Primary Medicine Role of Nurses

Role Paper: Primary Medicine

Abstract

Introduction. Primary medicine is a fulfilling and exciting area for a nurse to work in. the role provides a nurse with the opportunity to develop a long-term nurse-patient relationship, thus, helping people manage their health within their communities. Nevertheless, working as a primary medicine nurse can also be very challenging; for instance, for one to be an excellent primary medicine nurse, he must be well organized and have excellent communication skills.

Analysis. Primary medicine nurses always take the responsibility of performing the very beginning patient physical consultation before examination by the physician. Thus, involving things like recording and measuring things such as vital signs, weight, and Hight. With the passage of the affordable care act, primary medicine has seen substantial changes in the delivery of primary care and nursing roles. The changes have put more focus on more team involvement and participation and expansion of functions of each team with registered nurses included. Primary medicine nurse also has to listen and record symptoms of injury or illness carefully. Whenever appropriate, the nurses also collect blood or mucus samples which can then be taken to the laboratory for studies to assist in infection and illness diagnosis.

Conclusion. Through the affordable care act, primary medicine nurses have been offered opportunities to improve direct patient care, restructure healthcare, provide political advocacy, and create innovative programmatic developments.

A. Introduction

Primary medicine is considered the first level of medical care. It is the care that patients get from minor injuries and illnesses and preventive medical procedures. In most instances, patients use the same nurses for primary health issues (Smolowitz et al., 2015). These nurses are known as primary medicine or care nurses. Subsequently, a primary medicine nurse is professional nursing working in a primary medicine setting. Primary medicine nurses must have appropriate skills in the daily basic nursing procedures. The nurse may face multiple ranges of medical challenges during working hours. Such problems may include minor illnesses like allergic reactions and colds (Maier et al., 2017). Nonetheless, the nurse can also decide to specialize in particular areas of medicine as a primary medicine nurse, thus, enabling the nurse to treat specific illnesses.

Consequently, specialized primary medicine nurses would be able to encounter patients depending on the nurse’s specialty. For instance, primary medicine nurses specializing in general family medicine can see patients of all ages. Besides, pediatric primary medicine nurses attend to children only, while primary medicine nurses specializing in geriatrics can only listen to elderly patients. Primary medicine nurses are more likely to interact with the patients regularly, get to know their patients quite well, and usually have a closer personal relationship (Maier et al., 2017). Consequently, working as a primary medicine nurse can sometimes be less stressful than other nursing professionals. For example, a primary medicine nurse rarely handles emergencies and typically has a predictable timetable with particular office hours (Smolowitz et al., 2015). Nevertheless, working as a primary medicine nurse can also be very challenging; for instance, for one to be an excellent primary medicine nurse, he must be well organized and have excellent communication skills.

Primary medicine is a fulfilling and exciting area for a nurse to work in. the role provides a nurse with the opportunity to develop a long-term nurse-patient relationship, thus, helping people manage their health within their communities. Furthermore, primary medicine is constantly improving, providing opportunities for one to work in several diverse settings. A nurse also gets a chance to collaborate with a host of other care and health providers. In addition, this role enables the nurse to directly get involved in people’s lives apart from their illnesses (Smolowitz et al., 2015).

Primary medicine is the first level of personalized healthcare in the community that ensures continual, accessible, and whole-person care for health requirements throughout an individual’s lifespan. In practice, primary medicine nurses work together with patients and their families to attend to their long-term and immediate health needs. In addressing such health needs, a nurse sets an approach that cares for the fundamental determinants of health and other related aspects that determines one’s mental, physical, and social well-being, other than a set of particular diseases only (Wilson et al., 2002). Nurses have a critical role to play in primary medicine in connecting, expanding, and coordinating care. Nurses’ work and training are better placed and have demonstrated effective and safe care in disease diagnosis, prevention, management, rehabilitation, and treatment.

There has been a dramatic shift of nurses away from primary medicine into the hospital setting in the recent past. The revitalization of primary treatment and the introduction of the patient-centered medical home across the United States have recognized multidisciplinary primary medicine’s importance (Smolowitz et al., 2015). Everyone is involved in activities that utilize their skills and knowledge entirely. The interest in teams has shifted attention on the roles carried out by all primary medicine team members, plus a renewed attitude in practice of nurses capable of using their training and clinical skills and working with a greater confidence level (Maier et al. 2017). Studies in exemplary primary medicine have started to establish critical domains of nurses’ practice in primary medicine, including management of chronic illnesses, preventive care, transition care, care management, and practice operation.

Subsequently, The American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nurses fronted the establishment of position papers on nurses’ role in ambulatory care with primary medicine included. Ambulatory care nursing was a complex, multifaceted specialty providing collaborative and independent practice (Maier et al., 2017). Likewise, nurses advance wellness, help the patients manage the effects of chronic diseases, give support in end-of-life care, and participate in acute illness management.

Also, there is a need to collaborate between primary medicine and public health to improve primary medicine (Wilson et al., 2002). The public health system is generally driven to administer the management of infectious diseases, monitor the environment, and help in health promotion. While primary medicine is usually the first point to healthcare access, availing general healthcare throughout from infancy to adulthood. Collaboration between public health and primary medicine systems can be valuable when management and care delivery are complex (Maier et al., 2017). Examples of the care areas that would benefit from primary medicine and public health care include management of infectious diseases like influenza, chronic disease care like asthma, diabetes, child/maternal healthcare, and care of the vulnerable population undergoing social and health inequalities.

Nonetheless, primary medicine and public health collaboration can be strained by the fragmentation of healthcare. In this case, collaboration refers to healthcare professionals helping one another in complementary roles work towards a common goal to enhance patient care. According to workforce analysis, nurses are the most significant health professionals collaborating in the two systems (Smolowitz et al., 2015). Due to their vast numbers, registered nurses and licensed practical nurses play a critical role in strengthening primary medicine and public health collaboration. Primary health care nurses’ scope of practice includes health collaboration, promotion, and care of chronic diseases; thus, they should be considered in the renewal of primary healthcare (Maier et al., 2017).

On the other hand, there is a need to optimize and clarify registered nurses’ role in primary medicine and public health collaboration using their skills to prevent diseases, collaboration, and health promotion. Yet, the absence of the registered nurse’s role competency standards and clarification and structural problems like restrictive funding models that hinder team-based care interferes with the uptake of the registered nurse role (Wilson et al., 2002).

B. Analysis

Primary medicine nurses are usually the first medical professionals who directly contact the patients, even before their initial scheduled appointments. Contrary to theoretical perception, primary medicine nurses may handle phones within a bustling healthcare facility that includes arranging for meetings addressing patients’ complaints and concerns, and in some cases recording patients’ information. Additionally, primary medicine nurses are the first point of contact responsible for extending a warm and friendly check-in and greeting (Maier et al., 2017). The nurses must collect medical insurance information, any payments due, and confirm appointments at such times.

Also, primary medicine nurses always take the responsibility of performing the very beginning patient physical consultation before examination by the physician. Thus, involving things like recording and measuring things such as vital signs, weight, and Hight. If not enough, a primary medicine nurse must also carefully listen and record symptoms of injury or illness (Wilson et al., 2002). Whenever appropriate, the nurses also collect blood or mucus samples which can then be taken to the laboratory for studies to assist in infection and illness diagnosis. Such serious roles are theoretically presumed to belonging to lab technologists or general nurse practitioners.

Besides, as a primary medicine nurse, you will always be responsible for patient care directly. This includes activities like administering treatment to the patient once the diagnosis has been made. Based on the injury or illness, it might involve changing a dressing or administering medication. Theoretically, primary medicine nurse does not help treatment; however, such roles as dispensing treatment exist in practical practice. Primary medicine nurses also have the function of preventive medical procedures (Maier et al., 2017). It involves conducting regular checkups. The primary medicine nurses are sometimes called upon to offer support and assistance during vaccinations and health screenings.

On the other hand, access to primary medicine in the United States has highly been influenced by implementing programs, policies, and federal healthcare legislation. Irrespective of the fact that healthcare legislation in America aimed at creating equity in access to health care, several Americans still have no access to quality healthcare due to several reasons like income and socioeconomic factors, ethnicity or race, and employment (Cogan, 2011). To improve access to primary medicine, minimize high costs in medical care, and enhance the quality of care, legislators established the patient protection and affordable care act, commonly known as the affordable care act. The affordable care act essential provisions include things like: modifying Medicaid eligibility, enabling individuals without dependents and with low income to be eligible for Medicaid, compelling individuals to have health insurance or be penalized, and also giving children the opportunity to be under their parent’s insurance cover until they attain the 26th birthday (Peikes et al. 2020). Such changes resulted in an increased number of people seeking primary medicine, thus, impacting the operationalization and organization of primary medicine.

Subsequently, with the passage of the affordable care act, primary medicine has seen substantial changes in the delivery of primary care and nursing roles. The changes have put more focus on more team involvement and participation and expansion of roles of each team with registered nurses included. Most registered nurses strengthen collaboration across public health and primary medicine sectors at organizational and interpersonal levels. Throughout the globe, nurses carry out an ever-critical role to deliver direct healthcare services. Moreover, considering global social and health inequalities rise, nurses’ activities and functions strengthen primary healthcare systems by improving access to care, prevention, and increasing health promotion (Peikes et al., 2020). Nurses also contribute to improved collaboration at the organizational level through heightened communication information pathways and personal connections. Based on works, developing and sustaining relationships can be more critical than structural considerations like colocation.

Also, the affordable care act has necessitated the increase in primary medicine givers. The act compelled most Americans to secure health insurance plans, increasing to over 24 million Americans seeking primary medicine services across the country. With the implementation of the affordable care act, healthcare systems experienced an influx of dynamic patients with complex medical needs, hence, the increased demand for nurses to help meet their needs (Cogan, 2011). In addition, the majority of the new insured patients tend to access care through primary medicine, causing a severe shortage of primary medicine nurses, while around 25% of the graduates only usually plan their career in primary medicine. Consequently, according to the agency of healthcare research and quality, it is estimated that in 2010, around 52% of the direct medical services were provided by the general nurses to bridge the gap with primary medicine nurses.

In addition, the enactment of the affordable care act has also established leadership roles for primary medicine nurses. It also provided an opportunity for the primary medicine nurses to showcase their expertise for direct patient care and created new avenues for the nurses, programmatic design, and community leadership. Some primary medicine nurses took responsibility for educating the communities to understand the affordable care act legislation and designed new health initiatives (Peikes et al., 2020). Since the affordable care act is a complex law, most of the communities did not understand its potential impact on their lives; therefore, its benefits could not be utilized by patients minus the presence of primary medicine nurses who doubled as the community health educators the providers (Smolowitz et al. 2015). To ensure that most Americans benefit from the affordable plan, primary care nurses who provide services to patients without health insurance assist the patient in understanding the value of securing coverage (Cogan, 2011). They also educate them on how the legislation will access Medicare without cost and encourage such patients’ caregivers to secure health cover.

Another impact of the affordable care act on primary medicine is the establishment of policies that strengthened primary medicine delivery. Even though the affordable care act was signed into law, it needed health policy advocates to help implement its provisions. For instance, there was a recommendation that primary medicine nurses form part of the physicians and other professionals in the healthcare to redesign the United States healthcare. As such, primary medicine nurses have to serve in some strategic committees, thus, their presence in all levels of the state and decision-making committees. With the Affordable Care Act’s enactment, Primary medicine nurses have also focused on microscopic views and a system-wide approach to preparing young graduands to take over leadership within the changing healthcare system (Cogan, 2011).

Furthermore, the nurses developed advocacy skills and policy knowledge through participation in healthcare professional organizations and internships. Bearing that policymakers usually lack clinical experience, they would establish policies that do not target or reflect the clinical requirement of the population (Peikes et al., 2020). As a result, primary medicine nurses are expected to bridge this gap between policy development and clinical medicine.

Likewise, the affordable care act has prompted the removal of legal and professional barriers hindering the delivery of primary medicine. Through the affordable care act, primary medicine nurses have been offered opportunities to improve direct patient care, restructure healthcare, provide political advocacy, and create innovative programmatic developments (Cogan, 2011). Nevertheless, some barriers were the threats to the full realization of primary medicine healthcare leadership in the healthcare reform. Because primary medicine nurses provide primary care to the increasing number of American patients, the IOM report of 2010 indicated the need for full-scope practice minus restrictions (Peikes et al., 2020).

With the population health focus, nurses perform new roles in a new healthcare system. Transition and improved care coordination between sectors are supported nurses’ roles, highlighting their importance in the change management process with any efforts of healthcare reform (Wilson et al. 2002). As care coordinators and outreach professionals, nurses increased access to primary medicine and public health, particularly with populations made vulnerable by various health determinants like those living near or on the street and facing homelessness (Maier et al., 2017). The primary medicine role is, therefore, key in the management of outbreaks of diseases. In actual application, the nurse’s role in primary medicine goes beyond the office setting wall to provide care within the community from inter-organizational to system and interpersonal levels.

Besides, there is minimal evidence of nurses’ roles in primary medicine at the system level. Multiple policies and political and structural workforce hinder nurses’ collaborative work at the system and inter-organizational levels. Moreover, government policy, structural barriers, and societal attitudes that include lack of funding criteria GP private practice to support primary medicine nursing, and the fiscal constraints hinder the nurses’ roles. Furthermore, minus proper consideration in role development, nurses’ roles in primary medicine may disintegrate into activities and roles that focus only on acute care delivered to groups missing out on essential health promotion and prevention activities. In the performance of collaborative roles, nurses are more engaged by the public health than nurses working in primary medical practice; due to particular public health nurses’ expertise like community outreach, collaboration, relationship building, and a minimal number of primary medicine nurses in North America primary medicine setting. Furthermore, structural issues like fees for service remuneration and the fact that primary medicine is and public health are separate entities also contribute to nurses’ employment barriers in primary medicine (Smolowitz et al., 2015).