HWSC4005 Biological, Psychological, and Social Determinants of Health Across the Life, Course Written Assignment (individual) – Report

Task: Written assignment (individual) – Report

There will be a choice of three patient case studies. You will choose one to describe the biological, psychological, and social effects on the patients’ health and wellbeing strategies for improving health status.

Learning Outcomes: 

1. Identify the main biological determinants of health and wellbeing.
2. Explore the main psychosocial determinants of health and wellbeing.
3. Investigate the socioeconomic factors that impact health across the life course. 

Specific Guidance on the Outcomes of the Assignment:

To meet your learning outcomes, you will need to:  

• Study the chosen case study to fully understand the patients’ health determinants.
•  Explore biological factors of health.
• Explore psychosocial factors of health.
•  Understand how socioeconomic factors may influence health and social wellbeing. 
• Understand the risks at various stages of the life course.
• Address implications of lifestyle choices on disease risk.

Case Studies:

Choose from one of the three case studies below:

Case Study One: 

• Barry is a 47-year-old single white British male who has lived in a deprived area (IMD decile 1) of the Northeast of England all his life and is currently unemployed. He drinks 40 units of alcohol per week, has never smoked and reports doing ‘a bit of running every now and again’. His diet is the main area of discussion, as he admits to eating ‘a whole pack of chocolate biscuits every single day’ and excessive consumption of dairy products. Barry has a family history of diabetes ‘runs in my family.’
  

  Case Study Two:

• Sarah is a Black African woman, 43 years of age, and mother of three small children who has lived in a deprived area (IMD decile 1) of Blackpool all her life. Sarah has not had a full-time job since leaving school with no qualifications. Her family has a long-standing history of significant obesity, and she has had little success in dieting over the years. At 5'3", weighing 220 pounds, her BMI is over 30. Her fat distribution is "apple-shaped" and consequently, her waist-hip ratio is more than the 0.8 normal range. In addition, Sarah lives a sedentary lifestyle and does not have a regular exercise program.

Case Study Three:

• Eid is a 58-year-old Asian British male who has lived in a relatively deprived area (IMD decile 2) of South Wales all his life. He works shifts at a local factory and left school with no qualifications aged 16 years. He reports rarely drinking and that he stopped cigarette smoking in 2015, after ‘40 odd years.’ He does little exercise because of ‘spinal problems’ and had a paternal grandfather who ‘had a stroke, he was late 60s, 70s.’