{"id":149759,"date":"2021-10-15T13:04:08","date_gmt":"2021-10-15T23:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=149759"},"modified":"2021-10-15T13:16:57","modified_gmt":"2021-10-15T23:16:57","slug":"covid-19-health-inequalities-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2021\/10\/15\/covid-19-health-inequalities-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19, chronic disease, addressing health inequities focus of special publication"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

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It has been widely reported that COVID-19 disproportionately impacts several communities in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span><\/a>, including Pacific Islanders and Filipinos. But less attention has been given to the role of chronic disease. High underlying rates of illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes have put these groups at elevated risk of contracting and dying from COVID-19. <\/p>\n

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Catherine Pirkle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, it is impossible to separate the challenges of COVID-19, chronic diseases and health inequities. This is the focus of a new special issue<\/a> of the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Journal of Health & Social Welfare<\/em>, which examines and offers solutions addressing the root causes of these three interrelated issues. Across 11 articles, a diverse group of researchers and practitioners, many affiliated with the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> System<\/a>, detail the impacts of COVID-19 and chronic diseases in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, describe community-led public health efforts to respond to the pandemic, and offer approaches to advance health equity.<\/p>\n

“The idea behind this issue is that we know both COVID-19 and many chronic diseases are tied to the same determinants of health. These factors that put people at higher risk are often the same,” explained lead guest editor Catherine Pirkle<\/strong>, an associate professor at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s Office of Public Health Studies<\/a> in the Thompson School of Social Work & Public Health. “We need to go beyond the clinical setting and realize that how we allocate resources and power shape people\u2019s health and lead to negative outcomes in communities that are marginalized by our political, economic and health systems.”<\/p>\n

Issue highlights include:<\/p>\n