Application of the Integrated Behavioral Method - Assignment Example

The motivation to perform a recommended behavior is crucial in any attempt to encourage a patient to adopt a preferred health behavior. In addition to major behavioral determinants such as attitude and the motivation to perform a recommended health behavior, knowledge and skills to perform the before also forms an important integral part of the behavioral change process. This paper entails the application of the integrated behavioral model to encourage African American and Asian American male patients who have the reluctance to go to regular periodontal evaluations and treatment to embrace the behavior of going for regular dental check-ups.

The first step in changing the patients’ behavior should involve analysis of the reasons behind their unwillingness or inability to turn up for the periodontal evaluation and treatment according to the recommended number of times per year. This should entail the identification of communal factors such as beliefs, and social and personal factors that hinder the patients from performing the recommended behavior (Glanz & Viswanath, 2008). The male patients’ intention to go for the evaluation and treatment could be influenced by several factors including environmental constraints, lack of knowledge of the importance of the behavior, and resources to pay for the health interventions. Upon identification of the various constraints preventing the patients from attending the recommended health behavior, such constraints require resolution to encourage the patients to begin seeking the intervention as recommended. To encourage the patients to turn up for periodontal evaluation and treatment, I would contact a study to establish knowledge gaps among the patients on the importance of regular periodontal evaluations and treatment.

The next step would entail filling up the knowledge gap by educating the community and patients on the importance of regular dental checkups. The other important step would entail understanding their attitude towards the recommended regular evaluations and treatment and attempting to impart the right attitude by emphasizing the benefits of the recommended behavior both to the patients and their family members or community (Glanz & Viswanath, 2008). I would also attempt to resolve health beliefs problems that could be influencing the patients’ intentions to seek dental health care. The influence of health beliefs on the behavior of patients can be addressed by presenting facts to the patients about their behavior. In addition, I would spend significant time to understand common personal problems among male patients from the two races through interaction with the patients. This step would entail an analysis of their situations and a determination of how such situations interfere with their ability to seek dental health care. Problems such as financial constraints to meet the cost of the recommended dental care can be addressed through the introduction of special and affordable packages for such people.
Motivation to perform the recommended health behavior forms the other major step that could be taken to encourage the patients to turn up for the periodontal disease evaluation and treatment. The firsts step in motivating the patients would entail the provision of therapeutic education to the patient to make them aware of the problem they are facing, and the risk of not undertaking regular periodontal disease evaluation and treatment. This process will allow the patients to integrate these notions and serve as a motivation towards following the recommended regular evaluations and treatments.

According to Sebeki (2007), therapeutic education has been proven effective in helping patients follow a treatment recommendation over a long period as well as helping them to change an aspect of their lifestyle. The patients can be motivated through the introduction of incentives in the community such as the provision of free complete health check-along dental checkups. The concept of self-efficiency proposed under the integrated behavioral model can also be applied to encourage patients to attend regular checkups through a strong emphasis on the benefits accrued from the recommended behavior. The patients’ intentions to perform the recommended behavior could also be enhanced through embracing community dental care where the health care services are taken closer to the patients. Through, this strategy, a considerably higher number of patients participating in the periodontal disease evaluation can be easily attained. Read More