The Social and Community Contexts of Health Care

Student Learning Outcomes

The competent graduate will:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the patient, the community, and the healthcare system in each of the following elements:
   1. Culture—Recognize the beliefs and values of groups of individuals and how those impact members of or non-members of those groups.
   2. Economic Impact—Understand how economic factors of personal, local, regional, and national groups of individuals affect the health of that population.
   3. Environment—Describe key preparedness activities that local, regional and national bodies should undertake for disaster planning.
   4. Health Literacy—Recognize how the current and changing demographics of a community, including educational level and primary language, impact the delivery of and understanding of health information.
   5. Health Policy and Advocacy
      1. Describe general health policy structure in the United States.
      2. Describe the impact of local, regional, and national policies on the health of the public and individuals.
   6. Law and Oversight
      1. Understand key legal and regulatory issues related to healthcare.
      2. Demonstrate awareness of the Indiana Malpractice system.
   7. Social Influence
      1. Recognize the responses of groups of individuals to the beliefs, values, and healthcare decisions of members and non-members.
      2. Recognize how the group responses impact the health of the population.
      3. Describe the availability and access to social support systems for patients.
   8. Spirituality
      1. Understanding the impact of collective spiritual beliefs and values of a group on the health of a population.
      2. Recognize the role of key spiritual leaders in the health of a community.
2. Recognize the impact each of the following elements has on the patient, the community, and the healthcare system:
   1. Culture—Acknowledge the cultural background of the patient and how it affects the patient’s healthcare decisions.
   2. Economic Impact—Recognize the economic factors impacting a patient and how these affect each patient’s healthcare decisions
   3. Environment
      1. Acknowledge the multiple environments of the patient and how they affect the patient’s health and healthcare decisions
      2. Recognize local, regional, and national environmental factors which impact public and community health. This includes epidemiologic factors.
   4. Health Literacy—Recognize the level of understanding of health information provided to or discussed with a patient and adapt communication accordingly
   5. Health Policy and Advocacy—Recognize the impact of system level health policies on individual patients.
   6. Law and Oversight—Recognize how patients are or may be impacted by law, such as disability policies and procedures, injury lawsuits, workplace regulations, and privacy violations.
   7. Social Influence—Recognize the social factors that impact the healthcare decision-making of a patient, including their response to or acceptance of beliefs held by the communities to which they belong.
   8. Spirituality—Acknowledge the spiritual beliefs held by each patient and how those impact the patient’s healthcare decision-making.
3. Address his/her individual role within the social and system dynamic of each element.
   1. Culture—Understand your own cultural background and how it affects your views and possible actions as a healthcare provider.
   2. Economic Impact—Understand the economic factors affecting you and how they impact your decision making as a healthcare provider.
   3. Environment—Participate in the disaster preparedness training to understand your role in a disaster.
   4. Health Literacy—Demonstrates an ability to adapt communication to patients, colleagues and healthcare team members in a way that promotes healthcare delivery.
   5. Health Policy and Advocacy—Demonstrates an appreciation for themselves as an advocate for the health of patients and populations.
   6. Law and Oversight—Understand how your concerns about the legal and regulatory implications of your actions affect your decision-making.
   7. Social Influence—Recognizes the social factors that impact their decision-making as a healthcare provider, including their response to or acceptance of beliefs held by the patient.
   8. Spirituality—Recognize how your spiritual beliefs influence your healthcare communications and decision-making as a healthcare provider.