Begin reviewing and replying to peer postings/responses early in the week to enhance peer discussion.

Begin reviewing and replying to peer postings/responses early in the week to enhance peer discussion. See the rubric for participation points. Participate in the discussion by asking a question, providing a statement of clarification, providing viewpoints with a rationale, challenging aspects of the discussion, or indicating relationships between two or more lines of reasoning in the discussion. Always use constructive language, even in criticism, to work toward the goal of positive progress.

Peer 1

Topic 1: Health Promotion: Using one of the health issues identified for your community, discuss health promotion areas at two of the three levels primary, secondary, or tertiary promotion. 

For the public health nurse and the overall public health well-being it is important to use the three levels of health prevention to care for a community. The three levels of health prevention are primary, secondary and tertiary. Each health problem or potential problem can be broken down into these levels for appropriate implementation of interventions. Primary prevention promotes health and protects against threats to health, secondary prevention detects and treats health problems, and tertiary prevention limits the further negative effects of a health problem (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2020). 

In 2019, heart disease was the second leading cause of mortality in my local community (Georgia Department of Public Health, 2019). For my local community, primary prevention interventions could include counseling on smoking cessation, teaching on a healthy heart diet and teaching on the importance of physical activity. Secondary prevention interventions could include teaching medication compliance, obtaining cholesterol screening, obtaining blood pressure screening and BMI screening. Tertiary prevention interventions could include establishing a community-based clinic to facilitate monitoring and treatment of individuals who are diagnosed with heart disease to prevent further heart function decline.  

Reference: 

Georgia Department of Public Health [DPH]. (2019). Retrieved from: https://oasis.state.ga.us/gis/TrendableMaps/agsBirthTrend.aspx 

Stanhope, M., & Lancaster, J. (2020). Public health nursing: Population-centered health care in the community (10 th ed.). Elsevier. https://doi.org/https://digitalbookshelf.southuniversity.edu/#/books/9780323582247

Peer 2

One of the health issues that I have identified in my community is Diabetes and the two levels of prevention I looked at were primary and secondary. As far a primary prevention it was believed at one point that type 2 diabetes was attributed to genetics and environmental factors. But after much research, it can be prevented through diet and lifestyle modifications. Maintaining a healthy weight and avoiding excessive weight gain is essential to diabetes prevention. Overall a healthy diet, increasing physical activity, avoiding a sedentary lifestyle, moderate alcohol consumption, and avoiding smoking can prevent diabetes.

Secondary preventions focus on screening and testing. It is important for good glycemic control, this means getting your HGA1C checked. A person needs to have good lipid control, that means checking lab work and giving patient statins or other medication if necessary. Another preventive measure is blood pressure control and treatment of hypertension. Regular eye doctor visits are essential in order to prevent retinopathy. Also, aspirin use, regular dental care, regular foot care, weight reduction, smoking cessation, and vaccination are preventive measures as well.

References

Diabetes mellitus type 2 secondary prevention. (2020, October 23). Retrieved November 05, 2020, from https://www.wikidoc.org/index.php/Diabetes_mellitus_type_2_secondary_prevention

Schulze, M. B., & Hu, F. B. (2005). Primary prevention of diabetes: what can be done and how much can be prevented?. Annual review of public health, 26, 445–467. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.26.021304.144532