Cardiovascular Diseases as a Global Health Problem

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases mostly affect the elderly and people with family history of this disease. In the United States, the health problem has cost the National Budget many expenses as the country struggles for better health care. With the victory on the Medicare bill by the Obama government, also termed as ‘Obama bill’.

Nevertheless, there are various practices and lifestyle known to eliminate this health problem. Among these include the diet checking, physical exercises, and self-monitoring program geared toward alleviating heart related diseases. Therefore, this study will examine this problem both in the United States and other countries in the world. In addition, the article used in the literature review will be from journal articles researched by nurses from the United States and other countries. The study strengthens the topics studied in class, especially in research methods, research process, and information review. To sum up, this paper will have three major parts, namely, the introductory, literature review, and conclusion in which cardiovascular diseases will be studied.

Introduction and health problem definition

It is notable that most countries have worked tirelessly to improve health since 1950. However, there is still undesirable situation in which there has been no resolution of some challenges in health issues. There are many deaths contributed by communicable disease such as cardiovascular, cancer, and lung disease that claim deaths of about 36 million annually. Unfortunately, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading death causing diseases globally. The most affected groups are the low and middle income communities in which 80% of deaths emanating from CVDs occur in these groups.

In the U.S., cardiovascular/heart diseases are the leading cause of deaths since late 1920s. As a result, the governments have been expending much money in healthcare. For instance, the government used about $151.6 million on treating coronary heart disease in 2007. However, the prevalence of heart disease is unknown in the U.S., although there are efforts to define it in future.

According to Shah (2010), pharmaceutical corporations have been on critics for their priorities on insignificant researches on artificial medication on problems, such as baldness and impotence. There is little emphasis on researching for the cure for the tropical diseases such as CVDs, cancer, and lung failures. People practicing nursing have a duty to carry out more researches on diseases that affect most people instead of shifting their experience in business. According to Brown (2010), nurses should apply the knowledge in evidence-based practice to come up with approaches that will reduce the deaths emanating from preventable disease.

On the other hand, most people are poor, and they cannot afford treatments. For those who can afford, they are expensive and sometimes the problem is not resolved fully. CVDs are known to be lifestyle diseases that most people who suffer they keep on seeking medication to keep on surviving.

Literature review

The changes in the world have positive and negative effects to society and sadly are the cause of deaths among people. There is a major shift from the previous state in which infectious and nutritional deficiency disease caused deaths. This is no longer the case because the emergence of chronic diseases such as CVDs, cancer, and diabetic diseases has been claiming many deaths currently. As a result, researchers mainly from medical and nursing has been working to get the probable means to mitigate these diseases.

Discharging and readmission of heart disease patients in U.S.

It was clear that negligence among the medical practitioners has contributed to prevalence of heart failure among the elderly (Roe-prior, 2004). As a mentioned above, heart diseases can be associated to other problems such as breathing difficulties and stroke. Therefore, people with heart disease easily fall sick and require intensive care when admitted. However, some of these patients suffering from the heart diseases and related problems are assumedly discharged based on various factors known to the hospital management.

In some incidence, nurses discharge patients before they have recovered fully. Without monitoring the progress of the patient, there may be a problem if the patient is not ready to be discharged. Some hospitals in America may decide to discharge the patients to minimize the costs, whereas the patients may be a burden to the hospital.

It is worth noting that heart failure among the older Americans is on the rise in which more than one million old people suffer from this problem. According to Roe-prior (2004), the incidents of heart failure increases with the increase in the population ages hence the older the more susceptible to the disease. As a result, the article sought to identify the susceptibility of complication on elderly people suffering from heart failure because of poor post discharging outcomes.

The study used a manageable sample size of 103 patients in which causes of readmission were addressed. Readmission resulted from low serum sodium and poor self reported health situation among the patients. The article perfectly laid the research design in which presence of HF symptoms and index admission among people admitted in urban hospital meant that the patient required visiting a physician. For patients admitted in community hospitals, revealed the possibilities emergency visits cases. To sum up, the study revealed the possibility that “profile hospitalized elders with HF are at risk for poor post discharge outcomes” (Roe-prior, 2004, p. 537).

Effects of location change to cardiovascular diseases risks

Cardiovascular diseases emanate from various reasons, such as poor health, family history background, geographical location among others. Therefore, there are possibilities of immigrants developing these heart problems. In some geographical locations have different altitudes, and temperatures among others. This will affect the inhabitants living in these places. As a result, some people are more prevalent to the heart disease problem than others, depending on the location.

Authors in this article demonstrated high level of researching and data collection techniques in research processes. This was in line with the topics studied in class on the need to have evidence based information in nursing (King, LeBlanc, Carr & Quan, 2007) demonstrated on the prevalence of the disease based on the ethnocultural affiliation and gender among the inhabitants. In this case, they considered Chinese migrating from china to Canada that involved 10 men and five women. This revealed a bias and the question posed could be why the authors decided on using more men than women.

However, the major focus was on investigating how behavior change can alleviate the cardiovascular diseases risks. The research adapted use of interviews, which were audio recorded in which some interpretation was necessary. Analysis was also part of this research in which comparative methods were vital. The study revealed how the change of location helped the Chinese alleviate the risk by sourcing health management information. The results however may lack validity with the change in the environmental scene globally. Global warming in looming, and there are chances that some areas considered risk free of certain disease may be no longer free. In addition, use of small sample size may be misleading hence the study may have used more participants for better comparison.

Role of caregivers to heart disease patients

It should be noted that patients suffering from heart diseases may be weak, disabled, and ‘helpless’ sometimes, especially when they encounter difficulties in breathing or collapse suddenly. This may be shocking if such happen in the absence of family members or caregivers. Given that most of the patients are elderly, this may call for more attention to ensure the cardiovascular patients get the best care.

Research methods and data collection were a key factor considered in this study and use of face-to-face interview with caregiver may have been very expensive. However, this remains a good data collection technique because researchers and interviewees can interact and study the visual expression among the caregivers. The study used 41 patients and 50 caregivers helped in revealing the association between the caregivers and the environment they work. This became more powerful by the use of “Centers for Epidemiological Studies Short Depression Scale, and New York Heart Association Functional Classification Guide” (Saunders, 2008, p. 945).

Some of the factors contributing to the burden were the absence of relative, long working hours, and presence of many health problems among the patients. In addition, the health records on the patients revealed the frequency of health problems among the patients in which the caregivers are as well involved.

Promoting health to avert heart disease problem

There are many ways of addressing this problem to at least help the patients survive. It is noted that physical exercise and watching what the patients and healthy people eat. The major problem cited to cause in the presence of cholesterol in the food eaten, which settle in the veins hence making the blood flow difficult of even impossible. Therefore, there is need to check what is put in the diet because keeping off diets with high fat can save a health situation.

Among these techniques to alleviate the prevalence is doing physical exercise regularly to enable blood flow and facilitate blood circulation. According to Bartfay and Bartfay (1994), the Canadian society had little awareness in prevention and health promotion strategies at that time for three past 20 years. There is the emergence of chronic disease because the society had a changed lifestyle. As a result, the article enlightened people on the need for sensitization on public health, especially at the young age to avert health problems in old age. The study used games a way to delivering their nursing practice among children. As a result, the study managed to define factors causing heart disease.

Conclusion

There is no doubt that heart disease is a global tragedy and if the possible measures are not taken it could be worse. However, with the evolution of nursing researches, more information will be readily available and disseminated to the society to help them manage their health. Nevertheless, diet, lifestyle, geographical location, climate, and family background are good example of the cause of heart diseases. Fortunately, there are possible measures to reduce the prevalence of the heart disease, especially among the elderly people.

Use of proper research method is likely to ease the process and capture important information to make conclusions. The data collecting methods used in most researches included interviews, and questionnaire. In addition, researchers must use a manageable sample size to meet the objective of the study.

References

Bartfay, W.J., & Bartfay, E. (1994). Promoting Health in Schools through a Board Game. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 16 (4), 438-446.

Brown, S. J. (2010). Evidence-Based Nursing: The Research-Practice Connection. New York: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

King, K. M., LeBlanc, P., Carr, W., & Quan, H. (2007). Chinese Immigrants’ Management of their Cardiovascular Disease Risk. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 29(7), 804-826.

Roe-Prior, P. (2004). Variables Predictive of Poor Post discharge Outcomes for Hospitalized Elders in Heart Failure. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 26(5), 533-546.

Saunders, M.M. (2008). Factors Associated with Caregiver Burden in Heart Failure Family Caregivers. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 30(8), 943-959.

Shah, A. (2010). Health Issues. Global Issues. Web.