Health promotion is a term that refers to the process of enabling or empowering patients and their families in nursing to improve control over their health as well as its determinants and in the process, improve their health. As a dynamic or multifaceted concept in nursing, health promotion also includes a wide array of interventions from patient-centered, family, social, and environmental. As such, this concept is central to patients with chronic illnesses such as diabetes, a condition evidencing an upward trend in the American public. According to Bullard et al. (2018), twenty-three million individuals or adults in the US are living with diabetes or have at least been diagnosed with the same. Other than genetic implications, lifestyle is among the significant risk factors for developing the condition, and as such, a patient in my practice is most likely to develop the condition. Thus, this discourse focusses on three health promotion strategies or interventions for patients with diabetes meant to revamp their health and quality.
Promoting Physical Activity
Because diabetes is a condition that affects how the body uses food, and that body weight is a risk factor towards the same, physical activity becomes a crucial intervention strategy. Promoting physical activity is salient because this intervention is non-discriminate across all age groups in that individuals of all ages can benefit health-wise from the same. According to Pham & Ziegert (2016), physical inactivity has been linked to the rising trend of diabetes as a significant contributing factor. As such, promoting physical activity such as moderate-intensity physical activity for at least five days a week potentially bolsters both the patient’s and family’s quality of life. Other than revamping their quality of health, physical activity will also improve their physical capacity and psychological status.
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Further, Pham and Ziegert assert that not only is physical activity important as a preventive and treatment strategy, but it also reduces the costs of managing diabetes. Thus, promoting physical activity can be achieved by providing training equipment to patients and their families as well as organizing regular community sports and activities within the hospital area. In other words, availing resources for creating a supportive environment for promoting physical activities in and around the hospital is quintessential for patients and their families.
Health Education
The World Health Organization recognizes and emphasizes that counseling and adequate education of patients with diabetes and their families are crucial. According to Gabarron et al. (2018), education is a fundamental prevention strategy, and for those with the condition, education helps to curb risk factors that could worsen their health quality and condition, thereby avoiding premature mortality. As such, one of the primary tools that the authors recommend for public education is social media. Social media is an effective tool whose platform is central to promoting secondary prevention measures as well as behavioral changes. In essence, through education, the patient and his family can be enlightened regarding health quality, the condition, and self-care. This intervention can further be realized by answering questions from the patient and his family as well as explaining them. Also, group education, such as group meetings in hospitals or at home with the family, can further promote health.
Health Coaching
Indeed, individuals with chronic conditions such as diabetes are their own principal caregivers alongside their families, and nurses in this respect regardless of their expertise should act as consultants supporting the family and the patient in their self-care management, Sorensen et al. (2015). In other words, nurses under this intervention take up the role of health coaching. Research comparing the effectiveness of health coaching and health education shows that the former, is more efficacious in health promotion than the latter, especially when managing oral health and glycemic control in high-risk patients.
Thus, health coaching touches on improving the lifestyle of the patient and his family encompassing proper dieting, physical activity, and therapy. The family can be coached on monitoring the patient’s blood pressure as well as ensuring that he takes his medication as prescribed. Also, the patient and the family can be coached on how to take care of his eyes, protect his skin, and regularly check his feet for injuries due to nerve damage. In this intervention, the nurse has to maintain a positive and cordial relationship to allow for consultation by the family.
Conclusion
In conclusion, diabetes is a chronic health condition that requires nursing intervention to not only prevent but also manage it. However, despite the effectiveness of the interventions, the patient and the family are at the center of the patient’s well-being and better health outcome. It is on this rationale that the above strategies are focused on both the patient and his family as critical caregivers. All in all, nurses and the health profession need to provide a resourceful and supportive environment for the realization of the effectiveness of the interventions and ultimately, health promotion.
References
Bullard, K. M., Cowie, C. C., Lessem, S. E., Saydah, S. H., Menke, A., Geiss, L. S., ... & Imperatore, G. (2018). Prevalence of diagnosed diabetes in adults by diabetes type-United States, 2016. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report , 67 (12), 359. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5877361/pdf/mm6712a2.pdf
Gabarron, E., Bradway, M., Fernandez-Luque, L., Chomutare, T., Hansen, A. H., Wynn, R., & Årsand, E. (2018). Social media for health promotion in diabetes: study protocol for a participatory public health intervention design. BMC health services research , 18 (1), 414. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-3178-7
Pham, L., & Ziegert, K. (2016). Ways of promoting health to patients with diabetes and chronic kidney disease from a nursing perspective in Vietnam: A phenomenographic study. International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being , 11 (1), 30722. http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/qhw.v11.30722
Sørensen, M., Korsmo-Haugen, H. K., Maggini, M., Kuske, S., Icks, A., Rothe, U., ... & Zaletel, J. (2015). Health promotion interventions in type 2 diabetes. Annali dell' Istituto Superiore di Sanita , 51 (3), 192-198. DOI: 10.4415/ANN_15_03_05
