Potential Interventions
Potential interventions that are specific to our community nursing diagnoses are applying for grants to help fund improving environmental structures, educating the community, and creating informational flyers and brochures regarding the benefits of increasing physical activity. We feel that these three interventions are of the most important at this time to assist in our increasing physical activity initiative for Talbot.
Grant
Now that the data has been collected and the needs of the community are evident, writing for a federal grant would greatly help the community improve their resources to encourage physical activity. The community is at the point where they know exactly where these funds are going to be utilized. The grant would help with such environmental structures as sidewalks and parks. Based on strong evidence of their effectiveness in improving physical fitness and increasing physical activity, the Community Preventative Services Task Force recommends the formation or enhanced access to areas for physical activity (HealthyPeople.gov, 2013). Ten studies qualified for the review done by the Community Preventative Services Task Force and yielded the following results: improving access to areas for physical activity assisted in getting people to increase their exercise level and most of the studies reported an increase in weight loss or a decrease in body fat for members who participated (HealthyPeople.gov, 2013). Thus, based on the evidence of the benefits of improving environmental structures to assist in increasing physical activity and the completion of assessing our community needs and resources, analyzing problems and determining goals, it is time for a plan to be developed to improve th...
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...Force on Community Preventative Services, the evidence was rated as strong for the benefits of community-wide campaigns and reported that the campaigns in the study resulted in a median increase of about 4% in the percentage of people who became involved in physical activity (HealthyPeople.gov, 2013). Since we recognize the significance a community campaign will have on Talbot County, flyers and brochures will be distributed at all public facilities including schools and the post office to increase awareness in the community on our physical activity initiative. Information on the flyers will include times education is taking place at local churches and brochures will provide a snapshot of what the physical activity initiative is all about and will also include times educational sessions will be taking place at church and how to get involved in a walking program.
Investigate the contemporary body of knowledge that underpins the current recommendations for exercise programming in the pursuit of improved health.
208). This in turn will allow me to identify populations of interest and those which are at risk for health issues. In addition, providing education to my patients and the community about available resources, will help prevent illnesses, and promote wellness. Lastly, by using the 17 public health interventions, I will be able to use a variety of interventions to help improve the quality of care I provide to my patients (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014, pp.
Ministry of Health. (2013). Promote Physical Activity. – Healthy Environments. Retrieved December 3, 2013, from http://www.health.gov.bc.ca/environments/whttps://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Physical-Activity/Keep-Active-at-Work#.Uqd295FxsZY
The level of the population’s level of physical activity is becoming a major public health concern in the United States (Wahlgren, 2011). As a result of urban sprawl, Americans rely heavily on personal vehicles to travel to work or other destinations. This is leading to a sedentary life style for the public as they take to their cars to travel to their destination. The public’s perception of the environments in which they live in are likely influencing their behaviors resulting in their dependance on personal vehicles. (Wahlgren, 2011). The physical environment and peoples’ levels of physical activity are directly connected. Low density zoning and auto-dependent development is resulting in the promotion of sedentary life styles. Most activities, like commuting to work or shopping, requires the use of a personal vehicle because of the area’s isolation in residential zones and commercial zones (Ewing, 2010). Alternative modes like walking or bicycling are rather impractical, as the areas often have little to no sidewalks or other pedestrian friendly amenities (Marshall, 2009). The Low density design is developed because residential homes have fewer units per acre and commercial buildings tend to only be a couple of stories and spaced further apart. The sizes of lots tend to be bigger to accommodate large parking lots that are often oversized and unsafe for pedestrians.
Nies, M.A. & McEwan, M. (2015). Health a community view. In Community/public health nursing: promoting the health of populations (6th ed.) (p. 1). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier.
The preventive obesity initiative pilot program will be evaluated monthly for its results of approval of the program with feedback from surveys from community members on their progress in weight management through educational workshops of obesity, healthy diets, increased physical activity, and availability of affordable foods. The results of the success of the preventive obesity initiative pilot program will be determined based on monitoring, observation, evaluations, and community member’s satisfaction and progress, as staff members work hard together as a team to combat obesity.
For example the state of Florida has a new initiative titled “Healthiest Weight”. This initiative works to tackle obesity which is what they call, “the number one public health threat to Florida’s future ("HealthiestWeight")”. Another example of state health initiative is Oklahoma’s “Shape Your Future” program. This program tackles three different aspects; “eating better, moving more, and living tobacco free ("Shape Your Future")”. Through different community activities, contest, and media advertisements these programs are hoping to help improve the health of citizens throughout their respective states. The main objective that these programs are missing is preventing health issues before they become issues. This is why it’s crucial to begin initiatives at the most basic level and educate children through better physical education
The SMART goal of the obesity program is to reduce the obese population in Pitt County by creating a healthier diet program. Different objectives will be needed in order to reach this goal. The first objective is that from July 2016 through December 2016 100 community members will participate in the health department’s health promotion activities. This objective aligns with the reinforcement construct of the Social Cognitive Theory. By repeatedly participating in the activities, the 100 community members will be rewarded with the knowledge they receive and also motivation to change their behavior. By having an enjoyable time, they will be rewarded and want to keep coming back to the activities. The second objective is that following the 6-month duration; the majority of the participants will lose 2-10% of their original body weight by changing to a healthier diet. The reason the participants need to lose 2-10% of their body weight is to either prevent or reduce the chances of gaining other health diseases associated with obesity, including coronary artery disease and Type 2 Diabetes. This objective aligns with the self-efficacy construct. By losing a little bit of body fat, the participants will believe in their ability to lose weight, and continue to do so. The third objective is that on June 17 and June 24, informational brochures will be distributed to the community members to create awareness and reminders to join the obesity program, and gain knowledge about the health condition of obesity. This objective deals with the behavioral capability construct of the Social Cognitive Theory because the participants will gain the knowledge and skills needed to change their behavior through the brochures.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (1996). Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion.
Timmreck, T. C. (2003). Planning, program development, and evaluation: A handbook for health promotion, aging, and health services. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett.
social marketing and targeted media public communication; providing accessible health information resources at community levels; active collaboration with personal health care providers to reinforce health promotion
Public Health Nursing (PHN) aims to improve the wellbeing of the population by promoting health and preventing disease among all people in the communities (Public Health Nursing, 2013). The PHN utilizes the primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention to help improve the health of the communities. The PHN process is applied to all levels of practice. Interventions are “actions take on behalf of individuals, families, systems, and communities to improve or protect health status” (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2012, p. 191). This paper will identify PHN interventions such as screening, outreach, and referral and follow-up, health teaching, and counseling that was identified in the PHN in the 21st Century project that this author completed as part of the PHN experience. This paper will also identify if the interventions were at the community, system or individual/family level.
the U.S. Public Health Service has identified increased physical activity as a priority in Healthy People 2000, our national objectives to improve the health of Americans by the year 2000.
"Physical Activity and Public Health." Scholar Commons of South Carolina. American Heart Association, 2007. Web. 03 Apr. 2014.
Obesity rates in North America are appallingly high; all states in the USA report over a fifth of the adult population being obese and over a third in some Southern states (Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama) (The State of Obesity, 2016). Eighty percent of adults from the USA do not meet the government’s minimum recommendations for physical activity. The government health guidelines state that adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise weekly (health.gov, 2008). Obesity can lead to diabetes, cardiovascular problems, low self-esteem, and other health issues. Physical activity has physiological health benefits (muscle growth, cardiovascular health, and more), and psychological benefits (escalated energy, reduced stress, and higher self-confidence) (Association for Applied Sports Psychology, 2016). Unfortunately, over a quarter of American high school students are overweight or obese (The State of Obesity, 2016), and this will set a standard for them for the rest of their life. Campaigns promoting exercise and outdoor exercise should target youth and should put additional work into the Southern states, which are statistically the