NURS 8310 Week 5: Epidemiologic Applications Part 1 Essay Assignment
NURS 8310/ NURS 8310F/ NURS 8310M/ NURS 8310A/ NURS 8310C Week 5: Epidemiologic Applications, Part 1 Essay Assignment
A healthy environment is fundamental to life, and attention to the effects of the environment on human health is essential if we are to achieve the goal of health for all.
—Naomi Higenbottam, RN, The Luminary Project: Nurses Lighting the Way to Environmental Health
A wide range of environmental agents affect human health, from noise pollution to air and water quality to possible food contamination in a restaurant, home, or grocery store. Nurses engaged in advanced practice need to be aware of those agents in the environment that can have an impact on the health and well being of individuals and populations.
Equally important are the genetic factors that also influence health and wellness. Advances in the identification of disease-linked genes has improved both individual and population health. Recognizing patterns of inherited diseases and understanding how genes interact with the environment to cause disease are requisite skills for DNP-prepared nurses.
This week, you will explore environmental and genetic factors that influence population health and may result in health disparities in populations. Finally, you will explore how these factors may influence the population health problem you selected for Major Assessment 7.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
- Evaluate environmental agents and genetic factors associated with population health effects
- Propose ways in which environmental or genetic factors may result in health disparities in populations
Discussion: Environmental and Genetic Factors That Influence Health
In Le Roy, New York, in 2011, a mysterious medical condition emerged: Several teenage girls suddenly began to exhibit symptoms similar to those of Tourette’s Syndrome, including involuntary twitches, movements, and sounds. Soon after, the number of individuals experiencing comparable symptoms increased. As media attention toward the situation grew, questions and concerns intensified about the origin of this condition. Did an environmental exposure trigger this? Was it the result of an infectious disease? If so, why were some people in the region affected and not others? In other words, could genetic factors play a role in this?
This week, you have been exploring a number of environmental and genetic factors that influence population health. Understanding how environmental and genetic factors influence populations will support your work as an advanced practice nurse. Therefore, for this Discussion, you will investigate the relationship between an environmental agent or genetic factor and a population health problem. You will also give attention to health disparities that may arise within a population because of environment or genetics.
To prepare: Epidemiology and Population Health Essay Assignment
- Review the Learning Resources, and select one environmental agent or one genetic factor and an associated population health problem. For example, you might consider lead paint and its effect on children, air pollution and its effect on individuals with asthma, genetic associations of various cancers, etc.
- Conduct additional research using the Walden Library and credible websites, reviewing the literature on your selected health problem and the relevant environmental agent or genetic factor.
- Explore health data resources and determine morbidity, mortality, incidence, prevalence, exposures, and costs to society as they relate to your chosen environmental agent or genetic factor.
- How might your chosen environmental or genetic factor result in health disparities in populations?
By Day 3
Post a cohesive scholarly response that addresses the following:
- Identify the environmental agent or genetic factor that you selected and the population health problem with which it is associated.
- Evaluate the significance of the health risk resulting from your selected environmental agent or genetic factor, discussing such aspects as morbidity, mortality, incidence, prevalence, exposures, and costs to society. Support your response with references and data.
- How might the environmental or genetic factor you identified result in health disparities in populations?
Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.
By Day 6
Respond to at least two of your colleagues in one or more of the following ways:
Note: Make sure you respond to at least one person that selected a different factor than you (e.g., if you picked a genetic factor, then respond to someone selected an environmental factor).
- Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research.
- Share an insight from having read your colleagues’ postings, synthesizing the information to provide new perspectives.
- Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library.
- Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.
- Make a suggestion based on additional evidence drawn from readings or after synthesizing multiple postings.
- Expand on your colleagues’ postings by providing additional insights or contrasting perspectives based on readings and evidence.
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