AARP Presentation: Role of the Nurse
The American Association for Retired Persons (AARP) is an organization that is becoming very popular within this society, providing services for citizens over the 50 age group. This is a nonprofit organization aimed at assisting people over 50 years of age achieve health goals as well as the personal desire of maintaining independence for as long as they live. This is a phenomenal accomplishment for an organization in existence since 1958 ( ).
Beside these long term objectives of improving the quality of life for people over 50 years old, AARP has embarked on organizing tours; providing health insurance at very affordable prices, auto insurance at great reductions and more benefits are in progress. AARP has a code of conduct for officers as well as members and maintains high integrity in execution of services to its members.
These opening remarks are simply reminders of how important AARP is to the 50 year old American public. Everyone can testify of the benefits of AARP in this society, but have you ever thought about the roles of nurses in AARP or considered what you can do to help nurses function more efficiently in providing the services available to your distinguished age group category? Did you know that you help through legislation forge politicians to awards more benefits for the over 50 age group?
Today three key roles nurses play in assisting you achieve the goal of prolonging independence and high quality life style, will be discussed. Also, legislative measures will be described whereby you could have the privilege of supporting to ensure that nurses play a greater role in helping you achieve your personal health goals.
Nurses function as promoters of health, they are interventionists and they deliver actual health care services when people become ill. These three roles are closely linked to the concepts primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare. At some time you may need one or more of these services as you continue living.
The role of nurses is to promote health. Health promotion as was explained is a primary health care strategy. You may be pondering, what is primary healthcare, health promotion and strategy. Primary healthcare is defined by World health organization as better health for all (WHO, 2012). This means that more services will be made available to individuals so they do not have to become sick before being seen by the doctor.
For this to be possible the nurse has to promote values of seeing doctors regularly, taking medication as prescribed; responding to routine screening such as mammograms; colonoscopies and ultrasound evaluations among others, which the primary care or specialists may request from time to time. Here is where the nurse works with groups such as AARP influencing this age group to be alert concerning their health in relation to the services available to them. As such, he/she becomes the health promoter within their community.
In a more significant way the role of the nurse in health promotion is to coordinate care. By coordinating care as a health promoter in the primary health care category there are strategies or techniques to apply. Scientists define strategy as a technique and a technique is adopting an art or skill in performing a task or executing a procedure ( Dictionary, 2012). Some of the skills nurses use in carrying out their roles are; listening, effective communication and empathy.
When discussing the role of a nurse as an interventionists, you need not become too concerned with the length of the word neither its meaning. Simply, an interventionist is one who steps up when a situation tends to go beyond its normal boundaries. For example we just discussed the nurse as a health promoter in primary health. Suppose all the measures you have taken to avoid being hospitalized fails and somehow there is the need to be admitted. Here3 is where the role of the become as an interventionist becomes evident because it is going beyond promoting to having to intervene when there is a situation of concern requiring another level of healthcare.
It must be noted that you may see these nurses functioning in emergency care settings, on the medical surgical wards of hospitals and in the communities when there is a disaster. As AARP members you benefit from these services when you arrive at the clinics for procedures or for hospital care. Their role is visible as interventionists in the secondary aspect of healthcare delivery.
The third and very important role of the nurse, which is rather significant to the over 50 age group, is the nurse as a caregiver in long-term care capacity. Long term care is closely linked to the tertiary level of health care in United States of America. Conditions such as stroke, certain of cancers, accidents, fractures do arrive at tertiary level care institutions. If they do not enter long term care facilities they may decide to remain at home. The role of a nurse would then be to make regular visits collaborating and rendering care.
In this case collaboration of care is unlike the primary care setting. It means providing the client with appropriate services to either aid in urgent recovery or offer opportunities of still maintaining a high quality of life should disability be out come. Again it is no one’s desire to arrive this level of care. However, no one knows about tomorrow and even though many of you under the sound of my voice do not plan on this as an end of life stage, it is important that you advocate for better nursing intervention at all levels of nursing the care arena.
At this point of my discourse, it is imperative you become aware that even though the role of nurses is so extensive, ask yourself how many people over 50 can access quality health care in this country today. AARP has come a long way in helping people over age 50 to access some type of healthcare services. How many insurances cover long term care outside of a long term healthcare facility.
If someone is discharged and does not have relevant insurance to cover the cost of home care until full recovery what becomes of that person? In today’s society relatives are too busy working to pay bills rather than spend time with a sick relative. It is imperative then that you take action in supporting the bipartisan Home Health Planning and Improvement Act (H.R. 2267/S.
This bill was ‘introduced by Representatives Greg Walden (R-OR) and Allyson Schwartz (D-PA) and Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Kent Conrad (D-ND). It would allow advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) - nurse practitioners (NPs), clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), certified nurse midwives (CNMs), physician assistants (PAs) - to order home health services and meet the face-to-face requirement under Medicare in accordance with state law. Over the next 10 years this law would save $309.5 million’ (ANA, 2012).
In explaining, the significance of this piece of legislation to persons over 50 is to reinforce that while healthcare reform attempts to make health care services accessible there are barriers to this accessibility. For example even when home health AID services are apparent to the nurse who may be providing tertiary level care, a patient can be denied such services if a primary care physician refuses to order it.
This piece of legislation is worth your vote because persons your age do not need to be without home healthcare after being discharged if the primary care or specialist does not order it. Home Health Planning and Improvement Act (H.R. 2267/S will empower nurses with greater responsibility for the well-being of person your age. They will be the ones prescribing your home healthcare needs.
In concluding this discourse you have been given tools by which to enhance the benefits AARP has been providing over the years. You have learnt about roles nurses play to support the aims and objects of AARP. They encompass being health promoters in the primary health category, health care interventionists as secondary healthcare practitioners and healthcare specialist as tertiary healthcare workers.
Therefore, in aligning ourselves with the aims and objectives of AARP, nurses wish to provide a better service to this over 50 year age group. You can help us by supporting a bill that matters, Home Health Planning and Improvement Act (H.R. 2267/S.It would empower these first level health care providers to honor decisions to prescribe the excellent home health you desire.
American Nurses Association (2012). When Nurses Speak Washington Listens. ANA. Gov
AARP(2012). Aims, Codes, Objectives. AARP News
Online Dictionary (2012). Technique Definition. Goggle.
World Health Organization (2012) Primary HealthCare definition. WHO Geneva
