Program development - Essay Example

Program Development Running Head: Program Development NEW HEALTH AWARENESS PROGRAM FOR WOMEN YEAR 2009 TO Program Development 2 AbstractThis paper aims to present health awareness program for women with chronic illnesses focusing on heart disease, cancer and stroke. The paper will identify ways to identify the needs of a particular population in the community with focus on the mentioned illnesses.Further, short term and long terms goals of the health awareness program would be determined and plans for implementation would be discussed.

Program Development 3INTRODUCTION Health care encompasses a wide range of clientele originating from an individual’s personal health needs to the epidemiology of a community or a population, as a whole. Nurses and health care practitioners who serve the community and the public are committed to improve the health of the entire community. Delaune and Ladner (2006) averred that “community nursing uses a holistic approach that required both disease prevention and health promotion activities, including education and advocacy”.

This paper aims to present to process of developing a program for health promotion and disease prevention focusing on the top three leading causes of death and chronic illness to women: heart illness, cancer and stroke over a three year period.PROCESS FOR PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT Several stages are needed in order to produce a development program for health promotion and disease prevention of the top three chronic illnesses for women, to wit:a. Statement of the objectives.(1) To identify specific families within the community with women exhibitingSymptoms for chronic illnesses such as heart illness, cancer and stroke.(2) To present nursing diagnosis and plan nursing interventions.(3) To monitor and evaluate proposed health plans.b. Identify the needs of the population through observation, interviews and survey.c. To approach and coordinate with leaders of the local community, together withthe health practitioners regarding proposed programs, implementation strategies,and educational plans to reinforce disease prevention and promotion of health care.

Program Development 4d. To conduct the actual observation, interview and survey phase in selected sites.e. To collect and collate the data, analyze the results and prepare recommendations.f. To set meetings to report findings, prepare time tables for health teaching.g. To conduct health teachings to promote health care and prevent heart illness, cancer and stroke, among others.IDENTIFY THE NEEDS OF THE POPULATION After having identified the focus of this study and the objectives, the specific needs or health concerns of the population can be identified using social observation, interview and survey.

This phase would enable the health care practitioners to identify factors that lead to higher susceptibility of women contracting the identified illnesses. The survey would include information on demographics, income, educational attainment, health records, housing condition, nutrition, and environmental indices, among other factors.EDUCATIONAL GOALS AND METHODS The goals would identify priorities in focusing specific illnesses according to the given time frame. Since heart illness is the primary cause of deaths for women in the Untied States, the program should emphasize pertinent factors and issues relative to this disease.

These factors should include causes and possible solutions, as well as needs of the community which could assist in the prevention of these illnesses. The health practitioner should utilize current literature on the chronic illnesses through research. Books, medical journals, websites and scholarly research could Program Development 5provide the much needed data to support and verify recommendations. Interview with health professionals (doctors, specialists, nurses) could also help in this regard.

IMPLEMENTATION PHASE The most important aspect in this phase is setting up meetings with local authorities and health practitioners in the community level to discuss the proposed program, solicit advice, reaction, suggestions and prepare plans for the immersion phase.It is at this phase that actual observations, interview, survey, collection and collation of data, interpretation of results, and proposed recommendations would be undertaken. It is also here that findings would be reported to the committee that was originally met.

Schedules for health education, promoting health care and prevention of illnesses would be set to identified families with chronic illness. As initially planned, the first year would focus on heart illness, the second year on cancer and the third year on stroke.EVALUATION PHASE The evaluation phase would measure the success in the achievement of defined goals. According to Untalan (2005), “the health worker should learn to accept reality that not all programs will prosper and not all their goals will be met.

After evaluation, there should be a re-implementation”, as the program requires.CONCLUSION The development of a health program entails time, money and effort to comprehensively evaluate, assess and recommend appropriate delivery of health care and the prevention of chronic illnesses. Its success depends on an interplay of the following factors: cooperation and participation of members of the community, availability of Program Development 6resources, and the genuine concern and commitment of the community nurses and health workers to improve the health of the entire population.

ReferencesDelaune, S.C. and Ladner, P.K. (2006). Fundamentals of Nursing: Standards & Practice. Delmar Learning. Singapore. Untalan, A.T. (2005). Concepts and Guidelines in COPAR. Educational Publishing House, Philippines.