       Document 0494
 DOCN  M9490494
 TI    Health status of vulnerable populations.
 DT    9411
 AU    Aday LA; University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston 77225.
 SO    Annu Rev Public Health. 1994;15:487-509. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE
       MED/94331077
 AB    The notion of risk underlying the concept of vulnerability implies that
       everyone is potentially vulnerable (or at risk), that is, there is
       always a chance of developing health problems. The risk is, however,
       greater for those with the least social status, social capital, and
       human capital resources to either prevent or ameliorate the origins and
       consequences of poor physical, psychological, or social health. The
       completeness and accuracy of information on the health status of the
       vulnerable populations examined here varies substantially across groups.
       Methodological work is needed to derive standardized definitions of
       terms, specify the content and timing for collecting information for
       minimum basic data sets, and develop uniform standards for evaluating
       and reporting data quality on the health status of vulnerable
       populations. The variety of indicators of vulnerable populations
       examined indicates that during the decade of the 1980s the incidence of
       serious physical, psychological, and/or social needs increased (at
       worst) and was unameliorated (at best) for millions of Americans. AIDS
       emerged as a new and deadly threat from a handful of cases classified as
       Gay-Related Immune Deficiency in the early part of the 1980s to what now
       may be over a million Americans who are HIV-positive. The number of
       homeless has increased an average of 20% a year to estimates now ranging
       up to one million men, women, or children homeless on any given night to
       twice that number who may be homeless sometime during the year. Over
       seven million people immigrated to the United States during the period
       from 1981 to 1990--an increasing proportion of whom are refugees
       carrying with them the physical, psychological, and social wounds of
       war. The number of children abused by family members or other intimates
       has burgeoned to an estimated 1.6 to 1.7 million per year, and with the
       greater use of firearms, intentional acts of violence towards oneself or
       others are becoming increasingly deadly in their consequences. Though
       fewer Americans smoke, drink, and use illicit drugs in general than was
       the case earlier in the decade of the 1980s, the use of cocaine (and
       particularly crack) among hard-core addicts has resulted in increases in
       the number of drug-related deaths.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
 DE    Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/EPIDEMIOLOGY  Adult  Chronic
       Disease/EPIDEMIOLOGY  Disabled  Female  Health Resources  Health
       Services Needs and Demand  Health Services Research  *Health Status
       *Health Status Indicators  Homeless Persons  Human  Infant Mortality
       Infant, Low Birth Weight  Infant, Newborn  Maternal Mortality  Mental
       Disorders/EPIDEMIOLOGY  *Population Surveillance  Refugees  Risk Factors
       Substance Abuse/EPIDEMIOLOGY  Transients and Migrants  United
       States/EPIDEMIOLOGY  JOURNAL ARTICLE  REVIEW  REVIEW, TUTORIAL

       SOURCE: National Library of Medicine.  NOTICE: This material may be
       protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.Code).

