Health promotion and illness prevention: Nursing

Yousef is a community health nurse who’s volunteering at a free medical clinic. One of the clients who comes to the clinic is a 53-year-old construction worker, named Ben, who states, “I want to be tested for diabetes.” Nurse Yousef notes that Ben is moderately overweight, has a patch over his left eye, and is a current smoker.

Nurse Yousef asks Ben to elaborate on why he wants to be tested for diabetes, and Ben responds, “I haven’t been going to the gym as much, so I’ve gained some weight.

My dad has diabetes, so I want to make sure I don’t have it.”Nurse Yousef says, “Thank you for sharing, Ben. I’d be happy to get you screened for diabetes today.

I think it would be a good idea for us to discuss some other aspects of your health too. I can’t help but notice you have a patch over your eye.” Ben nods in agreement and says, “Yeah, I went blind in my left eye about a year ago after a work accident.

The doctor said there’s nothing they can do.” Nurse Yousef will use what he knows about health promotion and illness prevention to care for Ben.Okay, so the concepts of health promotion and illness prevention are closely related since they both affect a client’s wellbeing and quality of life.

Health promotion refers to activities that protect health and enhance an individual’s existing level of wellness, such as regular exercise and eating a balanced diet.

On the other hand, illness prevention involves actions that can reduce an individual’s exposure to risk factors, which are things that increase the likelihood of developing an illness, disease, or trauma.

Examples of illness prevention are high blood pressure screenings or wearing a helmet when riding a bike.Although risk factors don’t cause an illness directly, they increase the chance of developing one and they can be categorized into modifiable and non-modifiable factors.

Modifiable risk factors are ones that can be altered by lifestyle practices and behaviors, like drinking enough water or not texting while driving; whereas non-modifiable factors can’t be changed, such as age, genetics, and family history.

For example, Ben has the non-modifiable risk factor of a family history of type 2 diabetes as well as the modifiable risk factor of obesity and cigarette smoking.

After you identify risk factors, you can form a plan on illness prevention. Illness prevention can be categorized into primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of prevention.

First, the goal of primary prevention is to minimize the chance of developing an illness in the first place by reducing modifiable risk factors, such as Ben wearing ear protection at his construction site to reduce the risk of hearing loss.

Another example is when an individual receives their yearly flu shot. Next, the goal of secondary prevention is to screen for an illness in its early stages before a client develops signs and symptoms, like sending Ben for a colonoscopy since being over 50-years-old is a non-modifiable risk factor for colon cancer.

Another example is a woman with a family history of breast cancer undergoing yearly mammograms as secondary prevention.Another goal of secondary prevention is to limit the risk of spreading an illness, like self-isolating after a COVID-19 diagnosis.

Lastly, there’s tertiary prevention where the goal is to stop disease progression and the development of complications, as well as promote optimal functioning.

For example, if Ben was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, tertiary prevention may focus on reducing his risk of developing a diabetic ulcer by controlling his glucose levels and wearing supportive footwear.

One more example of tertiary prevention is occupational therapy for a client with a spinal cord injury.Nurses have an integral role in promoting health and preventing illness.

By identifying modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors, nurses can help clients to understand what they can change or control when it comes to their own health.

Like in Ben’s case, although he has non-modifiable risk factors for type 2 diabetes such as a family history and increased age, Nurse Yousef can still talk to Ben about the importance of routine testing of his hemoglobin A1c, which detects his blood glucose over time, as well as modifiable risk factors, such as eating a well-balanced diet, physical activity, and quitting smoking to decrease the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Although educating clients is an important aspect of health promotion and illness prevention, nurses should be aware that a change in health behavior takes time and persistence.

The nurse may need to use strategies to encourage clients to stick with healthy behaviors over time, such as positive reinforcement for health promoting behaviors or by referring them to support groups.

Okay, let’s check back in with Nurse Yousef and Ben. First, Nurse Yousef teaches Ben about primary prevention methods, like taking daily walks to reduce his weight and wearing goggles at work to protect his remaining eye.

Next, for secondary prevention, Nurse Yousef screens Ben for diabetes by checking his blood glucose, which is within normal limits, and calculates his body mass index, or BMI, which indicates obesity.

Finally, Nurse Yousef uses tertiary prevention by referring Ben to a local weight loss support group to prevent the progression of his obesity.

All right, as a quick recap… Illness prevention and health promotion both affect a client’s overall wellbeing and quality of life.

Illness prevention involves actions which are aimed at reducing an individual’s exposure to risk factors whereas health promotion refers to activities that protect good health and enhance an individual’s existing level of wellness.

Risk factors increase the chance that someone will develop an illness, which can be categorized into modifiable and non-modifiable factors.

Identification of modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors are crucial in preventing illnesses, which can be categorized into primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of prevention.

Nurses play an important role in promoting clients’ health and preventing illness by providing assessment, education,