Malnutrition in Melrose, Bronx

Assessment Three – Malnutrition in Melrose, Bronx
Your Name
Subject and Section
Professor's Name
Understanding the importance of research and Evidence-based Practice (EBP) in resolving health issues in the community is essential for every healthcare professional. It allows them to better appreciate how raw data can be collected, synthesized, and applied to the growing concerns of society. In line with this, this paper presents a scenario wherein I am a local community nurse that is tasked with utilizing raw data for an EBP intervention for the benefit of the community. Accordingly, the local community that I chose is the Melrose neighborhood in Bronx, New York, United States, for it is one of the counties in New York which has the highest poverty rates within an urban landscape. Specifically, I would like to determine the relationship between poverty and malnutrition rates, especially during these times. All in all, it is my belief that the Covid-19 Pandemic has contributed to the increase in poverty within the area and consequently malnutrition rates.
Data Evaluation
West Bronx, New York, is one of the counties in New York with the highest population density. According to recent United States Census Data, it has an estimated population of 1,390,450 (World Population Review, 2021). Mainly, Census data also shows that Bronx is predominantly composed of other ethnic groups such as "Hispanic (29.4%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (29%), White (Hispanic) (13.9%), Black or African American (Hispanic) (9.3%), and White (Non-Hispanic) (8.75%)" CITATION Dat19 \l 1033 (Data USA, 2019). This strongly shows that the Bronx is the area where most minority populations reside in New York.
However, despite its large population Bronx is one of the areas with the highest poverty rates and malnutrition rates in New York. For example, the New York Furman Center (2019) reported that compared to other areas of New York, the Bronx had a poverty rate of 26.4% compared to other areas in New York, which averages around 16.0%. Accordingly, these numbers are reported to be much higher in the poorest neighborhood in the Bronx, such as Longwood, Mott Haven, Hunts Point, and Melrose CITATION Cra21 \l 1033 (Crain's New York, 2021). This was further exacerbated by the Covid-19 Pandemic, as reports show that this county had the highest hospitalization rates, poverty rates, and unemployment rates during its surge CITATION Off21 \l 1033 (Office of the New York State Comptroller, 2021).
In line with this, studies are done before (and even during) the Pandemic have sufficiently shown that fast-food availability is one of the reasons for malnutrition. This is particularly true in the case of impoverished areas where fast-food restaurants offer an affordable and accessible meal for everyone CITATION Elb19 \l 1033 (Elbel, et al., 2019). Thus, because of the surge in Covid-19 cases, increase in unemployment and poverty rates, and continuous accessibility of fast-food restaurants, it is clear that a solution must be made to improve malnutrition, especially among children.
Health Improvement Plan
As stated earlier, malnutrition problems are usually caused by a diverse and multi-faceted problem such as lack of access to nutritious...