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Health Disparities & Solutions

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Health Disparities Solutions: Nurses Can Make a Difference

Can Nurses make a difference in reducing health disparities? I believe we can make a big difference, Nurses can work with communities in a “grassroots” type movement to bring attention to the gravity of the inequities built into our current healthcare system. Healthcare is first and foremost about people, and care should be directed by the needs of the people it serves. Secondly, caring is foundational to nursing and this is a concept must be deeply woven throughout all points of health care. The third aspect is the vast pit of inequalities in healthcare; the injustices, denial of treatment and quality healthcare to minorities and the disadvantaged poor. Nurses are known patients advocates, therefore nurses are well equipped, to become leaders, in constructing equitable changes in the system and improve the model of care. Nurses are well- appointed in their understanding, negotiating skills, knowledge of healthcare and patient centered care, to provide guidance and direction to implement meaningful changes. Research in health disparities has identified, that the U.S is burdened by huge social and economic inequalities; it identifies, discrimination, social status, income inequality, and policy decisions as the principal causes of health disparities. The nursing profession needs to reconsider its role and its purpose in reducing health disparities, they need to be proactive in establishing, nurse-managed primary care clinics in under -served areas to increase healthcare access and promote preventative care. Numerous societal barriers as well as constraints within the nursing profession, must be acknowledged and addressed, such as licensed restrictions for nurses and practitioners which inhibits the development of their capacity for decision-making. Nurses should work

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