In nursing so far the focus has been on treating a single
patient or client, this semester I was able to view the nursing profession
through the public health lens and learned that an entire population is their
client. The main goal of public health is to provide the greatest good to the
greatest amount of people and by doing so many lives are positively impac
The public health nurse also collaborates with families to
improve the health of children and other vulnerable populations in the
community. They participate in health screenings such as hearing and vision
screenings, immunization clinics, they study the rates of certain diseases and
work to increase awareness in schools and the community to halt the spread, and
also teach healthy lifestyle practices. I really enjoyed the fact that public
health has an “upstream” approach to improving health, the focus is more on
prevention and teaching healthy habits in order to prevent illness or if
illness already exists, to help prevent further complications to the client.
One of the many diseases we learned about is Asthma. I
learned how common of a disease it is, but also how treatable and manageable it
is. Being the third leading cause of hospitalization in children under 15 years
of age, this is a perfect example of a way public health can intervened to help
those with this disease live long, healthy lives. The specific cause of Asthma
varies from individual to individual but is usually some type of irritant in
the environment along with some genetic factors that cause the bronchioles to
spasm and narrow the airway. Manifestations include coughing, wheezing,
shortness of breath, and tightness in the chest. During an exasperation, it
becomes very difficult to breath and it is necessary to have an emergency
inhaler. Long term therapy is also available. If Asthma goes untreated it can
lead to the child being absent from school, health complications, and even
hospitalization. The public health nurse can intervene by teaching the child
and the family how to manage the Asthma and also work to eliminate
environmental irritants such as pollution. Eliminating environmental causes may
not always be feasible so they could also educate the client on tools such as
the air quality index so they can monitor the safety of the air and avoid
exposing themselves to dangerous irritants. 
I completely agree with your motto Karissa. I’m sure one of the most attractive aspects of nursing that the ability to help and make a difference in people’s lives. It’s neat to see how much public health nursing relates to this, especially making sure that there is an equal opportunity for everyone to get the proper medical attention deserved. And it is true; think of how many people PHN have to coordinate with to get this job done! One area that we had talked about is vulnerable populations… Maybe a future career option for you??!? :)
ReplyDeleteAsthma is such and fascinating topic to discuss because most likely everyone knows someone that it effects. Did you know it is Asthma Awareness Month? The United States Environmental Protection Agency, also known as the EPA, has action asthma communities that initiate and support local programs working to help people in their communities bring asthma under control. This includes educational talks and outreach pamphlets to get people aware of how many people it effects and what we can do to help. Here is the link if anyone is interested:http://www.epa.gov/asthma/awareness.html
It is so great ther are programs like these to bring awareness about important conditions. And I bet we can be sure that a PHN is probably promoting and helping these organizations.
Karissa,
ReplyDeleteI was also intrigued by all of the complications associated with asthma considering all of the options available. I wrote the initial post regarding asthma, and I was really stunned by all of the different types of asthma, causes or triggers, and varied treatments. Asthma varies so much between each patient, and this is why it is important for nurses to be in touch with their asthma patients. The nurse plays a huge role in helping a patient adapt to living with asthma, and community nurses can play a role in education and prevention of common triggers such as second hand smoke or air pollution.
Just as you mentioned, one of the main aspects of this course that I will take away is the idea of upstream thinking. I always agreed with the idea of upstream thinking, but now I feel as though I am able to apply it to nursing and healthcare. Before this semester, I was unsure of how someone would go about implementing the idea of upstream thinking, but now I know several ways this could be put into motion. I feel as though the information I learned in this course will be useful in the future and throughout my nursing career.