NR443 Week 1 Social Factors Discussion

NR443 Week 1 Social Factors Discussion

NR443 RN Community Health Nursing

Week 1 Discussion

Social Factors

Discussion Question

There are many factors that make people healthy or ill.  This week we will focus on the social factors and determinants that impact health.

It is time to get out into your community!

Go online to the U.S. Census Bureau at https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/ (Links to an external site.) (*note, you will be using this website in the Week 2 assignment, so you can get started on collecting all the required data if desired)

Input your local zip code, city, or county. Try to get as specific data as possible (city, township, county).

Next, identify the:

Total population

Median income

Percentage or number of persons living in poverty

Go to your local grocery store, use a flyer, or app. Include the stores name, city, and state. Identify cost for the following items (please note whether items are organic):

1 gallon of milk

1 loaf of bread

1 bag of apples (include price per pound)

1 bag of carrots

1 large container of yogurt

1 2-liter of soda

1 bag of chips

1 package of cookies

Utilizing the data collected, discuss social factors that might impact what groceries are purchased. Try to be as specific to your community as possible (location, availability, poverty levels, etc.).

Discuss how a community health nurse (CHN) could use one of the 17 intervention categories from the Public Health Intervention Wheel to address areas of food security (Nies & McEwen, 2019).

In your responses to classmates, include comparisons and contrasting information.

Your discussion post should look like:

Paragraph one: Utilizing the data collected, discuss a social factor that might impact what groceries are purchased. Try to be as specific to your community as possible (location, availability, poverty levels, etc.)

Paragraph two: Utilizing the data collected, discuss another social factor that might impact what groceries are purchased. Try to be as specific to your community as possible (location, availability, poverty levels, etc.)

Paragraph three: Discuss how a community health nurse (CHN) could use one of the 17 intervention categories from the Public Health Intervention Wheel to address areas of food security

Resources: Where did you find your data?

NR443 Week 1 Social Factors Discussion

 

 

MORE INFO 

Social Factors that make people healthy or ill

Introduction

Social factors can make people healthier or ill. The health of a community depends on the social networks that are developed, as well as the resources available to support them. In this article we will look at some aspects of these two: socioeconomic status and stress.

Socioeconomic status

Socioeconomic status is the measure of how much money you have in relation to others, and it can affect your health. For example, studies show that people who are poor are more likely to suffer from mental health problems than those who are not. They also tend to live longer than those who are wealthy or middle class.

Social isolation is another factor affecting your health; if you don’t have friends or family members around you often enough, it can lead to depression and other mental illnesses like anxiety disorder or schizophrenia. This lack of support can also make it harder for people with chronic physical conditions such as diabetes mellitus type 2 (DMT2) because they feel isolated from their communities – even if they do have access to medical care!

Stress

Stress is a normal part of life. When you’re stressed, your body releases certain chemicals that make you feel alert, focused and energized. But when stress becomes chronic and causes physical symptoms (such as headaches), it can become unhealthy for your body.

Stress can come from many different sources: work-related stress; family issues such as divorce or death in the family; financial problems like losing a job; personal relationships such as having a fight with an ex-partner or not receiving support from friends when you need it most.

Social networks

Social networks are important for health, because they provide social support.

Social support is a feeling of being cared about and understood by others in your life. It can be provided by someone you know well or someone who is not part of your immediate family. Social support has been linked to better mental health and well-being, as well as lower rates of illness in the general population.

Social networks also play an important role in our understanding of what makes us healthy or ill. For example, if we look at data from a study conducted by researchers at Harvard University’s School Of Public Health (SPH), it’s clear that being connected with friends increases our chances of staying physically active every day—and even helps us avoid smoking cigarettes! In fact: “People who had strong ties with their neighbors tended to exercise more often than those with weaker ties.”

Personal Responsibility

Personal responsibility is the idea that we are responsible for our own actions and behaviors, rather than relying on others to determine what we should do. Personal responsibility can be applied to a variety of areas, including health care and mental health.

Personal Responsibility in Health Care:

The importance of personal responsibility is seen in how we treat mental illness. Most people who have been diagnosed with depression or anxiety will take several medications over time to help them cope with their symptoms; however, these medications don’t always work as well as they should (or at all). In addition to being ineffective at treating symptoms like depression or anxiety, some medications may also cause side effects that interfere with everyday life such as memory loss or weight gain (1).

Personal Responsibility in Mental Health Care:

Takeaway:

• Socioeconomic status: The higher your socioeconomic status, the more likely it is that you will be healthy. This is because people who have less money and less education tend to live in poorer neighborhoods and neighborhoods with more crime.

• Stress: Stress can make people sick, but it’s also a factor in how well they stay healthy. There are two types of stress: acute and chronic. Chronic stress occurs when someone experiences multiple kinds of stressful events over time; while acute stress occurs suddenly and lasts only a short time (like an argument). Both types can cause physical problems like high blood pressure or heart disease if left unchecked by healthy habits such as exercise and eating right—so remember not just what foods help keep us happy but also how those same foods might also help us feel better when stressed out!

Conclusion

We have some great news for you! If you’re looking for a way to improve your health, it’s time to start taking responsibility for yourself. Don’t let others make decisions about your life. Make the choice to be healthy by doing what makes sense for you and your situation—even if that means changing your diet or exercising differently than others in society might do. We hope this article has given you some ideas as well as some ways on how to get started improving yourself through these five factors (or more!).