Read a selection of your colleagues’ posts and respond to at least two of your c
Read a selection of your colleagues’ posts and respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days by supporting or expanding on the ideas identified by your colleague or sharing additional perspectives on the analysis of contextual factors described by your colleague.
post 1
Introduction
Over the last several weeks, I have engaged in discussions on the demographic group, including African Americans afflicted by End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) and those grappling with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Nevertheless, following much advice and further contemplation, I decided to heed the recommendation of narrowing my focus to a particular illness process. I have chosen to proceed with studying the population of African Americans who are affected by Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). My strong connection to this topic is primarily due to my relationship with family members now living with this ailment. The literature has demonstrated a heightened prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) within minority populations, particularly African-Americans (Haw et al., 2021). This revelation prompted me to explore various strategies for tackling this difficulty. The study by Wasserman et al. (2019) revealed that the demographic group’s health outcomes have been adversely affected due to their limited health literacy. Consequently, health literacy has emerged as my foremost advocacy focus for the African-American demographic grappling with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus within our community.
Contextual Factors that Will Promote My Policy Advocacy
One significant contextual component that would facilitate the advancement of my policy advocacy on health literacy among the African-American community is the provision of education. There may be inquiries over whether I am referring to education specially tailored for patients. Nevertheless, my primary focus lies in imparting knowledge to healthcare personnel regarding health literacy and the various obstacles that hinder patients from making well-informed decisions about their health management and treatment. I encountered a scholarly investigation that emphasized the significance of providing comprehensive education to healthcare personnel regarding the accurate dissemination of health-related information. Additionally, it underscored the importance of ensuring patient comprehension by soliciting some form of verification or confirmation of their understanding of the communicated information (Gibson et al., 2022). Healthcare personnel frequently disseminate information to their patients, necessitating the need to ascertain if the patients have comprehended the conveyed content. As someone who has also experienced the role of a patient departing from a medical facility, I can relate to the perplexity and dissatisfaction resulting from several unresolved inquiries. Politics is an additional contextual component that can enhance the effectiveness of my policy advocacy efforts. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been crucial in integrating health literacy strategies into our healthcare system to tackle health inequalities (Keim-Malpass et al., 2015). This is crucial, particularly considering that research has indicated a higher incidence of insufficient health literacy, reaching around 50%, among minority groups with lower socioeconomic status (Keim-Malpass et al., 2015). The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has played a significant role in promoting advancements in various areas related to healthcare quality metrics, pharmaceutical labeling modifications, collaborative decision-making processes, and staff development with a focus on health literacy initiatives (Keim-Malpass et al., 2015). This progress has significantly addressed the limited health literacy observed among specific population groups.
Contextual Factors that Will Work Against My Policy Advocacy
One potential contextual component that may challenge my policy advocacy efforts is the effect of cultural factors. Cultural competence has emerged as a crucial element in addressing the gaps among minority groups, including the African-American community (Lie et al., 2012). Failure to address the cultural beliefs of patients and healthcare practitioners may lead to heightened bad outcomes for the specific group in question within our culture (Lie et al., 2012). For instance, in healthcare, providers must recognize the significant role that food, particularly southern comfort food, plays in family gatherings in the United States’s southern region. With this understanding, healthcare providers may notice that advising patients to consume more green vegetables necessitates guidance on moderating the use of oils and excessive seasoning salt in dishes like collard greens. Notably, I assumed the role of an educator for my mother, who had commenced metformin treatment, on confident dietary choices in our Nigerian-American household. Specifically, I provided her with information regarding the potential consequences of consuming rice, a staple meal in our culture, which may contribute to elevated starch levels and exacerbate the condition of diabetes. Numerous healthcare institutions and nursing programs have implemented curriculum and training programs focused on cultural competency, as highlighted by Lie et al. (2012). The economic aspect is another contextual issue that may impede my advocacy prioritization. A concern over individuals’ limited financial resources might impede their ability to acquire sufficient support to make educated judgments. Many patients express that they refrained from utilizing the available options due to financial constraints or a lack of clarity regarding their cost-free nature. Recently, I encountered a situation whereby I had to impart knowledge to an individual on several resources to assist families with lower socioeconomic status in accessing healthcare services. The individual sought to acquire knowledge to enhance their comprehension of the web material about accessing government resources. I then realized that possessing restricted financial means may likewise give rise to a depressive mindset and yield unfavorable consequences when coupled with low health awareness.
My Strategy Moving Forward
My plans moving forward include bringing the information needed directly to the communities of African Americans suffering from T2DM. I would love to advocate by lending my voice to initiatives that help bridge the gap between health literacy and access to information that would help improve their health outcomes. I would use the experience I have gained in working on my Doctoral Project to pilot studies for changes that would benefit health literacy in African-American communities. I also want to influence healthcare professionals to be more educated about the African-American cultural factors contributing to limited health literacy and access to information that could eventually improve their overall health.
Conclusions
In conclusion, it is essential to understand the various contextual factors that can go against one’s advocacy priority, such as cultural and economic influences and factors that would help promote it, such as politics and education. Understanding these factors can help to bridge the gaps in health disparities among identified groups in our healthcare population.
post 2
Promoting Contextual Factors
Contextual factors are essential to consider when advocating for a vulnerable community. In this case, the Hispanic population has one of the highest uninsured rates in the United States. According to Lara et al. (2018), “Contextual factors such as language fluency and immigration status are described as part of the phenomenon of acculturation” (p. 390). Acculturation is another concept influencing the health of Hispanics. The Hispanic culture favors health and trust in its practitioners (Lara et al., 2018). This factor allows the Hispanic population one less barrier to face when having health insurance and taking care of their health. With this in mind, nurses are critical to the Hispanic population as trust is placed in healthcare professionals feasibly.
Nurses can advocate by providing the correct resources that many Hispanics need. Moreover, Nurses can educate this population, knowing that the culture relies on honesty to improve their well-being. As noted by Porche (2023), “Health equity experts presented testimony highlighting the need to increase the diversity and cultural competence of the health professions workforce” (p. 101). By improving cultural knowledge among healthcare professionals caring for this population, movement toward a positive direction can be achieved.
Negative Contextual Factors
Economic is a contextual factor against this advocacy mission for the Hispanic population without health coverage. The study by Perez-Brescia (2022) resulted in Hispanics being the highest population with COVID-19 due to inability to shelter due to work or being essential workers. Hispanics are uninsured due to low income or lack of health literacy. Although the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is present, unfortunately, many Hispanics are unaware of how to apply or cannot due to their immigration status. Furthermore, the ACA is known to have higher premiums and deductibles (Perez-Brescia, 2022). The Hispanic population is more likely to be low-income and work more with lower wages than other populations (Perez-Brescia, 2022). These contextual factors are important to remember when advocating for the Hispanic uninsured community.
NB
Each post must have a separate reference page
Each post must have at least 2 references
references must be less than 5 years
must support the post with additional material
