Community Nursing Practice

Purpose of assessment task 1 

Poor health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is an effect of equity and access issues. Nurses can support better health for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by promoting equity and access in healthcare. This assessment task will provide you with the opportunity to increase your knowledge of community nursing practice. 

Assignment question: 

Using Case Scenario 1, Mr Kay, and provide short answer responses to the following questions.

case scenario 1

Mr Kay is a 48 year old Aboriginal man.  He has recently moved to Wathaurong country, nearby Geelong in Victoria, after losing his job in an iron ore mine outside of 

Geraldton, Western Australia. Mr Kay wants to be closer to his oldest daughter – Jess who moved to Australia’s eastern states ten years ago. Jess, has two children of her 

own and lives with her long term partner, Peter. Mr Kay is currently living in his car in his daughter’s driveway, however his daughter has indicated that she would like to purchase a fold–out couch so that he can move into her two bedroom house. Mr Kay presents to the Aboriginal Health Service because he needs you to “fix up” his leg. Mr Kay tells you he tore the skin on his left lower leg with the car door last evening. You visit Mr Kay at home to build rapport, find out about his healthcare needs and how he wants to look after his health, and assess and dress the wound. The skin laceration is superficial, clean, the wound bed is red with slight serous discharge, and you note mild inflammation. You dress the wound with a gel as a primary dressing and a foam as a secondary dressing. With Mr Kay’s permission, you plan to visit him at home to redress the wound in 3 days as Mr Kay has difficulty getting to the clinic and is too unsteady on his feet to safely use public transport. Mr Kay mentions that his kidneys do not work well but this gives him no trouble. The Aboriginal Health Service in Geraldton looked after his kidneys. With Mr Kay’s signed permission, you contact his last Aboriginal Health Service in Geraldton. The RN at the health service notes that Mr Kay has chronic kidney disease (stage 3), and a history of hypertension. The RN sends through Mr Kay’s medical files. 

Mr Kay takes Ramipril to keep his blood pressure below 130/80 mmHg, for management of his hypertension and kidney disease. He also takes Caltrate and Calcitriol because of his kidney disease.

The assignment question is in two (2) parts.

Part one

Select two (2) journal articles and summarise the main findings regarding how equity and access issues are currently affecting Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s health in chronic disease. (600-650 words) 

Student instructions for assessment task 

Part 1: 

• You may choose articles focused on health in chronic disease/s, 

• Select two (2) research journal articles and summarise the main findings regarding how equity and access issues are currently affecting Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s health or chronic disease. (students may choose articles focused on health in chronic disease/s) 

• please summarise one journal article and then the second journal article, please reference each sentence with the relevant journal article (600-650 words) 

Summarise the main findings from two (2) journal articles

• The summary should focus on how equity and access issues are currently affecting Australian

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s health and chronic illness (students may choose

articles focussed on health generally or a chronic disease/multiple chronic diseases)

• Any chronic disease is acceptable (can be different or the same for both journal articles)

• Articles may include solutions (healthcare interventions/programs) to equity and access issues.

Students do need to focus on equity and access (there are many forms of equity and access issues some examples are remote location and distance from healthcare, culturally inappropriate healthcare, language barriers, healthcare practices that exclude Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples)

• Students do not need to focus on SDH or PHC per se/more generally – equity and access are part of social determinants of health/primary health care approaches

• Journal articles may be those published from 2000 onwards (this is because the effects of social determinants leading to equity and access problems do not change quickly

(unfortunately) and new knowledge within the last 5 years may be more difficult for students to locate).

Part 2: 

Explain two (2) nursing interventions, and rationales, that you would use in caring for Mr Kay (Case Scenario 1)   to promote equity and access to health and healthcare. (900-950 words) 

Student instructions for assessment task

Part 2: 

• The nursing interventions are to be focused as follows: 

i. One (1) nursing intervention, including rationale, to promote Mr Kay’s sense that he is included in his own healthcare 

ii. One (1) nursing intervention, including rationale, to promote him feeling culturally safe (900-950 words) 

For part 2: must use recommend text book which is ‘Community Nursing in Australia 2011” and ather relavent jurnal articles

Use at least four references to support your answer to question two (2). This should include at least two references per nursing intervention and include a rationale relevant to the two nursing interventions.

The answers to each question should be organized in paragraphs of approximately 150 words with each paragraph focused on explanation of one idea

Nursing interventions could be (there are potentially more) those focussed on:

– Building partnerships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

– Person centred care

– Communication

– Rapport and relationship building

– Advocacy

– Empowerment approaches

– Cross-cultural nursing and cultural safety interventions

– Interventions could include relevant interventions/approaches within

particular programs if students choose to respond in this way

• Provide two (2) rationales, one to support each nursing intervention

• How would the intervention be expected to promote (1) Mr Kay’s sense that he is included in his own healthcare?

• How would the intervention be expected to promote (2) Mr Kay feeling culturally safe?

In answering these questions, students need to present

arguments to convince/persuade the reader. This should be done by presenting evidence to support the arguments, and by presenting theoretically supported arguments.