The Future of Nursing in an Evolving Health Care System - Essay Example

Role of Healthcare Reform and the Nurse in Shifting Focus from a Disease Oriented Healthcare System Role of Healthcare Reform and the Nurse in Shifting Focus from a Disease Oriented Healthcare System The Healthcare system is undergoing tremendous transformation driven by the need to reconfigure the entire system, alter health and illness patterns and diversification of the population. These trends have led to an impact on the practice of different health professions. The rapidly changing environment means that nurses also have to redesign and reform their education and practice.

The healthcare reform aims at ensuring that all persons have access to affordable health-care services (Mataria et al., 2009). Nurses are in the best position to help in shifting focus from disease-oriented structure to one of wellness and prevention. Nurses are effective in pushing for these agendas because they are in a position to focus on the background of a patient. Nurses can offer recommendations that are evidence based to their patients. These recommendations motivate individuals to adjust their lifestyle and behavior changes to avoid getting sick.

Nurses are also trained in behavioral and clinical sciences which means that they are capable of providing support self-care and self-management training (Olshansky, 2009). For the healthcare reform to shift focus to prevention and wellness, nurses need to teach the public on simple and low-cost strategies that can assist them in preventing diseases. Some of these strategies include engaging in physical activity, practicing deep breathing and laughing and also practicing meditation. These techniques are simple and lead towards behavioral change.

The health reform centers on creating a patient-centered structure. This structure will foster personal health and self-care in patients. The reform will also engage the support of health workers such as nurses to ensure that the entire community to be served inputs by following the strategies laid out to them by the health workers (Mitchell, 2008). ReferencesMataria, A., Khatib, R., Donaldson, C., Bossert, T., Hunter, D., Alsayed, F., & Moatti, J. (2009). The health-care system: an assessment and reform agenda.

The Lancet, 373(9670), 1207-1217. Mitchell, P. (2008). Raising Nursing’s Voice for Health Care Reform. Nursing Outlook, 56(2), 47-48. Olshansky, E. (2009). Nursings Role in Health Care Reform. Journal Of Professional Nursing, 25(4), 193-194.