Health Promotion and Nursing Practice - Vocabulary Flashcards

Health Promotion: Definition and Practice

• Health promotion is about enabling people to take control of their health and improve it. It involves guiding patients to make better decisions and removing barriers to care.

• In nursing practice, goal is to promote health and help patients get healthier, especially when they are ill and need care to recover.

• Real-world drivers of health promotion include social determinants such as wealth, transportation, access to food, and medications, which can affect a patient’s wellness.

• Example: A diabetic patient in ICU who may struggle with finances, transportation, or access to medications; nurses collaborate with social work to address these barriers and connect patients to resources.

• Language matters: use patient-centered phrasing to avoid turning patients off. Instead of using words like “diet” and “exercise” bluntly, reframe as healthier habits and gradual changes (e.g., add more fruits/vegetables, reduce fats, start with small portions, and take small steps).

• Build confidence through incremental goals (e.g., after a stroke, focus on first steps rather than full marathon training).

• Healthy behavior change is often gradual: walk around the block; then progress to sidewalks; then longer routes.

• Some patients cannot quit immediately (e.g., smoking) so plan for small steps to improve adherence and outcomes.

• Healthy People 2030 is a nationwide framework guiding health improvement every decade; it is updated every decade with new research and data to inform policy and practice.

• Vision of Healthy People 2030: people can achieve their full potential for health and well-being across the lifespan. It emphasizes health literacy and public health perspectives.

• Useful for students and professionals: the Healthy People 2030 site provides data, research, and potential community projects or grants (e.g., for bachelor’s projects or master’s grants). The overall aim is to help people eat better, exercise, and improve health literacy.

Healthy People 2030: Vision, Mission, and Foundations

• Vision: people achieve their full potential for health and well-being across the rest of their lifespan. Healthy People 2030 updates protocols and framework at the national level using national data.

• Mission: promote and strengthen the nation’s efforts to improve health and wellness, and to prevent disease.

• Foundational principles: improve health and well-being of people in communities; prevent disease; eliminate disparities to achieve health for all.

• Core requirement: eliminating disparities is essential to achieving health for all.

• Five social determinants of health (as emphasized by Healthy People 2030):

  • Economic
    bsp;Stability
  • Education
    bsp;and
    bsp;Health
    bsp;Literacy
  • Health
    bsp;Care
    bsp;Access
    bsp;and
    bsp;Quality
  • Neighborhood
    bsp;and
    bsp;Built
    bsp;Environment
  • Social
    bsp;and
    bsp;Community
    bsp;Context

• Economic Stability (example): cost of healthy foods and medicines for diabetics is a major barrier; patients may face trade-offs between medications and food, especially when grocery prices rise.

• Education: understandings of disease processes and medications matter; patients should be able to explain why they take prescribed therapies, not just follow orders.

• Health Care Access and Quality: insurance coverage, deductibles, and access to transportation can affect follow-up care and screenings; barriers must be identified before discharge.

• Neighborhood and Built Environment: living environment quality (e.g., safe housing, clean water, lead exposure) affects health; environmental hazards can impede health promotion.

• Social and Community Context: nurses can influence communities through screenings and education on disease control (e.g., diabetes, COPD) during winter or other seasons.

• Health literacy: Healthy People 2030 defines health literacy as the alignment of concepts that can be assessed at any given point; emphasis on evaluating and improving patient health knowledge.

• Health literacy and education: assess what the patient knows about their disease; do not assume understanding when a doctor has explained it.

• Patient education is a core nursing activity from day one: inform patients about medications, why they are prescribed, possible adverse effects, and how to manage them; educate family members and caregivers as well.

• If uncertain about a detail, nurses should research and return with an answer rather than guessing.

The Nursing Process and Health Promotion

• Patient education is a central component of the nursing process: assess learning needs and readiness; diagnose learning needs; plan learning outcomes; implement teaching; evaluate learning outcomes.
• Assess readiness to learn, knowledge, learning style, and barriers (cognitive, physical, language, hearing impairment).
• Use patient-centered teaching strategies: for Alzheimer’s or cognitive impairment, educate with one step at a time; use boards or pictures for communication; adapt to the patient’s capacities.
• Develop realistic learning outcomes aligned with the nursing process; set incremental goals that match the patient’s abilities (e.g., postoperative rehab milestones).
• Use effective communication and evaluation to determine if goals were met; adjust plans as needed (e.g., increase ambulation distance gradually).
• Evidence-based practice (EBP): use research to identify solutions and improve patient care; nurses are expected to contribute to practice improvement and to bring new ideas forward.
• As nurses advance academically (bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate), there is increasing emphasis on research and implementing new solutions to improve patient care (e.g., more efficient tools, updated procedures).
• Motivation and adherence: strategies to motivate patients, understand barriers, and improve adherence to medications and lifestyle changes; plan for realistic timelines and supportive interventions.
• Functional status and motivation: consider how health conditions affect daily tasks and independence; tailor teaching to what patients can reasonably do.

Patient Education Techniques and Readiness

• Patient education goals: increase quality and length of healthy life; close health disparities by addressing access, education, and personal resources.
• Teach-back and demonstration-back: patients or family members demonstrate how to perform a task (e.g., eye drops, administration of medications) to prove understanding.
• Demonstration-back is used in practice to ensure comprehension; if the patient or caregiver cannot explain the procedure, re-teach using different methods.
• The nurse should adjust teaching to the patient’s education level and language needs; use simple language and visual aids when appropriate.
• Time and context: choose moments when the patient is calm and ready to learn; avoid teaching during crises or emotional distress; adapt to family dynamics and concerns.
• Use whiteboards or pictures for patients with communication or cognitive challenges; ensure realistic expectations for rehabilitation (e.g., 25 feet vs. 40 feet progress is acceptable depending on the individual).

Culturally Competent Care and Bias Awareness

• Culturally competent care means planning and delivering care that respects individual, family, and group needs from diverse populations.
• Nurses must be aware of their own biases and set them aside to provide unbiased, patient-centered care.
• Involve families and communities; use interpreters and culturally appropriate resources when needed; when unsure, consult the charge nurse or supervisor and involve family members to ensure culturally appropriate care.
• Not all cultural requests can be accommodated, but the goal is to do the best possible within safety and policy constraints; when in doubt, involve the charge nurse or supervisor.
• The role of the charge nurse is to help navigate cultural practices and safety considerations within the care setting.

Safety, Policy, and Legal Frameworks

• Policy adherence: nurses must follow policies of each facility; policies may differ across hospitals, even within the same health system, so be aware of the specific policy for the current workplace.
• Medication safety: always verify patient identity using two identifiers (e.g., name and date of birth) and use barcode scanning; do not override policies if the system indicates a mismatch.
• Consequences of not following policy: incorrect medication administration can lead to serious harm, lawsuits, and potential loss of license; policies exist to protect patients and staff.
• Nursing practice acts and state boards: State Boards of Nursing regulate the legal scope of nursing practice, define licensure criteria, and set disciplinary procedures.
• Licensure: after passing the NCLEX, initial licensure is issued for one year; renewal occurs every two years with a requirement of continuing education units (CEUs) totaling 30 CEUs per 2 years.
• Child abuse training: initial requirement is approximately 3 hours, followed by periodic refreshers (~1 hour) for ongoing licensure requirements.
• Continuing education and audits: CEUs can be obtained through conferences, online courses, or employer-sponsored programs; boards may audit licensure compliance.
• If legal or disciplinary action occurs, the State Board of Nursing reviews the case and determines consequences (e.g., probation, license revocation); notable cases, such as the Tennessee case involving Rodonda Vaughn, illustrate consequences of medication errors.
• Scope of practice: nurses must know what they can and cannot do in each state; some tasks (e.g., certain invasive procedures) are reserved for more advanced roles or specialized practitioners.
• Travel nursing requires familiarity with each state’s nurse practice acts and scope of practice, as rules vary by jurisdiction.
• The State Board of Nursing governs safe practice and enforces nursing regulations; it can suspend or revoke licenses and impose probation or other sanctions when standards are violated.

Roles in Health Policy, Access, and Disparities

• Nurses act as facilitators of health policy at the bedside and as advocates for policies that improve access to care, reduce disparities, and promote health equity.
• The patient-population focus includes vulnerable groups with social, economic, and environmental disadvantages; health promotion should address these disparities and promote wellness outside hospital settings (e.g., cardiac rehab, home-based care).
• The importance of addressing barriers such as transportation, finances, and food access is reiterated throughout the course; nurses must identify and respond to those needs to promote health.

Practical Takeaways and Exam-Relevant Points

• Health promotion is about enabling healthy choices and access, not just telling patients what to do.

• Always consider social determinants of health (economic stability, education, healthcare access/quality, neighborhood environment, social context) when planning care and health promotion interventions.

• Health literacy matters: assess what patients know; use teach-back and demonstration-back techniques to confirm understanding.

• Use the nursing process for patient education: assess readiness, plan learning outcomes, implement teaching, and evaluate outcomes; adjust as needed.

• Exercise and diet should be framed as gradual, sustainable changes; celebrate small victories and build confidence.

• Recognize and address barriers to care (costs, transportation, access to healthy foods, insurance deductibles).

• Culturally competent care requires awareness of bias, inclusion of patients and families, and appropriate use of interpreters and cultural resources.

• Safety and policy are core to nursing practice: follow facility policies, verify patient identity, and adhere to scope of practice as defined by the State Board of Nursing.

• Licensure requires ongoing education and compliance with regulations; prepare for CEU requirements and mandatory trainings.

• Be an agent for change: contribute to practice improvements and policy discussions; participate in policy or policy-committee activities to elevate patient care at the system level.

• Key numerical references (for quick review):

  • Healthy People 2030 update cycle: 10 years per plan (and subsequent decades like 2030, 2040, etc.).
  • Initial nursing license validity: 1 year; renewal every 2 years.
  • Continuing education: 30 CEUs every 2 years.
  • Child abuse training: initial roughly 3 hours; refresher about 1 hour.
  • Demonstration-back and teach-back are essential techniques in patient education.

• Notable examples and cases mentioned:

  • Social determinants affecting diabetic patients (finances, transportation, access to medications).
  • Lead exposure and environmental risks in old housing as a determinant of health.
  • The Rodonda Vaughn case in Tennessee illustrating consequences of medication errors and licensure implications.

• Final reminder: health promotion is an ongoing, nationwide effort guided by Healthy People 2030, with a focus on reducing disparities, improving health literacy, and promoting healthier behaviors through patient education and supportive policies.