Topic 1 DQ 1
Identify a population-based problem of interest you see in your community and identify relevant
outcomes you would like to see from mitigating the scope and effects of this problem. What role
would public health play in addressing this social issue? How is public health essential to the
health and well-being of your community, and how does public health relate to population-based
nursing? Support your response with examples and relevant literature.
Population-based problem identify an area of problem within the community that need to be
addressed by non-traditional approach utilizing different partners within the community.
Community health is the bridge that ties individual and population health together. According to
the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2019), population health “brings significant
, health concerns into focus and addresses ways that resources can be allocated to overcome the
problems that drive poor health conditions in the population.”
Social and physical environment play a major role in the determination of our health, making it a
vital part of our life. Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments in which
people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health,
functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks (HealthyPeople,gov, 2020). Healthy People
2020 focus on the importance of addressing social determinants by including a goal that states,
“create social and physical environments that promote good health for all.” It focuses on all
Americans having equal opportunity to make choices leading to good health. For this goal to be
met, there needs to be focus on disparities in all communities and addressing those disparities.
Health, educational, social, economic, and racial disparities need to be address and policies put in
place to help bridge the gaps. An important concept in the field of population health is attention
to the multiple determinants of health outcomes and the identification of their distribution
throughout the population (Cupp Curley, A. L., 2020).
Social and physical determinants can create a burden for the population due to future chronic
health conditions if it is not addressed at an early stage. Exposure to negative social environment
can lead to negative health effects. For example: A toxic relationship can lead to low self-esteem,
which may lead to lack of self-care, then poor mental health, and other chronic health conditions
such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, or high-risk condition. Health care experts needs to focus
on ways to promote preventive measures to address social determinants to avoid a burden on our
population. Prevention is best carried out at the population level, whether at the level of direct
care or through the support and promotion of policies (Cupp Curley, A. L., 2020).
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2019). What is population health? Retrieved
from https://www.cdc.gov/pophealthtraining/whatis.html