Dr. Ralph Jensen-Cardiovascular Disease Physician
San Antonio- Texas
1.
Obesity: Texas is in the top 10 states ranked
for Obesity. It is a big problem in San Antonio all over the U.S. at this time
with people increasing on unhealthy food loads and not participating in enough
exercise to balance out all the calories they are taking in. A major problem is
that foods that are not as filling, and contain higher levels of saturated fat
are less expensive than the healthier alternatives so especially in lower
income communities, fast food and other similar options are a more realistic
option. With Dr Jensen who is a cardiovascular doctor this is a major concern
in his field because obesity causes major health problems such as heart disease
which has increase drastically in our country.
2.
Shortage of healthcare professionals: The population
of San Antonio and all over Texas has been increasing rapidly, with that
increase in the population grows a need for more physicians and nurses in order
to help the increasing population. In 2007 Texas ranked 43rd out of
50 states, with 157 practicing physicians per 100,000 populations this is the
same number of physicians they had in 2000. So the general population is
increasing but not the number of health care professionals. A lot of the
increasing population is coming from other countries which are not able to be
physicians or nurses. They are having trouble finding eligible people to fill
the positions, but lowering the training and education level is just not an
option.
3.
STDs: The
rates of STDs are going up all over the country but it seems fairly high in San
Antonio. In 2009 Texas was in the top ten states to be affected with the STD syphilis.
And the rates for syphilis have shot up even more in Texas this year that have
caused many to be very concerned about these rates. The whole country including
San Antonio is trying to educate more people about sex education but we are
still seeing a rise in numbers. Those who are affected most by STDS are the
young adults .Recommend that those with a higher risk of syphilis get tested to
try and prevent the spread. Those with a higher risk of syphilis are men who
have sex with other men, those who have multiple sex partners, and those who
have other STDS such as chlamydia.
4.
Uninsured public: Those who can’t get health
insurance are those who can’t afford it, don’t receive it through a small
company they work for, are not eligible, or are recent immigrants. With the
high number of immigrants moving into San Antonio this adds to the higher level
of those not insured in Texas. Those without health insurance are less likely
to go to a regular health care provider and are more likely to die from health
related problems. This is a major problem because it cuts back on the general
health of a community of people if someone gets sick with a communicable
disease and they don’t have the resources to get treated it can put not only
their own health at risk but can risk the health of others in their community
as well. Texas has the highest ranking of uninsured people right now with 24.6%
being uninsured. That is 6.2 million people who don’t have health insurance
that is definitely a problem.
5.
Tuberculosis: This was definitely not something
I would have thought would be a health concern in San Antonio but it seems to
be thriving in Texas. TB can affect anyone but it usually affects those who are
born in a foreign country, people with HIV/AIDS, healthcare professionals,
racial/ethnic minorities. The high level of immigrants going into San Antonio
causes a greater risk of the spread of TB. TB is generally spread on a higher
risk to those who live in tighter quarters because it is a respiratory disease
and is transferred through respiratory droplets of an infected person like
through coughing. Unless there is a more effective way to test for TB and a
better vaccination TB will continue to be a problem in San Antonio and all
across the U.S.
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