The research claims that early detection and prevention of breast cancer is the most topical issue in terms of public health, especially it’s female half that suffers more often than men according to statistics. The study is based on the investigation of African-American women and rural women at risk.
Among a set of measures aimed at improving the quality of cancer care, the largest part of human resources in the health system – the role of nurses is given great importance. Authors claim, “faith community nurses were determined to be valuable resources that could affect the quality of care across the continuum for at-risk populations” (Shackelford, Weyhenmeyer, & Mabus, 2014, p. 114). Taking into account the specifics of cancer patients and the social significance of care of cancer patients, the need for specialization of nurses in this field is extremely increasing requiring special knowledge and skills in cases of cancer prevention.
In this regard, the research states that it is important to raise awareness among nurses and educate them according to special programs enhancing their situational knowledge. To educate regular nurses as faith community nurses, a grant through the National Vulnerable Populations Community Grants Program to St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, IL was provided. The effective educational strategy comprised videos and DVDs that featured the aforementioned educational content and life-size breast models. The study is based on the mixed method of the research as it contains elements of quantitative research such as tables along with components of the qualitative research such as in-depth analysis and description of the outcome.
All in all, it was stated that faith community nurses play a key role in providing breast care education to at-risk populations. The research is significant as it raises the question of breast cancer prevention among women.
References
Shackelford, J., Weyhenmeyer, D., & Mabus, L. (2014). Fostering Early Breast Cancer Detection: Faith Community Nurses Reaching At-risk Populations. Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, 18(6), 113-117.