STEP ONE
Why do poor countries have a predominance of infectious diseases as opposed to the lifestyle-related diseases of wealthy countries? What is your response to the global health inequalities that exist?
STEP TWO
When we think sociologically we make links between our own personal experiences and public issues. The sociological imagination template helps to investigate public issues in a way that analyses four important factors, these being; historical, cultural, structural and critical.
Historical factors take into consideration how the past affects the future and for many poor countries a complicated and unstable past has influenced the countries ability to develop. The political environment of a country generally has a huge impact on the countries social and economic development therefore an unstable government of corruption and greed can hinder a countries ability to advance. Wars caused by political tension between countries also impact nations as they are torn apart by death and demolition leading to a division within the country itself. Many countries such as Rwanda and Cambodia have found it extremely difficult to recover due to poor government decisions made in the past that has significantly effected entire generations. This in turn leads to people living in poor and unhygienic conditions where they are surrounded by death and disease. The political environment of a country can also influence whether or not the population is financially stable due to political unrest most developing countries have a very low socio-economic status due to being in debt to more wealthy countries. This leads to a cycle of debt being made by the population, which is hard to escape. Due to the lack of money people are uneducated therefore are unable to get a job to earn their own income leading to a constant cycle of poverty that not only effects the individuals entire health and wellbeing but the development of the country as a whole. With no education and a lack of money, preventable and treatable diseases become much more evident in poor countries. Environmental factors such as natural disasters can also impact a countries ability to develop and can make it impossible for individuals to fight disease as they affect not only the nation as a whole but also each individual’s ability to fight disease’s that may be spreading throughout the country. The past of developed countries can also be quite complicated, however, for different reasons these countries are faced with diverse health issues due to poor lifestyle choices. Due to the advances in technology physical exercise is less prominent in individuals lives and the consumption of foods with saturated fat is a lot higher leading to obesity and other lifestyle related diseases such as cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes. Advances in technology have also had a positive affect as we are much further advanced in different areas of medicine. Individuals living in developed countries often have the money to spend on daily activities that may not necessarily be a good health choice.

Cultural factors explore how different beliefs and values impact our daily lives. Many countries take a holistic approach to health considering mind, body and sole developed countries in the Western world, however, take a more biomedical approach when it comes to health care. Developing countries often stick to traditional remedies that may not always be the best cure. They also often don’t have the resources due to financial difficulties to prevent infectious diseases due to a lack of education and awareness and funds to pay for medication and treatment. Developing countries are generally not as medically advanced as developed countries. However, the culture of developed countries has many negative affects on the health of individuals. It is socially acceptable to drink large amounts of alcohol, smoke and have a poor diet made up of saturated fats and preservatives. The culture of developed countries is encouraging a range of different lifestyle diseases, which in turn is costing the government a lot of money to treat. To provide good health care it is important for the health practitioner to understand the individual’s cultural beliefs.
Structural factors are those that affect our lives through particular forms of social organization.
Finally critical factors consider how we can improve our social environment.
Globalization