National Healthcare Needs: A Case Study

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The Role of Nurses in Advancing the National Healthcare Needs By: Cecilia Baguio, LVN Client Support Representative Although the United States is a first-world nation, the healthcare system is regarded and widely debated as inferior to other healthcare systems from other countries, such as: Australia, Sweden, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, and Canada. According to the World Health Organization (2015), universal health system provides services focusing on the well-being of all the people. The coverage includes but not limited to the following: “health promotion, prevention and treatment, rehabilitation and palliative care.” Moreover, one of the crucial aspects of the system is its ability to cover

When President Barack Obama made true of his promise to reform the health care system, by signing into law on March 23, 2010 the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), also known as Obamacare, as a response to our nation’s health care dilemma, it highlights the following: superior and inexpensive care, refining the quality and efficacy of care, avoiding long-lasting ailment and “improving public health”, “transparency and program integrity”, and “community living assistance services and supports” (USDOL, 2016). The full implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) presents to various healthcare professionals, including nurses, not only challenges but also opportunities in forming a care structure that is focused on patients’ needs. According to the Committee on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative on the Future of Nursing (2011), the spirit of the system is driving the whole structure to focus primarily on the following: “chronic conditions, primary care, including care coordination and transitional care; prevention and wellness; and the prevention of adverse events, such as hospital-acquired infections.” This is withdrawing from the “acute and

86-89). According to McCormack & McCance (2010), nurses are within their professional care capacities to deliver patient-centered or person-centered processes. The main components of an effective process include the following: “working with patient’s beliefs and values; engagement; having sympathetic presence; sharing decision-making and providing for physical needs” (p. 89). Since nurses are at the forefront of engagement with the patients in a continuous basis, they are in the best position to address and shape policies not only within their organizations, but also at the national level. However, values in the healthcare industry, relative to guidelines and policies, will only be formed through intelligible advocacy, discussion, debate, collaboration, and influence. Therefore, advancing the nurses’ professional care expertise through interdisciplinary collaboration across the healthcare profession, opportunity for advanced educational programs, and promotion to executive position within an organization is of the best interest in addressing and improving the healthcare system. The intended outcomes will result to a cost-effective, quality, and safer patients’ clinical care.