Healthcare and generational poverty

National Child Health Day on Oct. 3 honors the wellbeing of children in the United States. This day brings time to acknowledge the physical, nutritional and mental health of children across the United States. Every Arkansan supports promoting, educating and ensuring kids have healthy lives. For the underserved, healthcare is another barrier in the generational poverty cycle. 

Stu Scott, pediatric nurse at Arkansas Children’s Hospital and longtime Arkansas Dream Center volunteer, knows firsthand what healthcare looks like for children living in poverty. 

Stu with co-worker Scully at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

 “A big thing that I see is a term called healthcare literacy. This means people are able to seek out and understand medical information to make decisions for themselves or others,” Scott said. “People living in poverty have less education and healthcare literacy.  This really affects children’s health, especially for those living in poverty because they have a lot of diagnoses that require preventative care.” 

In the state of Arkansas, there are 43,000 children who are uninsured. Although their healthcare is free, there are many steps that must be taken in order to be insured. Insurance requires a permanent address, telephone number and reliable transportation. For those living in poverty, these are barriers in receiving proper and adequate healthcare. 

“All the things surrounding you that also affect your healthcare are called social determinants of health. This is your economic stability, education, healthcare access, neighborhood that you live in and the social context of your family. When it comes to kids in Arkansas, social determinants of health are huge,” Scott reflected. “This is where providers need to intervene. Is it their home environment? Family situation? What does their food look like? Do they have good, quality education? These really determine the overall health of a child. Providers look for areas where they can break this cycle.”

Ending generational poverty begins with education. Educating kids on proper nutrition, physical activity and mental health care can help them to make healthy decisions for themselves. 

“Nutrition and physical activity are so closely linked to our health. For those living in poverty, health is a matter of surviving rather than thriving. These two aspects of our health impact people long term,” Scott said. “If you are not active as a child, you will most likely not be active as an adult. This goes for nutrition as well. The choices you make as a child will impact you into adulthood. Educating on health and wellness can lead to better decision making.”

To join Every Arkansan in ensuring kids live healthy lives, shop the Gift Catalog for opportunities to impact children’s physical and nutritional wellbeing. Visit everyarkansan.org/gift to view the catalog.