PHN-600- Topic 3 DQ 1
Select a setting you would like to practice in as a public health nurse.
What interests you about it?
Discuss the population that is served. What are the primary health needs and barriers the population may face in obtaining access to necessary health promotion and disease prevention interventions?
What is the nurse’s role in that setting in assisting the population in overcoming those barriers?
Instructions
- Paper can be between 200 and 250 words
- Sources must be published within the last 5 years. It must be from 2016 and after
- Please do not use blogs as references
- References should be in APA 7th ed.
- Add references to reference page
- Add the hyperlink for each reference in APA 7th edition format.
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Solution
Discussion Question -Public Health Nurse-PHN-600- Topic 3 DQ 1
As a public health nurse, the main setting I’m interested in is practicing the state health department. I believe that working in a state public health department will make me have the greatest impact on the health of local populations through advocacy and policy formulation, and health promotion. As a public health nurse working with the state health department, I will serve different populations in the local state, such as California.
The primary health needs of the population in California include obesity and respiratory diseases. According to the CDC, the prevalence of obesity in California is 26.2%, which indicates that one in every four adult Californians is obese (CDC, 2021). Obesity contributes to the high prevalence of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and different types of cancer in California. In addition, high levels of air pollution in California have resulted in an increasing prevalence of respiratory diseases such as asthma, COPD, and others. The problem the population in California face in obtaining disease prevention and health promotion interventions include lack of adequate information, lack of adequate infrastructure, including gyms, parks, and walkways, lack of sufficient healthcare facilities, and insufficient regulations to control air pollution. Therefore, the public health nurse can play a significant role in assisting the local community in California to overcome barriers to their health needs, such as through education workshops on the importance of a healthy diet and exercising (Kub et al., 2017). A public health nurse can also contribute to enacting regulations to limit air pollution and be involved in advocacy and formulation of policy to increase healthcare facilities and other public amenities in the area (McCollum et al., 2017). By playing the role of health promotion and advocacy, a public health nurse can play a significant role in helping fulfill the primary health needs of a given population.
References
CDC. (2021, March 31). New Adult Obesity Maps. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/prevalence-maps.html
Kub, J. E., Kulbok, P. A., Miner, S., & Merrill, J. A. (2017). Increasing the capacity of public health nursing to strengthen the public health infrastructure and to promote and protect the health of communities and populations. Nursing Outlook, 65(5), 661–664. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2017.08.009
McCollum, M., Kovner, C. T., Ojemeni, M. T., Brewer, C., & Cohen, S. (2017). Nurses Improve Their Communities’ Health Where They Live, Learn, Work, and Play. Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice, 18(1), 7–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527154417698142