topic 2 dq 1 18

Please write a paragraph with your response based on the text bellow. Please include citations and references in case you need to used for the question:

According to The World Health Organization (WHO), social determinants of health (SDOH) are the conditions in which people are born, live, work, grow and age that determine the circumstances of daily living (2018). The economy and social norms also influence health. Politics shape the conditions of daily living for individuals as they have a large scale impact on society. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) breaks the SDOH down into five groups. These groups are economic stability, neighborhood and built environment, health and health care, social and community context, and education (Social Determinants of Health: Know What Affects Health, 2018).

Financial resources or economic stability are part of the SDOH and play a major role in access to healthcare, living situations and food security. If individuals do not have access to health care, suitable living arrangements and a stable food source they are at greater risk of disease. Educational attainment is also directly related to a person’s development and their financial stability. It is common knowledge that increased education provides greater opportunities within the workforce and thus increased financial stability for individuals. The social environment and community that people live, work and grow in will have an effect on their health as well. Community resources and even geographic location may create health disparities and inequalities. Health insurance coverage and access to health care are very important to optimizing and maintaining health. If an individual cannot afford or does not have access to proper health care the chances for disease increase due to the lack of knowledge and support. Factors that are not able to be changed are an individual’s genetics.

The communicable disease chain is comprised of the infectious agent, reservoirs, portal of exit, means of transmission, portal of re-entry and susceptible host. “Factors associated with the agents causing infectious diseases include pathogenicity, infective dose, physical characteristics, organism specificity, and antigenic variations” (Maurer & Smith, 2013, p. 205). Reservoirs are the habitat in which the infection agent would be found. Reservoirs can be animals, humans and the environment such as soil. The portal of exit is simply the route by which the pathogen leaves the reservoirs and typically corresponds to where the pathogen is localized (Principles of Epidemiology in Public Health Practice, 2012). Means of transmission can be direct or Indirect. An example of direct would be skin-to-skin contact and indirect could be airborne. Portal of re-entry is often the same as the portal of exit only in reverse. It is the means by which a pathogen enters a susceptible host. Lastly, the susceptible host lacks natural, artificial or passive immunity and the pathogen is able to multiply and survive within the host.

The most basic way for a nurse to break the disease chain is proper hygiene and teaching clients this practice as well. Another example would be ensuring you are current on your vaccinations and have received necessary boosters. Maintaining proper vaccination status helps prevent the nurse from being a susceptible host for those vaccine preventable diseases that they may come in contact with. Depending on the mode of transmission precautions can be taken to prevent transmission as well through the proper use of personal protective equipment.

Maurer, F., Smith, C. (2013). Community/Public Health Nursing Practice, 5th Edition. [Pageburstls]. Retrieved from https://pageburstls.elsevier.com/#/books/978-1-4557-0762-1/

Principles of Epidemiology in Public Health Practice, Third Edition An Introduction to Applied Epidemiology and Biostatistics. (2012, May 18). Retrieved August 26, 2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/ophss/csels/dsepd/ss1978/lesso…