Self care is the action of trying to care for a
sickness or illness with over the counter drugs, home remedies and the internet
(Cockerham, 2012). These actions are used more commonly then calling a doctor
or going into a clinic. Why is society like this? There are many reasons why
people self care. One reason is that they can’t afford health insurance and can’t
pay out of pocket so it is easier to just self care. Another reason is now we
have more chronic diseases instead of illnesses. People may think, “What’s the
point in going to the doctors when they are going to tell me to do what I am already
doing”.
The one self care medium that people use the most is
the internet. The study that I read said that out of the 512 people surveyed,
53.5% said that they used the internet
for medical information ( Diaz, et.al 2002). They also said that 59% did not
discuss this with their doctors. Many people use the internet so that they do
not have to go into the doctors, whether this is for personal reasons, bad
experiences or cultural reasons.
I use the internet and call my mother before going into the doctor. The reason that I do this is because I do not have any sort of health insurance. I also do not have the funds to be able to pay out of pocket for things as silly as a cold. Most of you probably think this is silly, but I guess I would look at it as a learned behavior. I have never really had health insurance for a long period of time so I learned to only go to the doctors or emergency room when it was a serious problem. As we were learning about self care in class I realized that I am one of those 16.6% of people that don’t have health insurance (Cockerham, 2012). I also realized that having health insurance changes your behavior and how much you go to the doctors. I came up with my own theory. Maybe the reason why poor people, Hispanics, Native Americans and other races don’t go to the doctors as much, is because they have never had health insurance, so they have learned other ways to stay healthy, such as self care and the internet. This could be a learned behavior out of not having the proper resources. Being a part of the population that uses the internet for self care as opposed to going to the doctor gives me a different perspective then most.
People who have a low Socioeconomic status, which is your wealth based on education, neighborhood, job and income, usually have less access to adequate health care in their neighborhoods and/or cities. Our book states that, "The culture of poverty, as summarized by Thomas Rundall and John Wheeler (1979), is a phenomenon in which poverty, over time, influences the development of certain social and psychological traits among those immersed within" (Cockerham, 2012). This means that the reason why the poor may not use health care is because of the culture they grew up in. If they have grown up in a poor culture where they don't use health care because they have never had access to it before than they are going to take care of themselves in different ways, such as self care.
Everyone self cares, but why do we risk our health by calling our parents or trying to self diagnose with the internet? Is it ingrained in us to do something before taking the "extreme" step or is it a learned behavior due to access of health insurance and quality health care?
I use the internet and call my mother before going into the doctor. The reason that I do this is because I do not have any sort of health insurance. I also do not have the funds to be able to pay out of pocket for things as silly as a cold. Most of you probably think this is silly, but I guess I would look at it as a learned behavior. I have never really had health insurance for a long period of time so I learned to only go to the doctors or emergency room when it was a serious problem. As we were learning about self care in class I realized that I am one of those 16.6% of people that don’t have health insurance (Cockerham, 2012). I also realized that having health insurance changes your behavior and how much you go to the doctors. I came up with my own theory. Maybe the reason why poor people, Hispanics, Native Americans and other races don’t go to the doctors as much, is because they have never had health insurance, so they have learned other ways to stay healthy, such as self care and the internet. This could be a learned behavior out of not having the proper resources. Being a part of the population that uses the internet for self care as opposed to going to the doctor gives me a different perspective then most.
People who have a low Socioeconomic status, which is your wealth based on education, neighborhood, job and income, usually have less access to adequate health care in their neighborhoods and/or cities. Our book states that, "The culture of poverty, as summarized by Thomas Rundall and John Wheeler (1979), is a phenomenon in which poverty, over time, influences the development of certain social and psychological traits among those immersed within" (Cockerham, 2012). This means that the reason why the poor may not use health care is because of the culture they grew up in. If they have grown up in a poor culture where they don't use health care because they have never had access to it before than they are going to take care of themselves in different ways, such as self care.
Everyone self cares, but why do we risk our health by calling our parents or trying to self diagnose with the internet? Is it ingrained in us to do something before taking the "extreme" step or is it a learned behavior due to access of health insurance and quality health care?
*As I was looking for a video on self care, I ran
across many self care or self help clips online. I thought this was kind of
funny and proves my point a little.
References
Cockerham, William C.
2012. Medical Sociology, 12th Ed. Boston: Prentice Hall.
Diaz,
Joseph A., Rebecca A. Griffith, James J. Ng, Steven E. Reinhert, Peter D.
Friedman, and Anne W. Moulton. "Patients' Use of the Internet for Medical
Information." JGIM 17 (2002): n. pag. Web.
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