Introduction
The community in question is that of the city of Miami, Florida. It is a vibrant, dynamic, and quite active community. From the windshield survey that was conducted earlier, it is evident that the elderly and disabled individuals comprise a vulnerable population in Miami. This paper is aimed at discussing this population in more detail, identifying the specific problems they face, and exploring the opportunities available for a community health care nurse to help address the needs of this population.
Vulnerable Population Overview
The vulnerable group in question group includes people that are above approximately 60-65 years old (the age varies, for some individuals feel better at a particular age than others) and have different types of disabilities, especially the ones which hinder their movement.
On the whole, it was noted that these groups of individuals experience problems pertaining to movement, for there is a dearth of ramps, as well as of stairs with handrails, which poses an additional barrier to their already hindered movement and the increased risk of falls. In addition, due to their problems with conveyance, they may experience additional problems pertaining to the access to various medical facilities; it is particularly difficult for them to reach a medical clinic if they need to, so many elderly or disabled individuals may opt to skip a visit to a medic due to the need to go there. There is a lack of resources for providing these people with remote medical care at home, and that makes it difficult for them to address their health care needs, which are often numerous among elderly persons and/or individuals with disabilities (Nies & McEwen, 2015).
Strengths, Risk Factors, and Barriers
During the windshield survey, it was observed that families often tend to be full, which makes it possible to assume that the elderly individuals also may have relatives who might help them deal with their problems and provide assistance when it is especially needed; the presence of a family is a strength of the discussed vulnerable population.
Nevertheless, there exist numerous risk factors for the health of the discussed population. On the whole, it should be noted that many problems of the elderly population are related to a phenomenon called frailty (Clegg, Young, Iliffe, Rikkert, & Rockwood, 2013). Frailty can be described as a state of vulnerability which is a result of a continuous decrease of the functioning of a variety of physiological systems over an individual’s lifespan; due to frailty, persons often experience disproportionate adverse health outcomes resulting from relatively minor stressor events (Clegg et al., 2013). The decline in a person’s health also affects their musculoskeletal and perception systems, considerably hindering their ability to move, as well as making them more vulnerable to disabilities (Chatterji, Byles, Cutler, Seeman, & Verdes, 2015). Thus, frailty is a considerable risk factor for elderly individuals, which often results in disability and worsens their ability to move, which then plays the role of a barrier to gaining the required health care.
Community Resources
There exist several resources for the elderly people, such as home care services (Miami Home Care Sevices, n.d.), as well as similar services targeted at certain subpopulations (Miami Jewish Health Systems, n.d.). Nevertheless, despite the availability of some such resources, it appears that these are not sufficient in order to satisfy all the medical needs of the elderly persons in the community.
Community Health Problem Diagnosis
A community health problem pertaining to the identified population (elderly individuals, including those with disabilities) is related to the access of elderly people to health care facilities. In particular, this problem includes the need to identify those elderly individuals who have a disability or find it difficult to move around the city, which prevents them from appropriate institutionalization, eliminating their ability to receive appropriate health care from the community. This health problem is described in the Objective #8 on the website of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (2017): “OA-8 (Developmental): Reduce the proportion of noninstitutionalized older adults with disabilities who have an unmet need for long-term services and supports” (para. 8).
A community health care nurse could help address both the problem of availability of home health care service for the elderly individuals and the issue of institutionalization of such persons. It is possible for a community health care nurse to network with her/his colleagues in order to advocate for increasing the number of such services provided for elderly people; a nurse can also organize campaigns aimed at informing the population about the available health care programs for the elderly and disabled, which could increase the rates of institutionalized elderly disabled individuals by providing them with the information about opportunities they were not previously aware of.
Summary
Thus, some of the difficulties that the elderly and disabled people experience pertain to their ability to move. These people are exposed to such a risk factor as frailty, which makes them vulnerable to many adverse factors; the decline in the musculoskeletal and perception systems creates a barrier to their free movement, reducing their access to health care facilities. There is apparently a lack of resources for providing home health care for this group. A nurse could help address the needs of this population by advocating for the creation of additional health care providing such services, as well as by organizing campaigns aimed at increasing the rates of institutionalization of persons from this group by spreading information about the available services. This problem is of paramount importance if the quality of life of elderly persons is to be improved. Therefore, it is pivotal to address the identified issues to help the elderly receive the health care they are due to.
References
Chatterji, S., Byles, J., Cutler, D., Seeman, T., & Verdes, E. (2015). Health, functioning, and disability in older adults–present status and future implications. The Lancet, 385(9967), 563-575.
Clegg, A., Young, J., Iliffe, S., Rikkert, M. O., & Rockwood, K. (2013). Frailty in elderly people. The Lancet, 381(9868), 752-762.
Miami Home Care Sevices. (n.d.). Home care for Miami-Dade county seniors.
Miami Jewish Health Systems. (n.d.). Senior care and independent living.
Nies, M. A., & McEwen, M. (2015). Community/public health nursing: Promoting the health of populations (6th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders/Elsevier.
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2017). Older adults (new).