Social Sciences

Firstly I will define what a long term health condition is, a long term health condition is a condition or illness that cannot be cured but can be managed through medication and/or therapy. There are different services available and provided for people with long term health conditions, there are different services provided by the government in hospitals, GP surgeries, community settings and people’s homes. There are different types of long term illnesses such as diabetes, arthritis, hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Long term illnesses are more prevalent in older people, treatment and care for people with long term condition is estimated to take around £7 in every £10 of total health and social care expenditure. About 15million people in England have a long term illness.

There are different services available for people with long term illnesses there is the primary health care services these are directly accessible to people and people have to make their own decision whether to use them or not, then   there is the secondary services which   are only available by referral   from a primary service as we saw in Anwar Malik’s   casein (block1 page 75)the primary healthcare service was his first point of contact where he saw the GP and when his illness worsened he was referred to the hospital which falls under the secondary healthcare service. We have the GP which are the general practitioners they provide a complete spectrum of care within the local community dealing with problems that often combines physical and social component, they know how and when to intervene through treatment, prevention and education to promote the health of their patients and families (unit 2 illness health and social care block 1 page 75)(source medical schools and nursing colleges worldwide 2007)

We also have the patient support groups they provide information and local meetings to people with long term illnesses. People with long term illnesses can also get help...