Leading Health Indicators

There are many high-priority health issues otherwise known as Leading Health Indicators (LHIs) selected by the Healthy People initiative to improve the health of all Americans (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [DHHS] (2017a). These LHIs encompass every aspect of a person’s life from pre-conception through old age along with actions that can be taken to help the Healthy People initiative attain their set goals. The public health topic that I have chosen to discuss is substance abuse in the perinatal period. This interest falls under the Maternal, Infant, and Child Health (MICH) topic, specifically MICH-11.4 Increase abstinence from alcohol, cigarettes, and illicit drugs among pregnant women which also corresponds with MICH-8.1 Reduce low birth weight (LBW) and
In my role, I am often viewed as non-threatening, unlike the social workers, varying healthcare providers, and sometimes even the bedside nurses and because of this, the mothers of the newborns will sometimes share information with me that they did not divulge to the other healthcare providers. I try to ensure that the follow-up appointments are at a time and location that will enable the parents to access the needed health care as I know many of them struggle with transportation issues, the need to navigate around their other children’s schedules, and the challenges they face daily whether they are socioeconomic, psychological, or related to their level of education or language. A large part of my role is educating parents about their newborns and I believe that I could implement a change by informing the parents either verbally or with educational handouts on the effects of continued Cannabis use. As posited by Allender, Rector, and Warner (2014), teaching is the most important role in nursing and is vitally important to communities, groups, and families