NRS 428 week 4 Benchmark – Policy Brief
NRS 428 week 4 Benchmark.The benchmark assesses the following competencies:
1.4 Participate in health care policy development to influence nursing practice and health care.
Research public health issues on the “Climate Change” or “Topics and Issues” pages of the American Public Health Association (APHA) website. Investigate a public health issue related to an environmental issue within the U.S. health care delivery system and examine its effect on a specific population.
Write a 750-1,000-word policy brief that summarizes the issue, explains the effect on the population, and proposes a solution to the issue.
Follow this outline when writing the policy brief:
Describe the policy health issue. Include the following information: (a) what population is affected, (b) at what level does it occur (local, state, or national), and (c) evidence about the issues supported by resources.
Create a problem statement.
Provide suggestions for addressing the health issue caused by the current policy. Describe what steps are required to initiate policy change. Include necessary stakeholders (government officials, administrator) and budget or funding considerations, if applicable.
Discuss the impact on the health care delivery system.
Include three peer-reviewed sources and two other sources to support the policy brief.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.
NRS 428 week 4 Benchmark Answer
Policy Brief
Human interactions with the environment significantly impact health disparities, lifespan, and quality of life. This policy brief addresses the issue of lead exposure, encompassing the affected population, the prevalence of the issue, and evidence. It also features a problem statement, recommendations for addressing the health problem resulting from the policy, and its impact on the healthcare delivery system.NRS 428 week 4 Benchmark
The Policy Health Issue: Lead Exposure
The chosen health policy issue is lead exposure, a naturally occurring metal used in various common products such as pipes and batteries. Despite its utility, lead is highly toxic, and exposure through inhalation of contaminated dust or air, consumption of tainted foods, or drinking polluted water can lead to health problems (APHA, n.d). Children, pregnant women, and adults face the risk of lead exposure and its associated health complications. Among children, lead exposure is particularly harmful as their bodies are not fully developed, and their behaviors, such as placing objects and hands in their mouths, increase the risk. Pregnant women can transmit lead through the placenta and breastmilk. Adults may be exposed through hobbies, work activities, or contaminated water and food consumption (Hauptman, Bruccoleri, & Woolf, 2017).NRS 428 week 4 Benchmark
The issue of lead contamination affects individuals at the local, state, and national levels. According to APHA (n.d), children’s exposure to lead contamination is a significant public health concern. Lead has no biological role in the body, and any amount of lead, even the smallest, is abnormal. Scientific evidence suggests that blood lead levels (BLL) less than 10 µg/dL have adverse effects on infants and children (LeBrón et al., 2019). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has lowered the reference BLL value to 5 µg/dL (CDC, 2019). Approximately 3.6 million homes with at least one child have significant lead paint concerns, affecting half a million U.S. children under 6 years old with BLLs of ≥5 µg/dL (CDC, 2019a). Each child affected by lead incurs special education and medical costs of approximately $5600 (Dignam, Kaufmann, LeStourgeon, & Brown, 2019). The estimated annual costs of cognitive impairments related to lead are approximately $50.9 billion (APHA, n.d).
