Taking care of patients, especially those who suffer health disparities due to race, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status, is not an easy task.
However, nurses bridge the gaps between doctors and patients and ensure that the suffering individuals get the ultimate treatment that fits their needs.
Nursing Advocacy: Supporting Chronic Illness Patients
Patient advocacy in nursing is critical to protecting human rights, promoting health diplomacy, and reducing health disparities among individuals under care.
Patients with chronic illnesses like arthritis, asthma, and cancer require nursing advocacy to protect their rights, receive unbiased treatment, and keep them informed about treatment and procedures.
Continue reading to explore how nurses can advocate for patients with chronic illnesses:
Provide Emotional Support
Patients with chronic illnesses will spend more time in healthcare facilities and undergo some critical procedures.
The doctors usually take a round and brief attendants regarding the patient’s condition, prescribing medications and diet restrictions. Although the doctor plays a significant role in treating individuals with persistent medical conditions, a nurse’s role can make a difference in providing the sufferer with emotional support.
Nurse advocacy for chronic illness plays a major role in elevating patients’ willpower to face ongoing health issues. Thus, a nurse can give foundational support to the patient and his loved ones in fighting the illness and getting back to life like normal individuals.
Ensure Uniform Treatment for All Patients
Every day, hospitals and medical facilities receive an outburst of patients with diverse racial and cultural backgrounds. Treating everyone alike, keeping their background, race, color, culture, status, and disabilities aside, is the need of the time.
As patient advocates, nurses speak against discrimination, fight for access to care, protect patients, and provide resources and support to patients and families during challenging times.
Hence, nurses ensure that the patients are not discriminated against for the odd factors when they seek health care.
Be the Voice of the Patient
A patient is unaware of his diagnosis and the medical battle his body is silently battling. Nurses support chronic illness patients by giving them a voice, especially to sick and vulnerable individuals.
A nurse can help those patients by facilitating their explanation of their condition to the doctor so that they receive the highest level of medical care and translating the information from the medical jargon so that the patient and their attendant understand the situation more clearly.
Double Check for Errors
Once the duty doctor has completed his visit in the admission ward of patients with chronic medical conditions, it is now on the shoulders of nurses to proceed with the treatment.
From injecting the accurate amount of doses through syringes or drips to conducting some medical procedures, nurses can be lifesavers for several suffering people. Additionally, a nurse can double-check for any errors.
After all, the doctor is also a human. A nurse can go beyond by catching, fixing, flagging or stopping mistakes in the patient’s records or treatment protocols.
Bridge the Gap Between Patients and Resources
Healthcare centers experience a daily influx of patients from different statuses and cultural backgrounds. Not everyone is aware of the facilities a patient can get based on their chronic medical condition.
A nurse advocates for chronic illness patients by facilitating their and their families’ connections with the right resources inside and outside the hospital. Usually, a medical facility has resources, such as transportation, financial assistance, or caregiver support networks, to support a patient’s well-being.
A nurse can facilitate integration between patients and valuable medical resources to ensure optimal care for severely sick individuals.
Ensure Patients’ Safety
A patient’s safety comes first in every aspect.
However, when an individual with a chronic medical condition is going to be discharged from the hospital, the patient’s safety becomes more essential. The nurse can communicate with social workers or case managers to ensure the patient is safe at home.
Protect Patients’ Rights
Nurses are the front-line warriors who help patients come back to life after fighting prolonged and critical diseases.
A nurse can advocate for such patients by ensuring the basic five rights of medical administration before giving any medication to a patient, including:
- The right patient
- The right drug
- The right time
- The right dose
- The right route
Educate the Patients and Attendants
Lifestyle changes such as nutrition, physical activity, and excessive alcohol use can significantly impact chronic diseases. A change in the entire lifestyle is required to combat the long-term illness and strive against chronic conditions.
Patient advocacy in nursing involves educating patients and their families about the patient’s specific medical condition, the risk of rehospitalization, and health concerns regarding factors like smoking, consuming alcohol, or other diet restrictions.
While a healthcare practitioner may strongly recommend that the patient stop smoking, nurses can advocate for patients by providing them with outpatient programs to help them accomplish the particular goal.
Advocate for Better Working Conditions
Every patient’s care is affected by the environment in which it is provided and the individuals providing it. The nurse must get to work without being exhausted or burned out, as they are the ones who can bring out the best in the suffering individuals.
Additionally, rising stress levels in patients and their families have significant consequences for the overall health of patients, especially those with chronic medical issues.
A nurse can advocate for better working conditions by providing a good atmosphere for patients in the hospital or at home so that they can undergo treatment for their condition in the best way.
Bottom Line: Navigate the Maze of Chronic Illness
It is critical to understand how nurses can help patients assert their rights, connect with better resources, convey their message to the doctor, understand the doctor’s technical descriptions, and secure their required treatment.
Hence, nurse advocacy for chronic illness patients is essential to help those individuals wrestle with illness and get a fresh start to a healthy life.
Allied Health Services has an extensive pool of efficient nurses to help you with medical staffing in Houston, TX.
