Health care is a crucial event for the well-being of all humans in every country. Nurses are agents of morality and attention who attend to the calling needs of health through acting on their professional skills for the wellbeing of the community, (Ellis et al. 2012).
Community health is also known as public health is an aspect that concerns the welfare of the general population of the community other than concentrating on a single individual. Community health nursing is an issue that involves protecting and promoting the general health of the population using professional skills from nursing, social, and public health science, (Hitchcock, et al.’s 2003).
Anderson et al., (2011) stated that community health care is a system through which the caregivers assess the needs of the population to identify those who need attention. A strategy for intervention is then formulated together with the community members to meets the identified needs.
Through an efficient, equitable and reliable manner, the plan is implemented, and evaluation is conducted to observe the outcome of the health status of the population. The results are then used to direct, control and integrate the delivery of care and the use of health resources to promote health in the community.
An increase and emphasis on community health promotion have stretched the service of community health nurses to expand their practices from individually oriented type models to a more broad population-focused model. In the community, nurses will adopt and define modes that relate and function with the physical, role function and interdependence modes to harness the health movement of the community. It involves understanding the community, its health and the requirements of the general population.
Community caregivers play crucial role prevention of disease and promotion of health. Thanks to increasing innovation in service delivery, healthy services channel through professional health workers to the community. Community nursing has a critical effect on the control, prevention, and promotion of community health. At the community level, the health services are availed by medically underserved members who can neither afford nor access primary care from other far places. Through Nurse-Managed health centers that are set up in schools, local senior centers, and churches, locals can obtain reliable medication.
Partnerships and collaborations are a model delivery unit that is based on a nurse-to-nurse assistant partnership that is supported by a patient caretaker. It is a setting that widens and broadens the service incorporating technology to benefit time and observing a keen focus on the patient outcome. The process of partnership and collaboration emphasizes improving the health of our patients, improving responsive health care and low-cost high-quality medical attention, (Leathard et al, 2003)
Continuity of care is care as experienced by the patient through the treatment period. Using professional skills, registered nurses are competent professionals who provide defined care to a community and the population. Using three types of continuity of care nurses exercise critical skills and evidence-based judgments to assess the needs of the patient. With these skills, nurses communicate to deliver the most appropriate medication that improves the lives of the community members.
Technology is a crucial aspect of community health care. Through the availability of improved technology, community health worker can survey, test and treat various community diseases. Technology is an important factor in prevention and treatment of diseases. Technology helps in scanning and screening for improved health achievements in the community.
Development/ Implementation Team for Community Health Service
Community health nursing is population-focused that requires critical thinking, competence, and skills. Public health nursing extends beyond sick care to advocacy, health education and reforms such as social reforms. Successful community health results when nurses work together with other community leaders and stakeholders in education and implementation of health care. This team will address community problems and also promote harmony in the community, (ANA 2007). An inter-professional team includes; community leaders, advanced practice public health nurses, human development specialist and representatives of different age brackets.
The involvement of community leaders is very crucial in successful community health delivery since they are essential elements that are responsible mapping and photo voice. They are also important I the design of substance use prevention program such as tobacco smoking. The inter-professional team collaborates to form a working policy for the problem identified. The health worker educates the community partners who help in preventive measures and health education to other community members, while the human development specialist helps in identifying various risks that are treated by the nurses. Through this collaboration, more work is done cost effectively because few professionals will drive a bigger force of change in the community. Ancillary staff is also important and very useful in an area that does not need technical procedure. They help in educating the community about heath practices. Community education process makes the community responsible and able to prevent various epidemics hence promoting health.
Evaluation of Community Health Nursing Outcome
The inter-professional team works closely with each other. Successes in policy implementation are measured by how many people respond positively to medication and preventive measures. HIV/Aids will be some of the assessments for the effectiveness of the policy. Community health workers collect data establish the effect of the policy implemented. Assessment will help the nurses to know whether the system is effective. Patient satisfaction is possible through patient’s adherence to treatment and involvement in the health decisions of their wellbeing.
References
American Nurses Association. (2007). Public health nursing: Scope and standards of practice. Silver Spring, MD: Author, 71-75.
Anderson, E. T., & McFarlane, J. M. (2008). Community as partner: Theory and practice in nursing. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 98.
Ellis, J. R., & Hartley, C. L. (2008). Nursing in today’s world: Trends, issues, & management. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 360.
Hitchcock, J. E., Schubert, P. E., & Thomas, S. A. (2003). Community health nursing: Caring in action. Clifton Park, NY: Thomson/Delmar Learning, 60-61
Leathard, A. (2003). Interprofessional collaboration: From policy to practice in health and social care. Hove: Brunner-Routledge, 23-33.