Chapter 16: Creating a Healthy CommunityContent check — Population Health, Chapter 16: Creating a Healthy Community

When the community is the client, the nurse addresses the health needs of a community or population instead of one or more individual clients. Conducting health screenings for individuals in a specific town or city would help the nurse assess the health needs in the community.

Healthy People 2030 identifies voting, volunteering, participating in group activities and activities like community gardening, and participating in a recreational sports team as methods of civic participation. Such activities can benefit the health of individuals and populations.

Nurses should involve community members in community assessments to increase the likelihood that the community will embrace the change and participate in health programs.

The self-perception–self-concept pattern focuses on how community members perceive themselves and the role of the community.

During the diagnosis stage of the nursing process, the nurse analyzes the data collected to identify areas of opportunity in the community in the context of health. The nurse will identify patterns, trends, or key problems in the data that point to a need for intervention in order to improve health.

The RWJF Culture of Health initiative was developed to promote a shared understanding that good health is a fundamental right and essential to well-being and prosperity across the United States. Cross-sector collaboration involves organizations outside of those traditionally or directly associated with health care, such as schools and law enforcement, working together to support better health across communities.

Making health a shared value requires society as a whole to commit to developing power structures and social systems that allow access to health for all. The mindset and expectations, sense of community, and civic engagement of a community are all drivers of change toward making health a shared value.

The first stage of the nursing process is assessment. Data collected in this stage informs community health interventions. Without actual data from the community, the nurse would not be able to identify patterns, trends, or problems that indicate health risk or a need for support.

Holism is the concept that all parts of a whole are interconnected and do not exist or function without each other. When applied to community-based nursing, holism means that the nurse must consider that the whole community comprises multiple dimensions of health.

When applied to community health, Gordon’s health perception–health management pattern assesses the health and safety of a community, including its disaster plans and public safety.