Introduction The Black Nurses Association was founded in Tuskegee, Alabama at the Nursing School of Tuskegee University under the great leadership of Dr. Lauranne Sams, which was the former Dean and Professor of Nursing. This organization was organized and began establishment in the year of 1971. However, the Black Nurses Association did not get founded officially until September 2, 1972 in the State of Ohio and became a non-profit organization.
This illustrious association represents over 150,000 African American registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, student nurses, and retired nurses all around the world, but mainly in the United States, Eastern Caribbean, and Africa. The founding of the Black Nurses Association was a positive milestone for the history of African American nurses, and it was amongst the era of many other historic organizations such as the NAACP and many other civil rights movements that were focus and driven for the African American people.
Mission and Goals of the Association The National Black Nurses Association’s mission is “to represent and provide a forum for Black nurses to advocate and implement strategies to ensure access to the highest quality of healthcare for persons of color”. This mission is an extreme reflection of what was happening in the era of in which this association was founded. In the 1960’s and 1970’s African American people did not have the same rights as Caucasian people, and it was a crucial time for African American people.
Therefore, having a safe haven for black nurses to go to express their thoughts, feelings, and suggest their ideas to improve health care for the black community, without being ridiculed was an amazing and powerful start of something great. The goals of the National Black Nurses Association “to unite black nurses to influence health care services for black people and to promote the inclusion of blacks in nursing education and nursing leadership positions. ” Identification of an Issue The National Black Nurses Association have many issues they work to fixing and making better as in helping to improve African American health care services.
Such as the Coca Cola Initiative to help African American people with poor eating habits to begin a healthier and active lifestyle. However, there is one issue that is extremely common in the African American community and that is diabetes. Diabetes is a disease in which the blood glucose levels are not normal and if not treated daily can affect many major organs in the body, such as the heart (“Preventing Diabetes | Basics | Diabetes | CDC,” n. d. ). According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, diabetes is one of the top ten illness that lead to the death of African American people.
Health Needs of a Culturally Diverse Society Related to Issue Diabetes is a disease that hit the United States hard every year. According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, is the seventh leading cause of death in people in the United States, with 29 million people living with the diseases today! People who have diabetes and those at risk for the disease need to contact their physician and create a health care plan to improve their eating habits. In addition to visiting your health care provider, an individual can attend diabetic support groups which are also very helpful.
Family members should encourage their loved one to attend and accompany them. The more knowledgeable a family is about their loved ones illness the better they will be at helping them manage their condition successfully (Mell, 2008). Since African American people or more at risk than other races and cultures, individuals with diabetes can help others and themselves with changing the types of food prepared at family gathers, and to reframe from using excessive fatty foods or food with a large amount of sugar in it. Or to even change some ingredients in food that require large amounts of sugar to reduce the sugar intake level.
Ethical/ Legal Concerns in Delivery of Health Care Related to Issue. One legal concern about diabetes and the medication that corresponds with the disease is that of if a nurse gives a patient the wrong dosage of insulin in the hospital. That can turn into a legal issue, because the nurse knows the laws about patients and administering medication, and once done wrong the nurse can lose their practicing license and have to stand before a judge. In the ethical aspect, some patients might receive the news that they have the diabetes diseases and can refuse to take the medication, because of their culture and religious beliefs.
Specific Nursing Roles and Educational Preparations of Nurses Related to Issue. In order for a nurse to effectively treat a patient with diabetes, they must first be well informed and educated about the disease. Nurses, along with the physician, should help the patient fully understand diabetes and all the precautions taken to treat the diseases. Nurses should sit down with their patient and have a motivational interviewing session and find the patient’s life style and eating habits, and then point out things they should change with their help with making a new plan for their life (Woods, 2010).
Future Impact on Professional Nursing Practice Related to Issue With the forever changing field such as nursing, it is natural to know that there will be more information about the diabetes diseases and treatments in the future. Technology is becoming so advanced that the way nurses and physicians treat patients in the past has changed drastically within the last past five to ten years. Professional nurses will have to adjust to the technology and treatment changes in the near future.
One Strategy to Resolve the Issue Obese individuals and individuals over 45 of age are at higher risk to getting diabetes, than any other group of people (“Preventing Diabetes | Basics | Diabetes | CDC,” n. d. ). Therefore, there are many ways to prevent or reduce the diabetes disease, such as changing your eating habits and the amount of sugar one intakes a day. However, exercising and weight loss is also a great way to prevent or reduce the risk of getting the disease. Going to the gym and working out at least thirty minutes a day can help reduce the risk.
Also, walking in your neighborhood for a least thirty minutes a day or performing at home exercises. In addition to going to the gym, walking, and performing at home exercises, joining a work out group and working out in groups can help encourage a person to want to lose weight and create a better body image for themselves. Conclusion Eventuality, the National Black Nurses Association is a great organization that focuses on improving the health care services for African American people, that also has thousands of African American people represented in the association.
The National Black Association has many issue they put effort into improving in the black community such as, obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Diabetes is one of the top ten leading deaths in African American people in the United States ( Mell, 2008). Therefore, there are many ways that diseases can be treated, prevented, and reduced. Nurses have a huge responsibility with educating patients and helping them create a care plan to improve a patients overall well-being and the lifestyle.
