Introduction
Diabetes is one of the major topic areas identified in Healthy People 2020. It is estimated that one out of ten Americans is ill with a certain form of diabetes (CDC, 2015). Over one-fourth of people having diabetes are not yet diagnosed (CDC, 2015). Diabetes places serious limitations on the person affected restricting one from normal activities and bereaving the life quality (Barker, 2015). Diabetes costs the American federal budget millions of dollars annually. With all these facts in mind, the importance of providing quality help to the community population with the objective to prevent diabetes development and help the ill people in the community cope effectively can be hardly underestimated. The following paper will address diabetes from the point of view of Healthy People 2020.
Diabetes as the Illness Group of Healthy People 2020 Focus
Diabetes is a chronic illness of my professional interest due to the fact that it is one of the major problems that people in the community where I serve as a nursing specialist suffer from. Diabetes is a hurtful problem because, in itself, it is already enough to bereave its victim of the quality of life, restrict mobility, and lead to a loss of vitality (Fayers & Machin, 2013). However, the subtlety of this chronic condition is its ability to cause the accompanying problems of the greater scale of complexity (DeBoer, 2013).
Diabetes Morbidity and Comorbidity
Diabetes used to be considered the disease of older populations in previous decades (Barker, 2015). It still continues to be a major health risk in older populations. However, today this chronic issue is affecting the younger populations and the middle age groups (Huffman, Vaccaro, Exebio, Zarini, Katz, & Dixon, 2012). The sad tendency of this decade is the frequent diagnosis of diabetes in children. This unfortunate situation takes place due to the alterations in the young population’s lifestyle including long hours of TV watching and computer playing, unhealthy eating habits, and lack of physical activity (Huffman et al., 2012). According to CDC (2015), the annual number of ambulatory visits with diabetes as the major diagnosis is “37.3 million” (para. 8). In the United States, approximately 90% of all patients with diabetes, which is 25 million people, are affected by diabetes type 2 (CDC, 2015).
Diabetes is often associated with the higher risks of other chronic conditions development (DeBoer, 2013). They include cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, CAD, and PAD, atherosclerosis, hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, nephropathy, metabolism disorders, and a variety of mental disorders including depression and bipolar disorder (Barker, 2015). Other risks are different types of cancer, nerve damage, and endocrinology disorders (Barker, 2015).
Diabetes Impact on Individual’s Health and the Overall Health of Nation
The disease causes numerous negative developments to the affected individual including the constant feeling of thirst and hunger, loss of vitality, putting on weight, worsening of eyesight, and mood swings (CDC, 2015). All these troubles significantly reduce the quality of life.
Diabetes is number 7 on the list of mortality causes in the nation (CDC, 2015). This chronic illness also leads to the development of other conditions with high rates of mortality. Diabetes is the major health problem affecting the quality of life in the nation that needs constant attention and systematic interventions to change the state of affairs for the better.
Diabetes-related Objectives in Healthy People 2020
The Healthy People 2020 initiative has set the exalted goal to decrease the number of people affected by this disorder, decrease the economic burden it places on the country, and help the people who are already affected to lead the quality life despite the existing limitations (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2011). In addition, this initiative aims to provide a more intense help to people remaining in the diabetes risk group (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2011).
Questionnaire
The following questionnaire is prepared to assess diabetes threats and prepare the care plan:
- How much physical activity do you have during the day/ week?
- How many hours do you watch TV daily?
- How many hours do you spend next to the computer daily?
- How much fast food and junk food do you have daily?
- How much high-sugar and high-fat meals and drinks do you have daily?
- How many fruits and vegetables do you have daily?
- How much water do you have daily?
- Do you have relatives with the history of diabetes?
- Do you have an extra weight?
- Do you often feel tired or depressed without any specific reason?
Conclusion
In conclusion, diabetes is one of the major chronic illnesses identified in Healthy People 2020 as the major health objective crucial for the improvement of the overall health condition of the nation. The Healthy People 2020 initiative has set the goal to decrease the number of people affected by this disorder and help the people who are already ill lead the quality life despite the existing limitations.
References
Barker, A. M. (2015). Advanced practice nursing. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publisher
CDC (2015). 2014 National Diabetes Statistics Report. Web.
DeBoer, M. D. (2013). Obesity, systemic inflammation, and increased risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes among adolescents: A need for screening tools to target interventions. Nutrition, 29(2), 379-86.
Fayers, P., & Machin, D. (2013). Quality of life: the assessment, analysis and interpretation of patient-reported outcomes. Burlington, MA: John Wiley & Sons.
Huffman, F. G., Vaccaro, J. A., Exebio, J. C., Zarini, G. G., Katz, T., & Dixon, Z. (2012). Television watching, diet quality, and physical activity and diabetes among three ethnicities in the United States. Journal of Environmental and Public Health.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2011). Healthy People 2020. Web.