Impact On Global Health

ANSWERS

Infectious disease continues to afflict people in low- and middle-income countries. Solution investments are frequently focused on technology, but healthcare workers are in short supply. Nurses are the most numerous type of healthcare worker and are largely responsible for patient care worldwide. Nurses are estimated to care for nine out of every ten patients seen. Importantly, sound nursing science contributes to solutions that have a direct impact on patient care, particularly those involving infectious diseases. This section presents several examples of nursing science that improve care delivery in three global health areas: human immunodeficiency virus testing and prevention strategies in Malawi, family planning in Kenya, and Ebola virus disease response.

Nurses, often referred to as the “backbone of healthcare systems,” play an important role in detecting, treating, and preventing infectious diseases in various settings. Nurses are in charge of nine out of every ten patients worldwide. Florence Nightingale recognized the need for formal nursing education as well as the power of nurses to improve patient outcomes over a century ago. When she discovered that British soldiers in the Crimean War were more likely to die of infection than battle injuries, she was regarded as an early and brilliant pioneer in public health, epidemiology, and infectious disease research.

Nurses play an important role in infection prevention in the twenty-first century. Nurses, for example, deliver 80% of all babies worldwide, and their strict infection control during delivery prevents countless neonatal infections. Similarly, nurses in low- and middle-income countries and in more affluent settings prevent surgical and iatrogenic infections in wards, operating rooms, and emergency rooms. Furthermore, nurses are frontline healthcare providers in community settings, and their attention to infection control issues in under-resourced community settings solidifies their workforce importance.

This viewpoint aims to demonstrate how nursing research and practice contribute to global health solutions. We will discuss work in three global health areas where nurse researchers and nurse-led health-care teams developed and implemented ideas: HIV testing and prevention strategies in Malawi, family planning in Kenya, and response to the recent Ebola outbreak.

QUESTION

Impact On Global Health

As you’ve learned global health interventions can be a positive impact on global health.  A Short write-up should include the information listed below.

Select a global health intervention.

Describe the:

– Process

– Outcome

– Impact on health equity