Health Promotion in Minority Groups

Health Promotion Proposal Family Nurse Practitioners (FNP) are registered nurses in advanced nursing practice who either work independently or alongside other health care professionals in the provision or delivery of family-centered care. In essence, these professionals primarily focus their healthcare services on the family unit because of the broad nature of the patient population. Some of the major health care responsibilities of these practitioners include developing treatment plans for chronic and acute illnesses and managing lifestyle and development issues relating to patient care.

These responsibilities or duties are sometimes geared towards health promotion and disease prevention initiatives. This proposal will focus on health promotion and/or disease prevention initiative that is specific to the role of a Family Nurse Practitioner. The identified target population for the health promotion or disease prevention initiative is minorities. The United States has four minority groups i.e. Native Americans, African-Americans, Asian/Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics.

The growth of this target population is relatively higher or greater than that of the white population even though one in every five Americans belongs to either of the groups. It is estimated that minority groups will account for nearly 40% of school-age Americans by 2020 (Nickens, 1990, p.133). The focus on health promotion for minority groups is influenced by the fact that their health status is significantly worse as compared to that of the white population.

The most common diseases that contribute to deaths among these minority groups include cancer, diabetes, liver disease, cardiovascular disease, and cirrhosis. AIDS has also been a major cause of deaths among minorities, particularly African-Americans whose prevalence is three times higher as compared to the white population. This population's initiatives towards disease prevention and health promotion have been largely affected by low socioeconomic status, insurance status, and alienation from government. This health promotion project will focus on establishing disease prevention programs that serve minority populations with regards to their health risks.

The health promotion model will incorporate health behavior-change strategies, establishing community-based prevention program, screening and preventive services, and fostering physician/patient relationship. In addition to these strategies, the health promotion program will also seek to promote lifestyle and behavior practices that contribute to better health and well-being. In this case, health promoters will critically consider the attitudes, values, life circumstances, and culture of the individual in relation to lifestyle and behavior and disease prevention.

The evaluation of these factors from an individual's perspectives will help in coping with the extraordinary diversity of these minority populations when promoting health. This specific problem applies to advanced practice in the role of the Family Nurse Practitioner since it revolves around the family unit, which helps in designing family-focused care as required for these practitioners. Moreover, this project applies to advanced practice in FNP's role since it incorporates some of the duties performed by these professionals i.e.

guiding patients on disease prevention and healthy lifestyle habits as well as managing lifestyle and development.