Essay Example on Public Health and Tuberculosis Young University Idaho Nursing

Public Health and Tuberculosis Young University Idaho Nursing 449 Public Health and Tuberculosis In today's healthcare climate there are many communicable diseases that have been eradicated However tuberculosis TB is still prevalent around the world There were 9 272 cases of TB in the United States in 2016 The worldwide number of diagnosed TB cases in 2016 was 10 4 million Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2017 Travel from country to country is easily accessible TB is an airborne disease which means it is spread from an infected person simply through breathing the same air in close quarters To suggest this is a public health issue would be an understatement The Mission of Public Health The mission of public health is to promote and maintain a healthy population In order to comply with this mission there must be a process to follow For public health there are three core functions comprised of ten services within those functions The core functions start with assessment which allows for monitoring and identifying health issues in the community Diagnosing and investigating health problems in the community are also part of the assessment process 

The second core function is policy development Within this function community partnerships are utilized policies and plans are determined and put in motion and people in the community are given the information and education needed to maintain and protect their health The final core function is assurance This function ensures appropriate care is given by properly trained personnel Laws established to protect public health are enforced People are given information to connect them to the correct channels to receive the care they need and evaluations are done to monitor for effectiveness quality and accessibility Stanhope Lancaster 2014 p 6 Application of Core Functions Assessment is the initial line of defense in public health nursing In the scenario given Susan identifies a group of migrant farm workers to be at the highest risk of contracting tuberculosis Brigham Young University Idaho 2018 Susan discovered this through a community health assessment Once the risk had been identified it allowed Susan to move forward with a plan to protect the community Policy development was the next core function Susan utilized by contacting the health department s communicable disease control department This set into motion the mobilization of community partnerships to help solve the problem Stanhope Lancaster 2014 p 6 The local school was then notified in order to assist the health department in putting a plan in place to protect the community which is the mission of public health The plan that was implemented was to require TB skin tests along with school enrollment Finally Susan developed an educational program to teach them about tuberculosis Brigham Young University Idaho 2018 This goes further into the core function of policy development by educating and empowering the public 

The third core function assurance was utilized and overlapped with the development of policies Once TB skin tests were required to enroll a child in the school system this was the link to providing health care that might have otherwise not been available to these families Assurance was also part of Susan s education program Like the mandatory TB skin testing in the schools the educational program provided the migrant workers their families and their employers with information that would allow them links to necessary health care in which they may not have known High Risk Migrant Workers The migrant workers are considered a high risk group for TB for a number of reasons The close quarters they live in allow for a contagious airborne disease like TB to spread rapidly The workers travel in large groups from area to area with their families Living conditions are often unsanitary and nutritious food can be scarce Wiltz 2016 This leads to an increase risk for TB Secondary Risk Groups Other groups at risk for TB should have been contacted and tested The family members of the migrant workers live in the same cramped conditions with the other migrant workers and their families If one is positive for active TB everyone living in the same location becomes high risk and should be tested The farmers who employ the migrant workers should be tested