Social Pathogenic Sources of Poor Community Health: the Intersection of Criminal Justice and Public Health Systems

The United States currently provides a health care system that is neither efficient nor equitable. Despite outspending the world on health care, over three-fourths of developed countries produce better health outcomes. In response to these challenges the ¿Ecological School of Thought¿ has documented the impact that social, economic, and environmental circumstances play in health outcomes. This work utilized Structural Equation Modeling to assess the antecedents of sentinel health events in 309 United States counties. The adversity associated with socio-economic disadvantage, social disorganization, and a lack of health care resources, and their relationship with adverse health outcomes are explicated with clear policy implications. Support is provided for the notion that sentinel health events would be reduced through economic equity and the development of healthy environments where community social networks are promoted. Less support was found for saturating given geographical areas with health care resources in order to reduce sentinel health events. This study has relevancy for both the criminal justice and public health fields of study.