Essay Sample on Public Health Nursing: Promoting & Protecting Communities

Introduction

The core functions of public health nursing are to promote and protect the community in which they are working in terms of social, public health, and nursing issues. The needs of the city are identified within the population based on the specific demographic elements and delivered up to the family level (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2015). The needs include those of people at risk, have some disability or even individuals within the community who would gain from the development and promotion of health services. Intervention plans are formulated and implemented based on the needs of the city with a final touch of assessment to determine the efficacy of the programs. Public health nursing generally is mandated to promote the wellbeing of the people within the community.

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Community-Oriented Nursing and Community-Based Nursing

Community-based nursing focuses on the care of the people and the families in the community for the span of their life. The setting in a community-based is specific and focused on a single city or a particular demographic area. Community-oriented nursing is one that is focused on preventing diseases or disability while at the same time, ensures that there are protection and maintenance of health (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2015). Practices in community-oriented nursing are observation of health, diagnosis, and promotion of quality of life in the community.

Quality Assurance/Improvement

Based on Health Resources and Service Administrations, quality assurance, and continuous quality improvement serve the same purposes, even when there is a slight difference that sets them apart. Quality assurance is primarily focused on compliance with the public health provisions. Quality assurance, therefore, is based on the individuals and means to see to it that the individuals follow the set quality standards. Continuous quality improvement, on the other hand, is a process of improvement that is based on the systems and the process if the provision of healthcare. Quality improvement, therefore, is not focused on the people, but rather the process and the systems put in place to help achieve better service provision. In the contemporary public health practice, the emphasis is more on quality improvement since it eliminates the blame that would be preferred for people with the quality assurance model (Elassy, 2015). Total quality management principles hinge on employee involvement as well as continuous improvement, which bring together the two models. Management takes into consideration the employee and the quality they bring to the registration while at the same time, ensuring that the systems in place are continuously improved to reflect the overall goals. In this way, the two models are integrated into public health.

Code of Ethics

The public health code of ethics is based on the premise that public health provisions are purely a moral obligation on the part of the public health organization. In this way, the public health organization is responsible for the people within its jurisdiction. To do so effectively, the public health organization processes some power and is morally bound to provide the best service to the people it is mandated with. The code of conduct, therefore, ensures that the obligation and responsibility of the public health organizations are not merely implicit but stated. Code of Ethics for Nurses governs the professional conduct of the nurses and is much more aligned with the practice of the nurses within their delivery of duties (Winland-Brown, Lachman & Swanson, 2015). On confidentiality, the code of ethics is more confidential as it binds the nurses to their profession. In this sense, the public health code is more suited for groups, while nurses' code is more personal and advocates for personal values than those of the group. The public health code is more involved in the advocacy role since it acts for the greater good of the community through policies.

Healthcare System Financing

In the United States, healthcare is financed in different ways to ensure that this critical provision is adequate. The first way is through individual payments from the people who seek the services. Such fee is, therefore, directly paid for the healthcare service received. Similarly, the functions may not be paid directly, but through the insurance, which may have been paid for by the employer or the individual pays premiums to the insurance company, which in turn covers an agreed cost of the healthcare services (Barr, 2016). Other individuals, such as the military, are covered by the federal government, which caters to all their healthcare needs. The Medicaid program is one through which low-income earners, especially mothers and children. Other programs include state children's Health Insurance Program, which caters for children who may not have been covered by other programs. Private insurance plans account for about 64 percent of the healthcare finance, while about 24 percent of the population is covered by plans provided by an employer (Barr, 2016). Also, most people have more than one health insurance plan, which overlaps and offers varied health options.

Ethics

Ethical Theories

Ethics in healthcare are the guidelines that cater to the moral and professional obligations in the delivery of service in healthcare. Ethical considerations in healthcare provision form a basis on which the stakeholders and the beneficiaries are aligned in the delivery and reception of the healthcare services (Winland-Brown, Lachman & Swanson, 2015). Healthcare delivery is based on four major ethical theories; maleficence, beneficence, autonomy, and justice. The theories are mostly thought of the principles that guide the delivery of healthcare services. The principle of maleficence outlines that the healthcare provider should do no harm to the patient. Beneficence provides that the actions of the healthcare system or the healthcare provider should promote wellness. Autonomy gives the patient the power to decide on the type of care to be received (Epstein & Turner, 2015). Justice demands that healthcare decisions must be fair in terms of allocation of resources, decision-making, and even legislation.

Principles of the Public Health Code of Ethics

The principles of the code of ethics are beliefs and assumptions that public health provision roots on the provision of healthcare services. The code of ethics principles covers three elements in the healthcare service; Health, community, and bases of action. The principles, therefore, ensure that the first mandate is the provision of health to the individuals (Winland-Brown, Lachman & Swanson, 2015). Also, public health is provided based on the needs of the community, and as such, the interest of the community is of importance. Finally, the bases of action outline the need for intervention in the community in different capacities within health provision.

Ethical Advocacy

While advocacy in health is an important aspect, it is still governed by ethical standards so that advocacy does not contravene the other standard of healthcare. Fist, advocacy is required that it does not contravene the privacy policies for the individuals or the institutions they are engaged within the advocacy (Winland-Brown, Lachman & Swanson, 2015). Individuals have protected as well as their private information. Advocates are bound by a code of conduct that enables them to work within the confines of the advocacy.

Environmental Health Risks

Assessing Environmental Health Risks

The first step in health assessment is hazard characterization, which involves identifying the hazard itself and the risk posed by the exposure of the agent. Next, an assessment of the exposure is carried out to understand the source of the exposure. After the assessment, the exposure is analyzed to determine health risk (Frumkin, 2016). Finally, risk management is undertaken to curb the exposure and protect the environment as well as the people.

Preventive Measures to Reduce Environmental Health Risks

Environmental health risks preventive measures include the development of safe household practice so that injuries in the household are minimized. The general hygiene of the individuals and community improves the environment (Frumkin, 2016). At the same time, the use of cleaner fuels and better management of toxic substances not only protects the environment as well as the community.

Functions and Goals of Environmental Health Nurses

The environmental health nurse works to improve the overall health of the population or the community rather than a single patient. The focus of the environmental health nurse is, therefore, the entire community (Frumkin, 2016). They identify issues that have the potential to pose challenges for the people and work to eliminate them in the environment. The environmental nurse develops programs and educational materials to help promote health and deal with problems in the community.

Legal Issues in Healthcare

Organizations Influencing the Healthcare delivery, Finance, and Policy

The government plays a critical role in the delivery, service, and financing of health programs. Insurance policies adopted by the government, as well as other roles such as regulations, training of professionals, and financing, are the prerogative of the government. The government, therefore, plays a major role in healthcare decisions.

Major Areas of Law Impacting Healthcare

The major legal issues in healthcare include confidentiality and consent, where the patient information is a privilege. The healthcare provider is bound by law to have the consent of the patient on medication. The legal requirements, along with the principle of autonomy, pose problems for health delivery, especially for the nurses (Cherry & Jacob, 2016). Physician-patients relationships, along with medical records as well as the mental health programs, are major legal issues in healthcare.

Role of Nurses in Developing Health Policy

Nurses spend a lot of time with patients and have knowledge of the needs of the patients and the community in healthcare matters. As such, nurses play an integral in influencing policy by having a say in policy development. Nurses continually advocate for healthcare policies through the Association of Public Health Nurses (Cherry & Jacob, 2016). Ineffective policies are also reformed through the help of the nurses.

References

Barr, D. A. (2016). Introduction to US Health Policy: the organization, financing, and delivery of health care in America. JHU Press.

Cherry, B., & Jacob, S. R. (2016). Contemporary nursing: Issues, trends, & management. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Elassy, N. (2015). The concepts of quality, quality assurance, and quality enhancement. Quality Assurance in Education.

Epstein, B., & Turner, M. (2015). The nursing code of ethics: Its value, its history. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 20(2), 1-10.

Frumkin, H. (Ed.). (2016). Environmental health: from global to local. John Wiley & Sons.

Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2015). Public health nursing-e-book: Population-centered health care in the community. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Winland-Brown, J., Lachman, V. D., & Swanson, E. O. C. (2015). The new code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements'(2015): Practical clinical application, Part I. Medsurg Nursing, 24(4), 268.