Role of nurses in providing awareness for women’s health issues
Health issues continue to threaten women’s well-being, all over the world, despite several breakthroughs in science and technology. Women’s wellness is vital to a healthy society; therefore, they require proper fitness training and counseling regarding the risk factors that may affect their health. While women seek proper health guidance, nurses play a significant role in helping them. They help them understand their bodily needs, diagnose their health problems, and provide them the substantial physical, emotional, and psychological care they require.
Nurses are the foundation of healthcare programs and plans aimed at creating a lasting effect on public well-being. These healthcare workers specialize in providing thorough care to women worldwide, from pre-conception, prenatal to postpartum care, and family planning services. Nurses play an essential role in providing awareness, healthcare, and proper treatment for women.
They examine, analyze, and record every symptom, reaction, development, or relapse as they face a patient. Moreover, they show compassion and support towards the patient throughout as they stand beside them to improve their emotional health, so they don’t delve into a pit of depression. They work in various settings including, clinics, community health centers, hospitals, education institutes, clinics, and nursing homes, to name a few.
Health nurses deal with conditions women suffer from daily; particularly, arthritis, osteoarthritis, migraine, breast cancer, menstruation, and depression, to name a few. However, the right and accessibility to healthcare services depend on the country they live in, the government policies, and cultural priorities. Nurses are equipped with proper qualifications, training, and experience to make women aware, diagnose and treat their health issues accordingly. Furthermore, they are prepared with a deep understanding of empathy to create a strong relationship with their patients. Suppose if you wish to practice nursing in any healthcare facility. In that case, you need to acquire an online masters of nursing to become a qualified nurse, eligible for professional work. They motivate the patients to overcome their weaknesses and gain strength to recover from their illnesses. Nurses have played a role in spreading awareness about women’s health issues and instilling wellness with their care and treatment.
Here are four ways nurses play their role in women’s health improvement and awareness.
EDUCATE ABOUT HEALTH RISKS
Nurses are not just healthcare workers. They are also health educators who guide women about the risk factors for various diseases. These conditions include breast cancer, heart disease, diabetes, depression, postpartum depression, the birth of preterms, low-birthweight, menopause, imbalanced menstruation, pregnancy issues, and so on. Nurses identify, analyze, and educate women about the causes of such conditions, the factors that trigger such diseases or disabilities. Subsequently, they guide women on how to avoid these risk factors to keep themselves healthy and fit. Nurses have multiple platforms to provide awareness about the health risks, knowledge about various harmful diseases, and how they can prevent them.
DIAGNOSE AND COUNSEL ABOUT HEALTH PROBLEMS
Nurses have a plan of action which they use to deal with several preventable diseases. They also serve as counselors; therefore, they begin by diagnosing the illness. They then counsel women about their health issues. This way, women will get knowledge about their bodies and health issues to counter the situation accordingly. An early diagnosis and a detailed account of a particular disease can help women control the disease and understand the extent to which it has spread inside the body. Counseling by nurses can help make this process a lot easier. Moreover, counseling helps women dealing with depression, anxiety, and other emotional distresses to fight the disease and recover sooner.
PROMOTE ORAL HEALTH
Nursing interventions help in promoting health and preventing diseases among women. These healthcare workers have the privilege to access a vast population of women in many settings they work in. Their opinions, advice, and endorsements matter to women of all ages who listen to them and implement accordingly. According to a study, poor oral hygiene affects a woman’s overall health; therefore, this initiative encourages a healthy lifestyle. Healthy habits among women lead to a wholesome life and inhibit any preventable disease.
ENCOURAGE ANNUAL SCREENING
Nurses have a vital role in motivating women to be more aware of their health and complex diseases. Therefore, their community health programs and awareness sessions encourage women to take up annual screenings seriously. Screening initiatives for prenatal, dental care for childbearing and adolescent women are essential. Health promotion activities by nurses can have significant impacts on the healthcare of women. Nurses conduct physical examinations and document medical history from scratch to understand the entire situation a patient is going through. Subsequently, the nurse can only give a conclusive explanation of a woman’s condition after having multiple screenings and examinations.
FINAL WORDS
In a nutshell, several nurses work independently without supervision to provide primary and specialty care for all women. Meanwhile, they educate patients about their health conditions, guide them about the preventive measure they can take to improve their health. They do more than any other healthcare professional to make women aware of their health issues. From educating women about the factors that cause health risks, counseling and diagnosing health problems to promoting oral health and encouraging annual examinations, nurses have done it all. They have created awareness and emphasized women’s health to a great extent. Enhancing community health is one of the main priorities of nurses that they have been doing dedicatedly, particularly for women.