NR 708 Week 2 - Healthcare Economics and Nursing Practice

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Differentiate macroeconomic versus microeconomic healthcare conditions that impact a healthcare stakeholder (patient, family, nurse, or other identified stakeholder) from a nursing perspective deriv... ed from your practice experience. There are many forces that help shape healthcare. Economic and social policy are two important factors that affect medical treatment in healthcare. The field of economics provides us with microeconomic and macroeconomic methods for distinguishing the positive economic impacts to health status changes. (Kotsopoulos & Connolly, 2014). Microeconomics focus on the cost and prevention of a disease or condition from an individual level Kotsopoulos & Connolly, 2014). During the allergy season, we see multiple cases of asthma exacerbation. This condition could be a burden on a patient with limited income or finances. The high cost of inhalers and other treatments, frequent visits to urgent care and emergency rooms, decreased quality of life and missed workdays should be considered when providing a treatment plan for these patients. As a DNP-prepared nurse, getting involved in policy changes that address asthma-related prevention on an individual and societal level could help decrease exacerbation episodes. For example, a policy that permits asthmatic children to carry their inhalers in school has been adopted by 47 states (American Lung Association, 2009). This initiative and individualized patient education on asthma prevention would be in the category of microeconomic methods for decreasing cost of asthma-related conditions. [Show More]

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