Digital Inclusion or Broad Band Access as a Social Determinants of Health
Post a description of your views on whether or not digital inclusion or broad band access should be added as a key area to the social determinants of health. Be specific and provide examples that support your position. Explain how electronic health records, mobile health, patient portals, or telemedicine can impact and be impacted by the social determinants of health. Support your explanation with the required or optional resources
Concept of Social Determinants of Health Reflection
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The COVID-19 crisis underscored the strong relationship between health equity and digital equity. This emerged as the link that deserved critical public health attention and discourse. Broadband internet access should be categorized as a social determinant of health (SDOH) because an individual with access to connectivity, particularly in times of disaster or pandemic, can easily access fundamental necessities, including healthcare, income, education, food, and housing. This paper establishes that broadband internet access should be conceived as an SDOH because it influences individual economic and educational outcomes and access to health care information and services. It also discusses the relationship between electronic health records and SDOH.
Broadband Access is an SDOH
Broadband internet access impacts an individual’s financial health. The COVID-19 crisis worsened the health and economic disparities between blue-collar and white-collar jobs. Only 30 percent of the American workforce can work from home, and this statistic varies significantly across ethnicity and race. Therefore, access to the internet implies that an individual can work remotely, thus earning a living from the comfort of their homes. Second, access to broadband connectivity also influences educational outcomes. For example, there are discrepancies between students' access to the internet and computers, mainly when education is offered remotely during disasters or