Question

Public Health Nursing

Read the overview below and complete the activities that follow.

Jason, RN, BSN, is a public health nurse working for sections of three counties in the rural Northwest. "My duties range from home visits for parenting education, to foster child care, to the mainstays of public health—communicable disease investigation and reporting—and everything in between. In fact, once during a home visit I even delivered a baby—It was a boy," Jason says. "I enjoy the autonomy I have in my job, and I've established good rapport with the families I see regularly."

Case:

The ability to establish rapport is important, Jason explains, when he contacts individuals who have been diagnosed with a reportable disease, such as a sexually transmitted disease (STD), also referred to as a sexually transmitted infection (STI) and their contacts. "We have a fairly high percentage of STIs in my area, and I'm often persuading people to give me the names of those with whom they have been intimate, so I can let those individuals know that they should see a doctor.The information is kept confidential, of course, Jason continues, "but it's still a hard subject to approach. Most people are cooperative, but there are a few who don't want to talk to me. That's when my job really becomes difficult." From Jason's perspective, his job involves helping keep families within his practice area healthy, and also helping hold down the spread of a contagious infection or disease once patients are diagnosed. His investigative work as a public health nurse is mandated by state law, but the process can be difficult and can feel intrusive. Nevertheless, Jason does his best to see that the people in his area are protected. From the perspective of Jason's patients who learn they have a reportable, contagious condition, his visit is probably stressful. Those who are concerned for loved ones or others with whom they have had contact, however, are generally willing to provide names of individuals he can contact. From the perspective of public health authorities, nurses like Jason not only see patients in their homes, where health problems often arise, but they also keep contagious disease from becoming epidemic, and they help get vital treatment to those who have been exposed to infectious diseases

Read the case below and answer the questions.

1.) If it were your job to solicit information from a person with a communicable disease, how would you proceed?

Answer 1

Communicable disease are the diseases that can spread from one person to another person by various modes of transmission and route of entry in human body.

If my job was to solicit information from a person with a communicable disease I would proceed as per steps described below.

1. Maintain rapportw the boy first. Take proper identification data and history of the boy.

2. I would start treatment of antibiotic therapy on this boy.

3. I would provide proper explanation about the sexually transmitted disease, how it transmittes from one person to another, why it is hearmfull for people and it's prevention.

4. I would make a list of people's with whom he intimated. Take proper identification data and home address of all of the listed people.

5. I would contact all the people in the list and provide a bread information about the cause of my calling and also ensure them about confidentiality.

6. If do not come then repeated call may require. Then I would go to there home and explain in detail about the STD and STI and why the treatment and councelling require in this cases.

7. When they arise to the community health center the individual therapy has to be started. The asymptomatic patients has to be educated to maintain hygiene of genital organs and entire body.

The symptomatic patients has to be started the antibiotic therapy and psychological councelling. Educate them about the use of contraceptive methods. Advice all of them to made a intimate relationship with only a believed person and also the person whom he believed must not made any intimate relationship with other person.

8. The group therapy sessions has to be started for 1 month and family therapy has to conduct if required in any case.

9. Some follow up visit has to be conducted to those families.

By this way I would control the communicable disease in my community area.