talked with Pine Hill Community Center’s Executive Director, Colleen McMurray, about all that the Center does to promote health in the region. This interview first aired on WIOX Radio on November 15, 2023.

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