Social Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social Policy - Essay Example It has been playing a curial role in meeting the health demands of the population. There are several intersectoral initiatives that have been taken to address the issue of health care in the UK. This has been influenced by the changes taking place in the health environment in the world and in the continental Europe. The changes have been implemented at the national levels with a trickle down effect felt in the lower level. The UK government has considered health care to be one of its important factor in the development of the social and economic life of the people. Most of the initiatives which are taken at the n atonal level are implemented through the NHS which is then implemented at the local government level. One of the current initiatives that have been implemented in the UK is the individual budget which is to start working in 2009. Under this program individual will be given more autonomy in the management of the funds that they receive from the social care system. This has also been extended to the health care system where individual will be given autonomy to decide on how they are going to use their money. Most of those patients who have been receiving their medical care through the NHS under the social care system will not be given autonomy to decide on the most appropriate health care providers that they will be attending. (Buttler, 2004) This initiative is expected to give the users of the social health care more independence in management of their health care needs. Unlike in the paste where the have been receiving their health services through the NHS they will be able to access these services even from the private practitioners. (Holmes, 2007) Another current heath care initiative that is likely to have an impact on the social care system is the health screening for over 40s. Under this initiative, the government twill be screening those who are over 40 years fro health complications that they may be facing. This initiative is expected to counteract the spreading wave of lifestyle diseases that continued to threaten the life of the aging population. This is a national program that will be expected to identify vulnerability to the vascular disease that has continued to claim the lives of many people in the UK. It is expected that the initiative will help to prevent up to 9500 heath attacks and strokes which occur every years and this could lead to saving of more than 2,000 lives. In the UK, vascular diseases in collection including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and kidney diseases affects the lives of more than four million and leads to loss of more than 170,000 people every year. Vascular disease have also been shown to account for more than half of the mortality rate gap that exist between the rich and the poor as result of the gap in their lifestyles. Education There are several changes that have also taken place in the UK social care system as far as education is concerned. One of the problem that had been experienced in the education sector for along time had been the problem of inclusion education. The current move by the government to work for inclusive education in which children learn in the same class regardless of their disability has been seen as one of the most important way of helping all children access classroom. (Harwin, 2004) Another plan that took effect in 2003 saw the sending