Health Discrimination in Hong Kong Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Health Discrimination in Hong Kong - Essay Example Body In order to fix the health inequities which relate to gender in Hong Kong, possible health care priorities in health policies must include HIV/AIDS screening and treatment opportunities open to all citizens regardless of gender or sexual orientation. Another health priority would be the improved access to women seeking maternal and child care before, during, and after their pregnancy. Gender inequities can sometimes be apparent in relation to access of healthcare programs for women sex workers and for homosexuals (Abdullah, et.al., 2000). These gender inequities must be set aside especially as far as AIDS screening and treatment is concerned. Instead, reforms must include the establishment of mandatory annual screening for STDs and AIDS among sex workers (Wong, 2003). This access must be made available to male, female, including homosexual sex workers and anyone seeking access to these same health services. No discrimination in terms of gender must be made before such services c an be accessed. This mandatory screening would help manage the AIDS problem in Hong Kong, and ensure that the numbers of AIDS sufferers would decrease. Health reforms should also target the prioritization of services for health workers in relation to AIDS. AIDS has become one of the rapidly growing health issues in the world; it is also one of the most preventable diseases, especially with proper health education and the application of other preventative remedies, like mandatory annuals AIDS and STD screening (Wong, et.al., 2006). Access of sex workers to health services is often hampered by their limited financial resources; moreover, the health system does not make these screenings available to all sex workers due to their limited resources. In effect, future health policies must prioritize the allocation of funds for these mandatory annual screenings for high-risk women and other sex workers (Wong, et.al., 2006). Considerations of income or gender must not be made a basis for who the recipients of these screening services. Inequities in this regard must be neutralized. Future health policies on addressing the gender disparities in health must also include the establishment of outreach clinics for sex workers (Wong, 2003). These specialist centers would help ensure that female sex workers would be able to gain access to essential services based on their convenience. The clinics would be open at hours convenient to them and it would also reduce the stigma from the rest of society (Wong, 2003). In other words, health reform also means accepting the fact that some females work in the sex industry, and the fact that these activities are basically against the law should not be their basis for gaining access to essential health services (Wong, 2003). Female sex workers are fully aware of the fact that there is a stigma against them from the general population; for which reason, they also prefer not to access health services from the main hospitals for fear of bein g stigmatized. Moreover, society, including hospitals can indeed discriminate against them in terms of equal access to health services (Wong, et.al., 2006). Future reforms in health care must therefore include a more specific program which would