NSG 4074 Week 1 Discussion
Topic 1: Community-Based Nursing
Community-based nursing entails serving people who have limited access to healthcare services. Nurses play an important role because they improve the health of individuals and communities. In this kind of nursing, nurses should identify trends in the community and demonstrate cultural competence while providing healthcare. They help people prevent illness by leading health-promotion lifestyles. Communities are different as they contain people with different cultural backgrounds, ages, and health issues. Nurses should provide patient education to promote health in the community. I interviewed a community-based nurse, and the following were her responses.
What are your job responsibilities?
My responsibilities include all activities aimed at improving the health of the community. I educate and empower members of my community to manage their health. Preventive care is essential because it prevents serious health issues. Community members should know the importance of regular screening for cancers, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels (Donelan et al., 2019). Most people ignore preventive care and wait till their condition is acute to seek healthcare. This leads to most of them losing their lives to diseases that can be prevented. They also need to know how to manage diabetes through a proper diet and physical exercise (Donelan et al., 2019). This can only happen if I educate them about preventive care and driving chronic health conditions. I work with other healthcare professionals to address social determinants of health.
I also provide in-home treatment and support services to families in need. I monitor patients’ blood pressure, help them manage pain, and provide wound care. Additional responsibilities of community-based nurses include carrying out health evaluations to identify risk factors for chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease, counselling people at risk of illnesses, and providing public health information in learning institutions and other community settings (Dickson et al., 2018).
Does a correlation exist between your job description and your practice?
There is a correlation because I promote health through disease prevention. My practice entails helping people achieve good health and live independently through healthcare and education. I am a nurse, and my responsibility does not change because of the setting. The only difference is that as a community-based nurse, I major in preventing diseases and helping patients in the home rather than treating them in healthcare facilities.
NSG 4074 Week 1 Discussion
Are you involved in policy formulation that affects client services?
I am actively involved in policy formulation because I must improve the community’s health by all means. Participating in policy formulation allows me to provide opinions that will lead to developing policies that will positively affect the community’s health. It also provides a chance to make changes that meet the community’s needs, making it easier to solve public health issues (Parry et al., 2018). Participation in policy-making strengthens primary care and community-based services to ensure equitable and quality care at the community level.
Do you belong to a professional organization related to your current job position?
I belong to the American Public Health Association (APHA), which aims to achieve health equity by highlighting the value of community and public health nursing. Belonging to the association has helped me become more dedicated to improving community health (American Public Health Association, 2019). All healthcare professionals should belong to an organization related to their speciality to give them more opportunities to improve patient outcomes.
Topic 2: Culturally Competent Care
In my area of nursing, I have experienced many times where there was a cultural difference from mine. I had one patient who could not speak any English. Whenever he would try to communicate with me, I never understood him. We came up with a plan to break this barrier. We used cards with pictures and learned his gestures or body language. If it was something important to relate, we called an interpreter.
The Purnell Model is a great resource. I would apply it by incorporating information at staff meetings on the importance of using this in the health care settings. Many healthcare providers in various locations can use the Purnell Model to help make the team-oriented healthcare environment more desirable (Purnell,2002). I feel communication is the most important of the twelve domains of this model; Communication is essential in health care. If everyone does not understand the situation, there could be significant trouble. That is why I love the communication book we use at my job. For example, if you are off for a few days, you will not be aware of certain things that could have occurred. The communication book provides information on what has been transpiring in the work area. This is a great tool to have.
References
American Public Health Association. (2019). Public Health Nursing. Apha.org. https://www.apha.org/apha-communities/member-sections/public-health-nursing
Dickson, C. A., McVittie, C., & Kapilashrami, A. (2018). Expertise in action: Insights into the dynamic nature of expertise in community‐based nursing. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 27(3-4), e451-e462. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.13950
Donelan, K., Chang, Y., Berrett-Abebe, J., Spetz, J., Auerbach, D. I., Norman, L., & Buerhaus, P.949.(2019). Care management for older adults: The roles of nurses, social workers, and physicians. Health Affairs, 38(6), 941-949. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2019.00030
Parry, Y. K., Hill, P., & Horsfall, S. (2018). Assessing levels of student nurse learning in community-based health placement with vulnerable families: Knowledge development for future clinical practice. Nurse Education in Practice, 32, 14-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2018.06.015
Purnell, L.D. (2002). The Purnell Model for Cultural Competency. Journal of Transcultural Nursing 13. 193-196. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1177/10459602013003006
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Question 
NSG 4074 Week 1 Discussion
Topic 1: Community-Based Nursing
Nursing services are essential in caring for patients and families in the community and providing them with the support they need. Nursing has proved itself a necessary part of the healthcare team for patients with problems ranging from chronic health conditions to the need for elder care. Many people now prefer sending their elderly parents to a daycare for nursing rather than to a long-term care facility.
For this topic, interview a community-based nurse or nurse practitioner who sees individuals in the home setting. Ask the following questions:
What are your job responsibilities?
Does a correlation exist between your job description and your practice?
Are you involved in policy formulation that affects client services?
Do you belong to a professional organization related to your current job position?
Topic 2: Culturally Competent Care
A broad range of cultures exists in the world today. Nursing professionals often interact with people from cultural backgrounds that differ from their own.
Share an experience where you cared for a patient in the healthcare setting who was from a culture different from your own. How did you accommodate this patient’s needs? How would you apply the Purnell Model to future cultural encounters?
Which one of the twelve domains of culture from the Purnell Model do you feel is most important? Why?