Health Care Delivery and Nursing Practice

Nursing Defined

•Florence Nightingale wrote in 1895 the goal of nursing is “to put the patient in the best condition for nature to act upon him.”

•The American Nurses Association Social Policy statement (2003) defines nursing as the diagnosis and treatment of human responses to health and illness.

•The role of nurses is expanding and the nurse’s functions include identifying health care needs and taking measures to address these needs.

Definitions of Health and Wellness

•The way health and wellness are defined affects how health is perceived, the responses of the individual, and the goals and expectations of the individual.

•The World Health Organization defines health as a “state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity” (Hood & Leddy, 2003).

•Health is ever-changing and is best viewed as a continuum. 

Wellness

•Wellness has been defined as equivalent to health.

•Hood and Leddy (2003) note four components of wellness:

–Capacity to perform at the best of his/her ability.

–Ability to adjust and adapt to varying situations.

–A reported feeling of well-being.

A feeling that everything is together and harmonious

Health Promotion

•Increased emphasis on

–Health

–Wellness

–Self-care

–Health promotion

Factors Affecting Health Care Delivery

•Changes in demographics

–Aging population

–Increasing diversity

–Changes in disease patterns

•Increased emphasis on health care costs

•Technology