Health Equity
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What is Health Equity
Health equity is the state in which everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health. Achieving this requires focused and ongoing societal efforts to address historical and contemporary injustices; overcome economic, social, and other obstacles to health and healthcare; and eliminate preventable health disparities.1,2
Achieving health equity requires valuing everyone equally with focused and ongoing societal efforts to address avoidable inequalities, historical and contemporary injustices, and the elimination of health and healthcare disparities.
Achieving health equity also requires addressing social determinants of health and health disparities. It involves acknowledging and addressing racism as a threat to public health and the history of unethical practices in public health that lead to inequitable health outcomes. The CDC prioritizes reducing health disparities among populations disproportionately affected by HIV, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis, and other related conditions.
Professional Resources
Research Article: Preparing social workers to address health inequities emerging during the COVID-19 pandemic by building capacity for health policy: a scoping review protocol
Social Workers Can Lead the Way in Addressing Health Inequities
Three practical steps that palliative care leaders can take to empower their social work colleagues, and help bridge gaps in health equity.
Article: Inequities in Health Care: How Social Workers Can Step Up to the Plate
Article: Addressing health disparities: Using the 5 As to integrate social care into healthcare
Opinion Article: Social Workers: A Neglected Partner in Health Policy and Public Health
Health Equity: Eradicating Health Inequalities for Future Generations
The Grand Challenges for Social Work are designed to focus a world of thought and action on the most compelling and critical social issues of our day. Each grand challenge is a broad but discrete concept where social work expertise and leadership can be brought to bear on bold new ideas, scientific exploration and surprising innovations.
We invite you to review the following challenges with the goal of providing greater clarity, utility and meaning to this roadmap for lifting up the lives of individuals, families and communities struggling with the most fundamental requirements for social justice and human existence.
What About Social Justice? Advocating for Maternal Health Equity