Introduction
Congestive heart failure (CHF) has been proclaimed a health crisis that presently claims over 8.4 million lives worldwide. An average of 4 million new cases is presented annually. Regardless of the new measures and strategies that have been put forward in the treatment of the disease, the heart condition is projected to remain very expensive in its treatment and maintenance. The survival chances among the CHF patients have been stipulated to be 55% in male and 65% in the female humans. Half of the elderly people who suffer from CHF conditions have been observed to be hospitalized for a minimum of 6 to 8 months. In the studies conducted by Pezhman and Yarmohammadi (2001), it has been revealed that CHF conditions are the commonest cause of hospitalization in the US (Fraser & Strang, 2004). The elderly people admitted in the hospitals are readmitted averagely 7 months after the initial admission. It is also indicated that more than half of the readmission of the cases can be prevented to avoid readmission.
A multidisciplinary strategy can be observed and applied to the outpatient’s supervision of the CHF conditions with the attempt to facilitate the functionality and to bring down the statistics of readmission of the CHF patients into the hospitals. Previous studies have indicated reduced rates in the re-hospitalization when some subjects virtual to control actions were observed (Allender & Spradley, 2001). This paper explore on some of the methods that can be used by nurses and organization to ensure a shift from supportive care to preventive and patient education measures for individuals with chronic illnesses.
Strategies to curb chronic disease
Diabetes, Coronary artery disease (CAD), ischemic stroke and some cancers have are now causing a devastating effect as they are becoming the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide (WHO, 2002). Surprisingly, studies have shown that the primary determinants of these chronic diseases are environmental rather than genetic. They result from environmental factors such as lifestyles and diet. Consequently, these environmental factors can be controlled with the aim of preventing chronic diseases. People can be educated on good living styles and good diet habits to prevent chronic diseases before they occur. Failure to prevent occurrence of chronic disease leads to heavy economic and social burden, since supporting of chronic disease patients is costly and has dire consequences, particularly to patients and their families. Undoubtedly, many studies have shown that “reducing identified, modifiable dietary and lifestyle risk factors could prevent most cases of CAD, stroke, diabetes, and many cancers among high-income populations” (Willett, 2002, p. 63).
Prevention of chronic disease requires efforts of multidisciplinary members such as nurses and other health professional together with institutions, to actively participate in encouraging the society to change their behaviors, in respect to physical activity, smoking and dieting. The members of a multidisciplinary team also need to educate the society on the importance of investing in education, push for safe food policies and ensure that the government installs appropriate urban physical infrastructure.
Tobacco smoking avoidance
Encouraging the community to stop smoking tobacco can be an ideal way of preventing chronic disease such as cancer and CVD. The institution should ensure the implement non-smoking policies within their environment, as well as organizing educative seminars to create awareness on the harmful effects of to tobacco, particularly to the smokers. In addition, smokeless tobacco should be discouraged as it causes oral cancer.
Healthy weight maintenance
Healthy weight maintenance can help prevent obesity, a condition that is responsible for scores of chronic cancer. Obesity is very prevalent among the individuals who have poor dieting. This condition is very worrisome, considering that there is some evidence that it increases the chances of getting CAD and hypertension among other chronic disease by a two to threefold. Indeed, it has been reported that it increases the risk of type 2 diabetes by more than tenfold, compared to non-diabetic individuals (Willett, Dietz, and Colditz, 1999). Willet and Leibel (2002) have advocated for diets rich in carbohydrates and low in fat in order to lessen intake of calorie which can help control adiposity.
Maintaining physical activity and avoiding prolonged inactivity
The contemporary living style is characterized by limited physical movement of people, whether at work place or at home. Studies have shown that people are spending a lot of timing seated, especially watching television (Koplan and Dietz 1999). Even though, the modern life has contributed immensely in reduction of physical activities, studies has proved that physical activity can reduce obesity and control weight in a dramatic way (IARC, 2002). Regular engagement in physical activity is also know to reduce the risk of type2 diabetes, stroke, CAD, breast cancer, and depression. Although walking for an hour per day can result to key health benefits, greater impacts can only be achieved physical activity is prolonged and made more extensive.
Healthy diet
Effect of diet on the risk CVD has clearly been identified by medical experts. More recently, there have been even more documentation on the relationship between diet and conditions such as diabetes, contracts muscular degeneration, renal stones, birth defects and many more. World Health Organization (WHO) report (WHO and FAO, 2003) have recommended a range of dietary combination that can help to prevent multiple of chronic diseases. Such combinations includes substitution of saturated and fats with unsaturated ones, such as omega-3 fatty acids.
Achieving reduced utilization in the hospitals.
Two main strategies have been observed to reduce utilization in the hospitals for the CHF conditions. The first mechanism of utility reduction is to monitor the patient’s symptoms by the hospital attendants. These symptoms include factors such as the length of breaths taken by the patients, weight and exhaustion rates. The health attendant would then give the progress information to the patient in an orderly time interval. The second mechanism is to educate the patient and motivates the patient to change their behaviors that relate to their health issues at hand. Achieving a reduction of utilization can be attributed to behavior transformation, acquiring knowledge and the disease characteristics management. These factors have played a significant role in the optimizing the health check administration of the CHF conditions (Warner & Hutchinson, 1999). There are several theories and models that have been used in the management of CHF conditions and other chronic diseases. A model strategy is a theoretical approach of finding a solution to a problem. Different models present different strategies of problem understanding. A preventive practice in health care is an old strategy that determines the wellness or illness that determines ones custody or avoidance of a disease.
There are many theories and models that can help the health can help in prevention of chronic diseases. It is anticipated that early developments of corporeal outcomes is directly related to the unfailing medical checkups, medical therapies and early diagnosis of diseases. The progressive constant development in emotional security could be as a result of the developing relationship amid patients and medical attendants. Several theories and models can be applied to help in the disease management and prevention. The main objective of these disease preventive measures is to improve a patient’s value of life. These measures are also meant to enhance the value of health care that is being administered by a health care facility and to give a wide-ranging education on the disease progress while encouraging self organization of good health. These models also provide emotional support to the disease victims and those around the patients (Potter & Perry, 2005).
Clinical model of disease prevention
This model determines for the presence or absence of a disease characteristics that is used to determine health conditions. A disease condition is considered positive when certain disease symptoms are present. Those who apply this model as a health lead may not need the preventive mechanism in the health measures. They may actually wait till they are termed medically ill to consult health care. This is an old model in the medical discipline (Warner & Hutchinson. 1999).
Role performance model
This model describes health as the ability to carry out some of the social duties. Duties performance includes family and social duties. A disease would be classified as the failure to perform a duty in the family or society. This model of disease determination is widely applicable in organizations such as school for any examination of the physical health (Warner & Hutchinson. 1999).
Adaptive model
This model depends on the ability to become accustomed to a disease in a positive way. A disease will occur when the person is not able to adapt to certain health changes. These strategies of situation adaptation have been coupled with various aspects of believers and practices. There are several disease preventive strategies that exist in the medical fraternity that have been put in practice for a disease condition. Some of these models theories, strategies and frameworks of disease preventive measures that are applicable in the chronic disease preventions.
Milio’s framework of disease prevention
The frame work developed by Nancy Milio involved the idea of community dependent, population based care. The framework had primary treatise that relates to behavioral changes of the inhabitants and the individual persons who form part of the population are contributed to by assortment of partial choices. The frame work challenged the common notion that a major dependant of disease determination for unhealthy habits choices is due to insufficient knowledge. This framework of disease prevention illustrates that at some situations negligence in the duties of health nursing in the society, to inspect the predicaments of a society’s health and the attempt to change the determinants through community guiding principle.
Health belief model
This is an old model that is adopted from behavioral characteristics of health issues. This theory remains to be one of the largely used concepts of health habits. The main objective behind this concept is to elaborate and predict any applicable measure in the preventive medical arena. This model of health preventive measures is targeting a positive behavior transformation in order to be successful in the achievement of the objectives of the model. This model encourages people to change their ways of lives. People should feel that their lives are jeopardized by their current way of lives in order to change their habits and get the feeling that by embracing their way of lives is for a better health positions (Cohen & Cesta, 2005).
Conclusions
Nursing strategies must be enhanced and be expanded in order to achieve its efforts to devise and implement measures that help in enhancement of good health while encouraging measures that help in the disease preventions. Disease preventive measures are not an individual persons activities but a group of people such as the family and the society. The measures taken should be well understood among those involved in the study (Cohen & Cesta, 2005). Disease prevention has always been part of a nursing achievement in practice. Nurses are responsible for the delivery of quality care in the patient’s lifetime in a wide range of health care support arenas. Nurses take the initiative to get involved in the activities that enhances the livelihoods of people, families, the societies and everyone’s way of life. In all kinds of medical practices, nurses ought to carry on with a tough course towards disease prevention.
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