Ethical Quandaries in Population Health Discussion For Diabetic Patient

I CHOSE A J.R 55YRS OLD FEMALE WHO IS A SINGLE MOTHER OF SIX CHILDREN DIAGNOSIS WITH DIABETES TYPE 2.POPULATION WILL BE WOMEN WITH OBESITY THAT LACK OF OPPORTUNITY FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES. I ATTACHED A STUDENT SAMPLE.PLEASE READ AND FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS.

                                                        DB#1

Gertrude is 68 years old Caucasian woman, 5’5” weighing 262 pounds, resides at FOJ nursing center for six months. She is alert and orientated to time, place and person. She has history of COPD, CHF, hypertension and diabetes mellitus and she is dialysis candidate. No apparent sign of distress noted and vital signs were taken during assessment were within range based on her baseline vitals.

The target population is the elderly who leave in a long term facility.Pneumonia is infection of the lower respiratory tract caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites. It the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. The incidence and mortality of pneumonia are highest in the elderly (Huether, McCance 2008). Our facility is a long term nursing center and most of our residents are 65 years old and older. With the influenza season approaching, healthcare providers have been advising the residents to receive the influenza and the pneumococcal vaccination if there is no known contraindication and also mention some discomforts they might feel after the administration of the vaccines. Gertrude stated that seven years ago she had that vaccine and she had a bad experience. She said if she has pneumonia in the future, she will get antibiotic for it. It is very important to explain to that category of patients that they are at the higher risk to acquire that disease because of their weak immumine system, they spend most of the time lying in bed and their compromising health.

Some ethical quandaries that may occur through addressing the prevention of pneumonia by vaccination in this population may be autonomy and the public good. Patients have the right to refuse treatment and immunization represent expressions of personal freedom that are protected by a society that values individual freedoom and respect for a a person's right to choose. Even though we know some of them will resist to changes that will beneficial to their health, it is important for the health provider to keep educating them.

References

Anderson, E. T., & McFarlane, J. (2011). Community as partner: Therory and practice in nursing (6th ed.) Philidelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

University of South Florida College of Nursing

NUR 4634C Ethical Quandaries in Community and Population Health

The purpose of this assignment is to provide students with the opportunity to apply course content covered in Module 1 and Module 2. Use the dedicated discussion forum in Canvas for this assignment. Review these instructions, the grading criteria for the assignment as outlined in the grading rubric and relevant content in your readings (particularly Chapters 5) and activities from IHI.  Be sure to reference the statistics and peer reviewed journals you use to support your post for full credit. You may also want to review the rules of "netiquette" posted in Canvas. This assignment constitutes 10% of your grade for this course.  

1. Reflect on the case of Tim (the 7 year old with the asthma attack) and the idea that Tim is one of many children within an entire “population” of children with asthma. Now consider other patients who are representative of an entire population with similar health and/or psychosocial problems. For example:

• J.D., a 63 year old with heart failure and a history of frequent hospital admissions
• H.S., a 42 year old single mother with 4 children and newly diagnosed with diabetes
• R.T., a 52 year old male diagnosed with COPD due to chronic smoking.
• Think of examples of common health problems observed among the patients in your own practice and the patients in your practice who are members of these “population” groups. 

1. Now, based on your own practice, consider a patient and discuss the "population" or group for whom consideration of health or healthcare at the level of the group is likely to advance health. That is, think about strategies that could be applied to influence the health and/or health outcomes for all or many members of the population---not just one patient. Using the above examples:

• For J.D., I might consider, the population to be single men with heart failure living alone.
• For H.S., I may think of women with obesity that lack opportunities for physical activity.
• For R.T., I may think of homeless veterans who smoke and do not have access to healthcare.
• Each of these individuals would be representative of a group of patients with one or more similar health and/or psychosocial problems.

1. In an initial discussion board posting, describe...

• The population of interest from your practice
• A brief description of the incidence, prevalence and/or geographical distribution of the population
• The impact of the problem on the individuals affected, on the healthcare system (costs, etc.) and on society (if relevant)
• The health outcomes are you interested in improving for members of the population and why (relates to previous)
• Ethical principles to consider as you propose interventions to improve health outcomes for all members of the population.

1. Read and provide a substantive response to the postings of at least two other students. Your reply postings should be thoughtful and reflect application of relevant course content. Resources and references should be scholarly and timely.

Be sure to get your initial and reply posts on the discussion board in a timely manner to provide time for discussion and to contribute to group learning.

NOTE: This may or may not be the population you will be focusing on for your final paper, this is just to help you start to think about health at the population level---versus health at the level of individual patients. .