ssignment 2: Course Project: Health Promotion Proposal

South University

Long-term care (LTC) refers to a number of services which can either be medical and non-nursing aimed at meeting the needs of persons with disability or chronic illness. In most cases, these group individuals are unable to fully care for themselves for quite some time. Some of the non-medical services being rendered to these group of individuals include feeding, using the bathroom, dressing among others. Nowadays, long-term care has evolved over time and includes provision of a level of medical care which requires skilled medical practitioners. Management of these chronic diseases requires experts that are able to address a number of chronic diseases that are associated with old age.

The background of the issue

Unlike Medicare, Long-term care is provided in the community, at home, nursing homes and even in assisted living facilities. Long term care can either be provided formally or informally, in a formal setup, it can be provided in home health care. Some of the services offered include drug therapy, nursing, physical therapy the activities include physical construction such as renovating bathrooms and even kitchens. These services and activities make these patients forget the illness they suffer from and in the progress regain from their conditions. Some chronic illness such as cancer which is a life-threatening condition can be managed and be treated in such setups because the nurses would be therefore with the patient monitoring every progress.

In most developed countries, life expectancy has increased; this has lead to increased number of old individuals who cannot fully care for themselves. For instance, in the year 2012 Americans spent $ 219.9 billion for the services provided to the elderly in the Long-term care. Nursing homes spend most of the long-term care expenditures compared to informal long-term care. Because of the increased reported cases of chronic illnesses (Falvo, 2014), most costs incurred in the healthcare and those incurred in long-term care. Long-term care insurance and health insurance, in general, has reduced the burden by paying some of the bills.

Stakeholders

There are numerous stakeholders in the long-term care, (Leichsenring, Billings & Nies, 2013) each of these stakeholders plays different roles in long-term care. Some of them include nursing practitioners, family members, government agencies, the society, non-governmental organizations among others. Nursing practitioners are there to offer all the assistance related to the illness these patients are suffering from if the group includes the elderly, the nurse will be there to see that these groups of individuals get the necessary assistance such as the therapies given to them. Family members are the other stakeholders whose contribution cannot be taken for granted, by them being there, the patient feels loved and that despite the illness those who are close to him or she are still supporting.

Most families because of financial constraint, they tend to shy away from associating themselves with the patient, these give them stress and if not well taken care of, it kills them. Just having family members visiting these patients they would fell encouraged and thus enabling them to positively progress in the treatment they undergo and may with time recover from the condition. The government through the ministry of health also plays an important role in ensuring that funds are located to cater for the expenses incurred in the long-term care services.

Nursing Home Protections (Humphrey, Milone-Nuzzo & Humphrey, 1996) would play an important role in ensuring that long-term care practitioners are well protected from any kind of threats facing them. As practitioners and other long-term care, recipients discharge their mandate, some of them are being abused and this will interfere with their functions of ensuring that these groups of persons get the necessary assistance. Nurses should be protected by assigning them police officers who would be escorting them in the wee hours as they offer their services to the patients with chronic illness and even among the persons with disability. This policy will have a long lasting positive impact in ensuring that practitioners in their line of duty are protected. Such protection can be by ensuring that nursing home residents including the quarters that belong to nurses are well protected, this will enable nurses to freely work even in the late nights without any fear. Other aspects of the policy can include protecting the family members of these practitioners, ensuring that they are too safe from any danger that might befall them.

The other aspect of change is the change in prospective payment systems forms the cash payment to electronic payment methods. This change would have an impact on the nursing and healthcare fraternity. The old system of payment was linked with a number of challenges including corruption, for this reason, implementing electronic payment can help to eradicate this problem. There would be no time wasted in queuing for payment, in some situations the records might not be available and thus the patient might not get healthcare services. This has an impact in the healthcare has it ensures that payment details are safe and that there would be no time wastage in the retrieval of these payment details. It will ease the work of practitioners and therefore give them much time to attend the sick.

The change in policy would be able to address a number of challenges that faces nursing and healthcare at large. The issue of insecurity is real in the nursing field and for sure affects negatively the performance of nurses and other practitioners. The policy will fully address this issue and thus ensure that long-term care is affected n any way with the issues of insecurity.

Methods of improving Long-term Care

There are a number of ways that can used to address long-term care, diversifying the attendants rather having only nurses to take care of the patients, the elderly and even persons with disability under the long-term care. Some of the specialists include clinical psychologists, pharmacists, and social workers among others. These specialists will work hand in hand with the nurses to ensure that persons under the long-term care get the best services. Because most of the illnesses are directly or indirectly associated with psychological problems, clinical psychologists (Falvo, 2014) would play a vital role in ensuring that those showing signs and symptoms psychological conditions are attended to by a specialist. The pharmacists would be there to dispense drugs and doctor’s prescriptions.

Improving long-term care facilities (Institute of Medicine (U.S.) Wunderlich & Kohler, 2001): Those in the long-term care are too weak to work around for themselves; they need special equipment to enable them to walk around. For persons with physical handicap (HP).Some of the assistive devices that should be provided to this group include wheelchairs, special pair of shoes, among others. For persons with visually impaired (V.I) assistive equipment includes provision of the white cane, special spectacles, (Craft, 2007) etc. For the elderly, facilities such as gym, therapy room, and swimming pool can help them in improving their health. If all these equipment are provided to the long-term care, the work of practitioners would be much easy because their work would be to oversee and train these people to use the equipment. Even if the personnel working in the long-term care centers are fewer, having all these facilities would enable them give the best services and enabling some of the patients to recover from their chronic illnesses.

The other way is to address the shortage of nurses. Nurses especially those attending persons in the long term care should be increased to ensure that they are stressed and overworked. If their number is not increased then it will meet that they will have to overwork and strain. The quality of the services offered in the long-term care will also be affected. If the quality if services offered are sub-standard, the health conditions of these persons would worsen and thus leading to the death of some of them. Long-term caregivers are there to ensure that life continues and that those with chronic illnesses are attended to and their life is not brought to an end.

There are different illnesses that were to there in the past, nursing home staff should be trained to address these conditions and enable them to fully help those individuals under the long-term care. An example of a chronic illness that is threatening the world is cancer, the disease was not there in the past, fewer nurses are trained as nursing oncologists, and this can have a negative impact in the long-term care. Nurses should be trained in such areas to ensure that the services they provide are of quality and guarantees improved patient safety (Child & Institute of Medicine (U.S.), 2004). Nursing home administrators should be in the forefront in ensuring that the nurses get the necessary training that would enable them to carry out their duties professionally.

The goals for the changes proposed is to ensure that service delivery in the long-term care facilities are of standard. Improving home nursing security would mean that, these personnel would be able to freely dispense their services with no fear. This will, in the long run, ensure that all seeking assistance in the long-term care gets the best services that will enable them to continue with their life. Improving the payment methods used in the formal long-term care can play an important role by ensuring that no time is wasted in the queues making the payment. This old method of payment from services rendered is frustrating and making treatment to progress slowly. The options for the changes can include fully removing the charges paid by some of those seeking long-term care, this is because most of those seek these services are either elderly unable to take care of themselves, persons with disabilities with no income or those suffering from chronic illnesses who are not able to cater for their bills.

Risks and benefits of the changes

The changes have a number of benefits to the stakeholders such as the nurses. One such benefit is that it enables the nurses to work freely with not fear twenty-four hours a day. If one’s security is guarantee, such a person will work even harder to ensure that he or she offer the services he is expected to offer. With improved nursing home security (Child, A. P., & Institute of Medicine (U.S.) 2004), the safety of the patients and those seeking other services would be encouraged to seek the services they require. If the payment methods are changed from the old system to the electronic system, the services offered will be much faster enabling these practitioners to have easy work bearing in mind that they are not good at accounting management. This will also lead to the patients getting the best services they deserve.

On the other hand, digitalizing the payment methods can be a problem for the elderly seeking the services in the nursing home. Some of these elderly individuals have money in their accounts be are not conversant with the payment methods and might end up being conned. The other risks of making these services toll especially for the formal long-term care (Leichsenring, Billings & Nies, 2013), would make these facilities have problems in the process to deliver their mandate. The operation costs in these facilities are too expensive and making them free can be a bit difficult unless the government intervenes it.

The methods or ways that can be used to improve long-term care are efficient and effective. For example, having different specialists attend to these individuals would help a lot in ensuring that they get the best medical and non-medical care. A nurse cannot do all these; specialists are required to help nurses carry out their mandate. Elderly requires close attention, having this diverse personnel would enable them to recover from the conditions associated with the aged population. Although this might be expensive it is necessary because it will enable nurses to have enough rest and therefore be in a position to offer quality work. Having well equipped and modern facilities will enable nursing homes to be in a position to offer the best services to the patients with chronic illness and the elderly (Humphrey, Milone-Nuzzo & Humphre, 1996). Such equipment is expensive but vital in ensuring that the lives of those depending on these services enjoy it.

Analysis of the policy

Personally, the proposed policy is a good move towards the provision of better services in the long-term care. Currently, the number of persons seeking these services especially among the elderly has increased; this can be due to the increased life expectancy. The policy will see into it that those operating in these facilities get the good health care services and some of them might recover from the illnesses they suffer from. Those individuals with disabilities in some communities especially from the developing world are being discriminated; long-term care will play an important role in such situations. This is because those would are disowned from their homes will still have somewhere and someone to take care of them.

Some aspects of the policy such as improving nursing protection will enable the nurses to render their services with confidence with no fear of endangering their lives. This will influence my practice because I will not fear to lose my life. No one ready to die, some are even ready to lose their jobs than to work in an insecure workplace. Having electronic payment method is important because it ceases the congestion experience in the cashier and will also reduce the workload for nurses who are not even well experience in accounting and finance. Security is paramount in any field, without security in the workplace, the nursing profession will be adversely affected and if the ruling government does not take action, then health care will be paralyzed.

Health care facilities should be fenced with electric fences to ensure that no person with bad motive gets into the facility and cause harm to the patients and the practitioners. Increased security will enable practitioners are not limited in performing their functions.

Recommendations

· There is need for the stakeholders to increase the number of nurses.

· The government should increase the funds allocated to the sector.

· Families should be ready to support their relatives in whatever situation they are.

References

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S157400640080030X

http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/novalr19&div=28&id=&page=

Institute of Medicine (U.S.)., Wunderlich, G. S., & Kohler, P. O. (2001). Improving the quality of long-term care: Executive summary. Washington, D.C: National Academy Press.

Leichsenring, K., Billings, J., & Nies, H. (2013). Long-term care in Europe: Improving policy and practice. Houndmills: Palgrave Macmillan.

Craft, K. J. (2007). Service dogs as an assistive device for persons with disabilities: Impact on depression, pain, energy, and perceived intrusiveness.

Falvo, D. R. (2014). Medical and psychosocial aspects of chronic illness and disability. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Humphrey, C. J., Milone-Nuzzo, P., & Humphrey, C. J. (1996). Orientation to home care nursing. Gaithersburg, Md: Aspen Publishers, Inc.

Child, A. P., & Institute of Medicine (U.S.). (2004). Keeping patients safe: Transforming the work environment of nurses. Washington, D.C: National Academies Press.