Biopsychosocial Population Health Policy - Essay Example

"Biopsychosocial Population Health Policy" is a brilliant example of a paper on cancer. Hello! I am Erika Gonzalez, An MSN student from Capella University. I write to you with concern regarding breast cancer management in women, particularly those aged between 40 to 70 years old. I am prompted by the alarming statistics regarding the number of women diagnosed with breast cancer globally despite the evidence-based care provided. According to WHO, breast cancer is the most common cancer type, affecting approximately 2.1 million women annually (WHO, 2020).

Additionally, it is estimated that the highest number of cancer-related deaths, fifteen percent, among women is breast cancer (WHO, 2020). Statistics did in 2018 place this at 627 000 annual deaths from breast cancer (WHO, 2020). There is a notably increasing trend in the number of women diagnosed with breast cancer in developed and developing countries.

To improve health outcomes in patients with breast cancer, it is imperative to carry out early detection and proper medical and nursing management interventions. These interventions can only be successful when backed up with interdependent intervention measures that I would like to propose. The consequences of breast cancer treatment and management are diverse, ranging from physical, emotional to psychological, and even after physical recovery, patients still need professional care to handle the psychological and emotional aspects. Most of the time, patients feel that they are being given holistic care. The approach to care is often one-sided, with the primary intention being medical cancer treatment. Noteworthy, disregarding other patient needs significantly impedes the process of recovery. Therefore, interdependent intervention measures should be the ideal approach to patient care in this population.

The current treatment interventions are more inclined towards medical cancer treatment. As a result, the care provided leads to low-quality health outcomes. The singular approach is responsible for increasing breast cancer deaths among women age 40 to 70 years old. The complexity of breast cancer treatment and the low possibility of full recovery requires a holistic approach to care that is not provided effectively. The incorporation of interdependent intervention measures will broadly address holistic care and, in turn, lead to better health outcomes among these patients. Not only will this reduce the high mortality rate observed among patients with breast cancer in this age group, but it will also allow the patients to live a high-quality and fulfilling life.

In a dynamic health environment, teams are used as channels for high-quality healthcare delivery changes. These teams are often multi-professional, with each discipline or profession delivering a distinct and significant unit or care. Theoretically, it is a highly effective method of quality health care delivery. In practice, it depends on three aspects that ensure team members are highly interdependent through communication and exchange of knowledge. These aspects include functional diversity, social cohesion, and superordinate identity. For better health outcomes for patients in this population category, implementing an interdependent policy in breast cancer patients' holistic care is the answer. This approach is particularly suitable for women between ages 40 and 70 due to decreased immunity and the health risks related to aging that characterizes this population.
One area that has particularly been neglected is psychosocial counseling for the patients. Often, newly diagnosed patients are mentally not prepared to deal with the stress associated with cancer treatment and the social pressures from daily living. According to Murthy (2016), professional psychosocial counseling helps the patients deal with chemotherapy's anxieties and realities and the social turmoil that they encounter on their treatment journey. The professional's invaluable efforts will equip the patient mentally to face the challenges of breast cancer treatment, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and mastectomy. Dealing with mastectomy can be challenging among sexually active patients, especially due to its stigma (Murthy, 2016). Such patients need in-depth counseling to help them embrace positivity regarding their body image. Being a terminal illness, breast cancer has a significant impact on families and close friends. Therefore, psychosocial counseling should be extended to these people to promote a healthy community. Friends and families are the immediate support system to the patients, and if they are mentally disturbed because one of them is sick, they cannot offer valuable support effectively. This has an impact on the recovery process and remission of cancer cells.

Another area with inadequate attention is the provision of care for caregivers in the treatment program. Since they work around the clock tirelessly to ensure excellent health outcomes for their patients, they risk burnout and being psychologically worn out. According to van Dongen et al. (2017), the implementation of interdependence intervention measures will regard both patients and caregivers as care units. This will ensure that adequate counseling is given to caregivers to be in a healthy mental state to provide holistic care. This will ensure quality healthcare service delivery and consequently, better health outcomes, characterized by high remission rates. Van Dongen et al. (2017) contend that caregivers should be trained in adopting patient orientation and inclusion in decision-making for better health outcomes, both physically and mentally.
Generally, in dealing with patient populations with mental, chronic, terminal, and long-term illnesses, interdependence intervention measures are necessary. Other than the physical burden of the diseases, the psychological trauma that accompanies the illnesses is overwhelming. The healthcare providers are also not spared in this. They invest their energies in taking care of the patients so much that they also risk having a mental breakdown due to work burnout.

The interprofessional aspects of interdependent interventional measures will improve health outcomes significantly. Some of these aspects include team-building skills, exchange of information and knowledge among professions, patient-centered care, and how culture influences healthcare delivery (Gellis et al., 2019). On the community level, healthcare delivery will improve due to the collaboration of different professional teams. The results are improved health outcomes due to the investment of diverse knowledge and clinical skills in managing conditions (Gellis et al., 2019). Collaborative efforts of all professionals involved in the healthcare team will ensure better and appropriate treatment approaches, which are essential for a patient's quick recovery.