Since ratifying the Affordable Care Act in 2010, the approach to primary health care has shifted dramatically. If previously, patients were not interested in preventive health solutions such as tests and screenings due to their prices, current health insurance plans presuppose the presence of a series of free vaccines and screenings aimed at eliminating the risks of certain health conditions (“Preventive health services,” 2021). Such a shift manifests a change in both patients’ and health professionals’ priorities, moving further from disease-oriented treatment toward holistic and preventive care. According to the Healthy People 2030 initiative, the promotion of preventive care reduces various risks associated with chronic diseases, cancer, and cardiac complications, thus reducing mortality rates (“Preventive care,” n.d.). Moreover, the focus on the holistic well-being of the patient is critical when accounting for the impact one’s emotional health has on the physical condition. In this scenario, the nurse’s role is to encourage patients to take care of themselves before any serious issues emerge and to provide the patients with the sources to receive preventive care.
As far as my workplace is concerned, the General Hospital in Hollywood, FL, is determined to promote quality preventive care to the patients in order to eliminate the risks of severe complications that are dreadful both for the patient and the hospital in terms of management and costs. During every patient appointment, nurses are encouraged to check on their patients in terms of mental well-being and their preventive health condition, including the last time they received a certain shot or did a screening test. If there is a need to repeat the procedure, nurses share with the patients the options to access preventive health and give them educational leaflets with concise and comprehensible information about the importance of taking care of one’s health in advance.
References
Preventive care. (n.d.). Healthy People 2030. Web.
Preventive health services. (2021). Web.