Issues in Latina Health

Access to Health Care

The United States of America is by far one of the best countries in the world. Not only is the U.S. one of the most advanced nations but human development and social mobility over recent years has been admirable making it a nation respected by many. Unfortunately, as advanced as this prosperous North American country is, there are still significant problems that are yet to be resolved. One of the biggest unresolved issues in the United States of America is the lack of accessibility to health care and it comes as no surprise that the population suffering the most is composed of the minority groups. Latinos, specifically, have a history of facing inequality and with the large influx of immigration the healthcare system of the United States has not been the most accommodating. Latinos, unlike other minorities in the U.S., have several barriers that are preventing them from accessing equal healthcare, including: Stereotypes, language barriers, and lack of insurance.

Stereotypes

In a country historically known as a “melting pot” it should be expected that stereotypes would exist: both positive and negative. The Latino population has received a rather large amount of negative stereotyping and this is affecting them in many different social areas. Many Latino individuals and families seeking healthcare are suffering from the cultural beliefs that are spreading around the country. In particular, there are two ways that stereotypes are preventing them from taking full advantage of various healthcare options.

The first is that stereotypes held by medical doctors, nurses, etc. make it difficult for Latinos to seek professional help. Two of the most important aspects of the patient/provider dynamic are comfort and trust. If any person, regardless of ethnicity, feels that they are not going to be respected then it is probable that they will try other methods in order to avoid contact with that negativity. Latinos are already uncomfortable in the hospital setting. Specifically, research has shown that Latino patients feel awkward and uncomfortable when interacting with healthcare providers. Many have a harder time relating with English healthcare providers: “Participants often felt that the quality of health care services they received stemmed from misconceptions and stereotypes, not the reality of who they are. They said they often feel that healthcare providers treat them differently and assume they are less educated, poor, or deserving of less respect because of their race or culture." [1]

Just as stereotypes prevent Latinos from seeking care, negative beliefs about the people of the Latino culture affect the way that healthcare providers interact with them as well. A doctor that embraces any type of anti-Latino sentiment is not going to be able to provide the same care that he/she would with a person of a different ethnicity. On a national scale, it has been shown that Latinos are less likely to receive the same quality of care as Whites and other minority groups in the United States: “The companion National Healthcare Disparities Report found that inequities in quality of care and access to care are easing for all race and ethnic groups—except Latinos. Latinos received poorer quality of care than whites in more than half of 38 measures, and worse access to care for seven of eight measures.” [2]

Stereotyping has been the catalyst to many forms of discrimination, chief among them institutional racism.

Language Barrier

Among many other problems, the language barrier holds Latinos from having proper interactions with institutions and the people within them. Learning English is difficult and many cannot learn the language for many reasons. Many times, Latino parents depend on their children as translators. This method of translation can help in some cases but does not solve all of the problems born from miscommunication. For example, complex paperwork is sometimes required for a hospital if a family member is in critical condition. These forms give the hospital important insurance information, permissions for the caregiver (including inquiries about “do not resuscitate” patients or allergens to important medications,) and many other crucial pieces of information.

If the translator is a child, which happens often in these situations, there is a high probability that the directions will be misread or misinterpreted: leading to a negative outcome concerning the patient and the hospital. When people are confused, scared or simply do not understand what is happening, they begin to sign documents for the sake of signing it and hoping for the best. Fortunately, some families and groups that come into the hospital have friends or children old enough to properly translate but, in many cases, this is not a luxury enjoyed by all.  

Another problem is that many Americans do not desire to learn Spanish and this is for many reasons as well. Ultimately both groups cannot properly communicate and this is the worst for the hospital setting. There is an abundant need for people who can communicate with Spanish speaking individuals. “For patients, it makes their hospital experience a lot less scary and more productive if they can communicate well with health-care providers" As it is now, Of the approximated 31,000 translators and interpreters in the United States, only about 4,100 are employed by hospitals. [3] This number may seem large but when compared to the substantial number of hospital patients it is a dangerously small number.

Insurance

To casually state that the American healthcare system is “not the best in the world” would be an enormous understatement. It might even be plausible to say that healthcare is one of the United States’ biggest social and political weaknesses. Approximately 50 million people in this country do NOT have health insurance. When compared to the rest of the world, the United States healthcare system ranked 37th in the world, placing it in between Costa Rica and Slovenia. [4] Latinos, who are encountered with so many barriers already, now have to integrate into a system that doesn’t even support the majority of the population.

The above table shows the differences in healthcare coverage among the most popular ethnicities of the US. The Census data also shows that: “Among Hispanics, the uninsured number and rate both increased in 2006 to 15.3 million and 34.1 percent from 13.9 million and 32.3 percent in 2005” [5] As can be seen by the 2006 Census data, the Latino condition is worsening.

For undocumented workers, there is no way to receive health insurance of any type because they simply do not exist to anyone beyond those who hired and pay them privately. Unfortunately, health insurance is not guaranteed with your employed position either. So this leaves a substantial amount of people without access to adequate healthcare. And if this were not enough… even if someone from a working class family were to attain a healthcare insurance plan, it still is not guaranteed that they will fully benefit from it medically. Clinics and hospitals all have different policies as to which insurance providers that they will honor and accept. For many, it is impossible to even pay for a simple medical and/or dental check-up.

Looking forward...

There is much work to be done in the thriving country that is the United States. The country itself has a great history of technological advancement and social development and because of this that it attracts so many from the outside. It is up to the citizens of this country to help share this greatness and, in the future, it will become necessary for citizens and lawmakers to value Latinos. This is to say that, there has been a long history in between the United States and other Latin American countries. The U.S. has had a large influence on these countries and this has admittedly been negative in many cases. So now, more than ever, we must stand together and value the individuals that make up such a large portion of our population. It is necessary that we work toward a better America: one that cares for all people and truly embraces the diversity of which it is already composed.