US News Article — “Cancer in Hispanics: Good News and Bad”

Hi all!

I wanted to quickly share this news article from US News. Here is the link to the article: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-09-23/cancer-in-hispanics-good-news-and-bad

Linking the article’s points about social determinants of cancer to my own observations, I want to point out that healthcare inequity doesn’t just stem from financial disparities. Many regions in rural America are “hospital deserts,” essentially implying that hospitals and care centers are few and far between in these areas. From a practical standpoint, hospitals are most useful when they are located in urban settings because they can serve the most amount of people and health conditions arise often in these densely-populated areas. However, this leaves the people living in the surrounding farmland without quick and easy access to a medical facility in case of an emergency.

Many people of Hispanic origin are employed on farms in southern and western states. This leaves them with far less access to hospitals than individuals living in thriving metropolises. Lack of public transport to get to hospitals and little hospital funding complicates the matter even more. The House of Representatives has recognized and taken steps toward solving this problem, passing the Save Rural Hospitals Act in 2015. The act promised to provide funds to rural hospitals and limit healthcare budget cuts. However, I see a need for more to be done beyond financial assistance. A major problem lies in the fact that cultural and linguistic barriers prevent Hispanics from seeking out care even if it is available. I think a possible solution might arise from speaking directly with Hispanics in these areas and finding out what keeps each of them individually from being able to obtain healthcare.

How Rural American Became a Hospital Desert — Salud America

I want to pivot toward this particular quote from the article: “Commenting on the report, experts who were not involved with the study agreed that understanding racial and ethnic disparities in cancer is the first step toward shoring them up.”

As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, it is important for us to continue considering the bigger picture of medicine. Many doctors and scientists are turning toward epigenetics and are looking at social determinants of health. I see this marking a huge step forward toward gaining an even more comprehensive understanding of medicine.

Sarina

Works Cited

Mann, Denise. “Cancer in Hispanics: Good News and Bad | Health News | US News.” US News, 23 Sept. 2021, https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-09-23/cancer-in-hispanics-good-news-and-bad.

Cantu-Pawlik, Stacy. “How Rural America Became a Hospital Desert.” Salud America, 15 Nov. 2018, https://salud-america.org/how-rural-america-became-a-hospital-desert/.