Please answer each post seperatly. Each peer response needs 2 citations. each response should be a paragraph .
Response Posts: Comment on at least two posts that reviewed stories different from those you selected. How do you think that nurses could be involved in promoting these kinds of projects? Find an article in a peer reviewed nursing journal to support at least one of your response posts. Provide a brief description of the article and how it relates to the post.
Underlying many of the social determinants of health and illness is extreme poverty. No solutions to global health problems can be examined without addressing this core issue. Our discussion will focus on U.S. and international involvement to end global poverty. Prior to participating in this week’s discussion, please explore the World BankLinks to an external site. and USAIDLinks to an external site. websites. Become familiar with their mission and philosophy. Review some of the reports and stories. Look for examples related to your country of interest on the USAID storiesLinks to an external site. website.
1. Andrea
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are the non-medical factors that influence an individual’s health outcomes. The personal factors that contribute to health outcomes include their place of residence, their race or ethnicity, their occupation, their gender, their religion, their educational status, their socioeconomic position, and their social capital (Jacobsen, 2024). All these factors can significantly impact health outcomes. Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere with the majority of its population living in poverty (Rasul et al., 2022). Access to healthcare, education, clean water, and sanitation facilities, and hygiene practices is limited for many Haitians, especially those living in rural areas. These components are critical social determinants of health that can have profound effects on individuals and communities. Two articles found on the USAID and World Bank websites discuss how they are addressing many of the SDOH experienced in Haiti by providing assistance related to food insecurity, cholera, health care, and clean water and sanitation.
In an article on the USAID website, it is reported that USAID has provided Haiti with $110 million in humanitarian assistance in 2023 to help respond to urgent needs, particularly related to malnutrition, gender-based violence, child protection violations, and cholera. This funding will help provide vital food assistance to 4.9 million people who face acute food insecurity. In addition, these funds will provide access to safe drinking water and health care (USAID, 2023). The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this article are Zero Hunger, Good Health and Well-being, and Clean Water and Sanitation.
An article on the World Bank website discusses the Decentralized Sustainable and Resilient Rural Water and Sanitation Project for Haiti. The objective of this project is to increase access to inclusive, resilient, and sustainable rural basic water and sanitation services. A component of this project, the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Response to Cholera and Emergency Preparedness, aims to support immediate cholera response measures, strengthen the sanitation and hygiene in ten cholera-affected communities of the country, and build a WASH sector capacity for emergency response to floods, droughts, cyclones, and outbreaks of vector-borne and waterborne diseases (World Bank, 2024). The U.N. Sustainable Development Goal that is applicable to this article is Clean Water and Sanitation.
Nurses can make significant contributions to help end global poverty through various means. Nurses can educate communities about basic hygiene practices, disease prevention, nutrition, and family planning. By promoting healthy behaviors, they can help prevent diseases that contribute to poverty by reducing healthcare costs and increasing productivity. Nurses can provide primary healthcare services, including immunizations, prenatal care, and treatment for common illnesses. By delivering healthcare services directly to underserved communities, nurses can improve health outcomes and reduce the economic burden of preventable diseases. Nurses can advocate for policies and programs that address the social determinants of health, such as access to clean water, sanitation, education, and economic opportunities. Nurses can provide essential healthcare services during natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and conflicts. By responding to emergencies and providing medical care to affected populations, nurses can help alleviate suffering and prevent further economic devastation. Nurses can collaborate with other healthcare professionals, community organizations, and government agencies to develop comprehensive strategies for poverty reduction (Rosa et al., 2019).
Nurses can play important roles at organizations like USAID and the World Bank, drawing upon their expertise in healthcare delivery, public health, and community engagement to support global development efforts (Salvage & White, 2020). Nurses can serve as program managers or advisors for health projects funded by USAID or the World Bank. They can provide technical expertise in designing, implementing, and evaluating healthcare programs focused on maternal and child health, infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases, or other priority areas. Nurses can train healthcare workers and community health volunteers to improve healthcare delivery and strengthen health systems. Nurses can also contribute to the development of health policies, guidelines, and strategies at the national and international levels. They can advocate for evidence-based policies that promote equitable access to healthcare services, address social determinants of health, and advance health equity and human rights.
2. Brenda
Flooding in Brazil
Earlier this year, not for the first time, the picturesque mountain town of Petropolis in Rio de Janeiro faced intense rain, flooding, and landslides. There are areas of luxurious mansions, and others on the poor side with several unfinished but inhabited houses close to each other near cliffs. The latter is on the worst end of the disaster. Based on my experience from living in Brazil, one of the many fears is infected rats’ urine contaminating the flood water, causing an outbreak of leptospirosis.
According to USAID’s press release (2022), the agency provided $100,000 for humanitarian assistance, and at least 3,000 people had to be displaced and their homes destroyed. All it took was one afternoon of torrential rain for the disaster to happen; the amount of rain was equivalent to one month’s worth. USAID’s partner the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) will use the funding to supply the population with buckets, hygiene kits, bedding, cleaning supplies, and more. The USNDGs for this situation include climate action, no more poverty, and sustainable cities and communities. Climate change needs to be combated, and in this case, the poorer residents build multiple illegal unsafe housing close to the edge of the mountains and disappear into the landslides (UN.org, n.d.). Nurses can evaluate the needs of the affected population; monitor the safety of the food and water supply, place them in housing; reunite family members; evaluate disaster nursing response actions, and so on (Flaubert et al., 2021).
Gender-Based Violence (GBV)
One-third of women 15 and older in the world have suffered physical and sexual violence from an intimate partner or non-parter during their lives. Approximately 49% of women have never sought help for the problem whether because of embarrassment, or fear, they are told this is normal and a part of life, or they cannot disgrace their family. When they seek help, it will usually be with their family, partner’s family, or friends; seldom will they resort to other resources. In the northern provinces of Mozambique, for instance, women have to walk far for food and water, making them vulnerable to attacks. World Bank has helped a project in which the situation is assessed, and victims are referred to trained professionals such as the police and health workers (World Bank, 2022). The appropriate USNDG is gender equality as an innate human right (UN. org). Nurses can campaign against GBV, educate men and women alike, observe for signs of abuse when assessing a patient, wait for her husband to leave, and know how to act (Ruiz-Hernandez, M.D., et al., 2022).
Nurses and Global Poverty
Nurses are a bridge between healthcare and social determinants. A can-do attitude with the use of the available healthcare funding is an important part of a nurse’s character. As direct care providers, educators, researchers, and advocates, nurses can teach the needed culture shift and transformational changes in healthcare. This can be done within communities and organizations such as the World Bank and USAID, and nurses persuade healthcare providers, institutions, and countries that poverty results from environmental conditions and that these social determinants affect us globally (Francis, L. et al., 2018).
