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Impact of the aging population
Importance of partnership in health care
The elderly is a growing population
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Recommended: Impact of the aging population
Globally it is estimated that there will be a “252% increase in people aged over 65 with one or more chronic condition by 2050” (Procter et al, 2013). The Department of Health’s 2013 Vision and Strategy for District Nurse detailed the increasingly important role that District Nurses have in the delivery and coordination of community healthcare. It described the District Nurse role as “Managing and accountability for an active caseload and providing population interventions to improve community health and wellbeing; Working with a range of health and social care partners in order to provide services for adults and their carers, at home”. A large part of the District Nurse caseload is managing patients with long term conditions and multi-morbidities.
According to Statistics Canada Report 2013, “life expectancy in Canada is one of the highest in the world” and it is expected to grow, making the aging population a key driver to our health-systems reform. By 2036, seniors in Canada will comprise of twenty five per cent of the population (CIHI, 2011). Seniors, those aged 65 years and older are the fastest growing population in Canada. Currently there are approximately 4.8 million Canadians aged 65 or greater. It is projected that this number will increase to 9 to 10 million by 2036 (Priest, 2011). As the population get aged the demand for health care and related services are expected to increase. Currently, the hospitals in Ontario are frequent faced with overcrowding emergency departments, full of admitted patients and beds for those patients to be transferred to. It has been reported that 20% of the acute care beds in the hospital setting are occupied by patients that do not require acute hospital care. These patients are termed Alternate Level of Care (ALC). ALC is “When a patient is occupying a bed in a hospital and does not require the intensity of resources/services provided in this care setting (Acute, Complex, Continuing Care, Mental Health or Rehabilitation), the patient must be designated Alternate level of Care at that time by the physician or her/his delegate.” (Ontario Home Care Association, 2009, p.1).
The role of nurse practitioner in the Canadian healthcare system is relatively new compared to the traditional roles of doctors and registered nurses, and as with any new role, there are people who oppose the changes and others who appreciate them. Some members of the public and the healthcare system believe that the addition of the nurse practitioner (NP) role is an unnecessary change and liability to the system because it blurs the line between a doctor and a nurse; this is because nurse practitioners are registered nurses with additional training (usually a masters degree) that allows them to expand their scope of practice into some areas which can be treated by doctors. Other people feel that nurse practitioners can help provide additional primary care services, while bridging communication between nurses and doctors. There are always legitimate challenges to be overcome when changing a system as complicated as healthcare,
Another focus for change is that over the years the demand for home and community care over hospital care has continued to grow, as stated by the Queens nursing institute “Recent health policy points to the importance of improving and extending services to meet the health and care needs of an increasingly older population and provide services which may have previously been provided in hospital within community settings”.
For this practice guideline, the original development panel of six members included; a Chief Nursing Officer, Charge Nurse, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Clinical Practice Facilitator, a Professor from a School of Nursing, and an Education Coordinator. The revision panel members included; a Chief of Nursing & Professional Practice, an Assistant Lecturer from York University, a Clinical Nurse Specialist, Clinical Practice Facilitator, a Nursing Professional Development Educator, an Internist/Geriatrici...
A registered nurse (RN) is someone that went through a university or college and studied nursing; and then passed the national licensing exam to obtain a license to practice nursing. The degree earned by an RN at the need of the program is deemed a professional nursing degree. The RN top nursing staff and they usually works independently. On the hand, an LPN only earns a practical nursing degree after completion of the program. LPNs are mostly recognized only in USA and Canada; they are also named as License Vocational Nurse (LVN) in the state of California and Texas. LPN work under the supervisor of an RN or a physician.
The care that the public health nurse provides to her clients is patient-centered. During one of the home visits, the nurse talked and questioned her client about what her needs were and if there was anything she could do for her. The client mentioned that she needed more supplies such as diaper and baby clothes. The nurse agreed to bring these items the next time she visits. When the nurse had to perform an assessment on the client’s son by using the ASQ-3, which is a screening tool that screens for developmental delays, the client mentioned that she was not feeling well and did want to answer questions. The nurse respected her client’s request and did not carry on with the assessment. Patient-centered care was evidenced in the nurse’s practice as she was assessing and responding to her client needs. The client also had control on how the care was delivered to her. By letting the client have a voice in her care, the nurse was establishing a caring relationship with the client, which is one of the cornerstones of public health nursing (Garcia, Schaffer, & Schoon, 2014, p. 9). In addition, by providing support and care as well as addressing the client’s needs, the nurse was working at the individual level of practice.
The modern nurse has much to be thankful for because of some of the early pioneers of nursing, such as Florence Nightingale and Jensey Snow. However, the scope and influence of professional nursing, as well as the individual nurse, has seen more exponential growth and change in North America since the establishment of the first professional organization for nursing, the Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States and Canada, which in 1911 came to be known as the American Nurses Association.
There are many who believe that the next shortage will be worse and the demand for nurses will increase. There will be more jobs available especially with the baby boomer nurses retiring. Wood believes that when nurses retire, the next shortage could be even worse than the previous shortage. According to Wood this would lead to an “intellectual drain of institutional and professional nursing knowledge” (Wood, 2011, para 15). Staiger agrees as well that a shortage of nurses is expected again when nurses retire and since the economy will be more stable full-time nurses will go back to being part-time (Huston, 2017). Huston expects for the supply of nurses to grow minimally in the next couple of years and for a large number of nurses
In order for optimal patient care to be achieved nurses need to be inspired by their work and feel supported by the health care staff. Both patients and nurses deserve to be given the attention and support they need to thrive. The patient to nurse ratio in California is already being addressed and this is a movement that needs to extend worldwide. It is imperative that health care professionals as a whole are being heard and supported. Patients depend on their health care providers and nurses are the backbone of patient care thus acknowledging their needs should always be top priority.
Healthcare is viewed in an unrealistic way by most individuals. Many people view a physician as the only means to find a solution to their problem. Nurses are still seen by some as simply “the person who does what the doctor says.” This is frustrating in today’s time when nurses are required to spend years on their education to help care for their patients. In many situations nurses are the only advocate that some patients’ have.
Yiu, L. (2012). Community care. In L. Stamler & L. Yiu (Eds.), Community health nursing: A Canadian perspective (3rd ed., p. 213, 219, 227). Toronto, Canada: Pearson Canada Inc.
A nurse’s role in our society today is exceptionally significant. Nurses are somewhat idolized and looked to as our everyday “superman”. “The mission of nursing in society is to help individuals, families, and groups to determine and achieve physical, mental, and social potential, and to do so within the challenging context of the environment in which they live and work” (“The Role of a Nurse/Midwife”). Many Americans turn to nurses for delivery of primary health care services and health care education (Whelan). In our country, there is constantly someone in need of health care. There will always be a baby being born or a person dying, someone becoming ill or growing old. Some people due to their physical and/or mental state of health are completely dependent on a nurse and wouldn’t be able to get through the simple obstacles of every day, or achieve the necessary requirements of a simple day without their aid. Not only do nurses help, and assist you when you’re sick, but also act to promote good health to others. They end...
Often in practice, we as nurses deal with a variety of diseases and treatments and often have to react to the illness that the patient presents with upon our interaction. While this is an essential piece of our practice, we also have a duty to our patients to be proactive in preventing specific health-related consequences based on their risk factors and to promote their health and well being. Health promotion as it relates to nursing is about us empowering our patients to increase their control over their lives and well beings and includes: focusing on their health not just illness, empowering our patients, recognizing that health involves many dimensions and is also effected by factors outside of their control (Whitehead et al. 2008)..
The chronic care model calls for an organizational change in the way individuals with illnesses are cared for, and the involvement of nurses, social workers and patients themselves. The challenge is moving in an effective way of improving quality from research carried out predominantly in health maintenance organizations to the mainstream of health care practice (Wielawski, 2006). Wagner’s explanation is to substitute the customary physician-centric office structure with one that supports clinical teamwork in association with the patient. The notion spreads outside the health care organization to collaborative associations in the community. Wagner et al. (2001) termed this approach the “chronic care model.” With this model, physicians, nurses, case managers, dieticians, and patient educators
Kick, Ella. "Overview: Health Care and the Aging Population: What Are Today's Challenges?" The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. N.p., n.d. Web.