Introduction
Men’s health varies depending on several factors such as age, employment, social class, marital status, personal health beliefs, sexuality, ethnicity, and marital status. The different life experiences and levels of education that the men go through further influence these factors. Common health issues in men include prostate cancer, heart diseases, impotence, sexually transmitted diseases, and mental health.
According to Conrad and White (2007), men experience more cardiovascular problems than women do. Further, it is known that men live a much more risky lifestyle than women hence may tend to die sooner. Men tend to have behaviors such as smoking that increases chances of developing lung cancer. The population of men who engage in smoking is quite high compared to women. The issue of social class implies that those men that are in the higher social class can access health services and have better health. For men in the lower social class, heath insurance is a problem and thus having access to adequate health care is difficult hence, these men have a higher chance of having more health issues unattended (Jarret, Bellamy and Adeyemi, 2007).
Furthermore, men have a lower chance of visiting the physician office as compared to women. This can be attributed to gender and sociocultural issues, which make the physician’s environment unappealing for men (Neukrug, Britton, and Crews, 2013). According to Conrad and White (2007), the idea of men’s health remaining static in the sense that they do not have to access health services for contraception and antenatal care increases the likelihood of men not going for health checkups.
Social Determinants of men’s Health
Social determinants of men’s health can be based on the determinants that were in the 2003 World Health Organization report. These factors are ten and include unemployment, stress, social gradient, social exclusion, food, addiction, work, transport, early life, and social support. A number of these determinants are discussed.
Stress
Stress is major contributing factor that influences the emotional and physical problems of men. Stress affects the men’s ability to handle challenges with their mental health. This then may translate into men using alcohol and drugs as a way of avoiding to address their health issues. Other problems that may develop from the stress issue may include loss of employment and family breakdown (Conrad and White, 2007).
Social Exclusion
Separating individuals from the mainstream society can significantly influence the health risk of the individual. For instance, cases of asylum seekers or men who go to prison experience limited access to health care services. Further, most of the men in prions are suffering from a mental disorder. According to Conrad and White (2007), 72 % of the male population suffers from one or more mental disorders, in the UK.
Work and Unemployment
Certain work environments increase the health risk for men. This can also be attributed to risk taking behavior that is common to men. For instance, work environments such as mines are potentially dangerous and are mostly done by men. Additionally, working hours may be a barrier for men to access health during regular hours (Jarret, Bellamy, and Adeyemi, 2007). Unemployment on the other hand contributes in increasing psychological problems. Consequently, lack of employment increases stress, which affects the emotional and physical well-being of the men.
Addiction
Addictive behaviors such as alcohol, smoking, and drug abuse affect men’s health significantly. According to Conrad and White (2007), smoking in men causes lung cancer, which is a major cause of cardiac death in men. The excessive consumption of alcohol and drug abuse increases health risks for men.
Promoting Wellness
Community health nurses need to be in the forefront when it comes to promoting men’s health. According to Lundy and Janes (2009), the community health nurse needs to be instrumental in securing access to and promoting the use of health care by men. To make this health promotion to be effective, the nurse can develop or set up health screening programs that target specific groups of men. The screening programs can be effective for men who are unaware that they have prostate cancer or cardiovascular conditions. In addition, the community health nursing approach needs to establish regular sources of primary care for men that are not in the healthcare system (Jarret, Bellamy, and Adeyemi, 2007). These include those men that have no access to health insurance and may be living in poverty.
The community health nurse needs to set up programs that discourage the ‘wait and see’ approach to promote help-seeking behaviors among men (Jarret, Bellamy and Adeyemi, 2007). To ensure that men with strict working hours access health care services, the community health nurse needs to consider extending operating hours for these men. Furthermore, the nurses need to be equipped to handle mental health in men. According to Haddad (2013), the early detection of mental health problems can be effective in preventing risky behavior such as suicide. Further, Haddad (2013) recommends Skills and Training On Risk Management initiative, which is designed to develop skills to assess and manage those individuals that may be at risk of committing suicide.
References
Conrad, D., & White, A. (2007). Men's health: How to do it. Oxford: Radcliffe.
Haddad, M. (2013). Promoting mental health in men. (Cover story). Nursing Standard, 27(30), 48-57.
Jarrett, N. C., Bellamy, C. D., & Adeyemi, S. A. (2007). Men's Health Help-Seeking and Implications for Practice. American Journal of Health Studies, 22(2), 88-95.
Lundy, K. S., & Janes, S. (2009). Community health nursing: Caring for the public's health. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
Neukrug, E., Britton, B. S., & Crews, R. (2013). Common Health-Related Concerns of Men: Implications for Counselors. Journal of Counseling & Development, 91(4), 390-397.
