Purpose: To discuss the roles nurses play in influencing policy at the community level and demonstrate the need for fundamental change in resource allocation.
The following Course Objectives are reflected in this assignment:
CO 1: Recognize emerging issues and trends that impact nursing and health care with emphasis on the roles of the advanced practice nurse. (SLO 1, 4, 9)
CO 3: Identify those involved in policy reform including stakeholders and policy makers. (SLO 2, 6)
CO 5: Examine the role of the nurse as a professional in policy advocacy and politics to improve patient care outcomes. (SLO 6, 9)
CO 6: Examine the role of policy on health promotion and prevention with emphasis on trends and innovative strategies to promote individual and population health through collaboration and teamwork. (SLO 7, 8)
Background: “The IHI Triple Aim is a framework developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement that describes an approach to optimizing health system performance. It is IHI’s belief that new designs must be developed to simultaneously pursue three dimensions, which we call the “Triple Aim”:
• Improving the patient experience of care (including quality and satisfaction);
• Improving the health of populations; and
• Reducing the per capita cost of health care.”
(IHI Triple AIM Initiative, 2015)
Problem: The US healthcare system is the most costly in the world, accounting for 17% of the gross domestic product with estimates that percentage will grow to nearly 20% by 2020. [Source: National Healthcare Expenditure Projections, 2010-2020. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Office of the Actuary.] At the same time, countries with health systems that out-perform the US are also under pressure to derive greater value for the resources devoted to their health care systems. Aging populations and increased longevity, coupled with chronic health problems, have become a global challenge, putting new demands on medical and social services. (IHI Triple AIM Initiative, 2015)
Solution: Your organization has been tasked with applying the principles of the Triple Aim framework to improve the quality of care and safety of community members. Healthcare providers within the community recognize a need for collaboration among all healthcare providers and community agencies to initiate change relative to promote education/awareness for community members, initiate policy changes, and implement a population health model of care focused on improving quality, the health of the population, and reducing costs. As a nursing leader, your role in the initiative is to provide recommendations of how to improve care coordination of patients in your setting (i.e. acute care, home health, skilled nursing, physician office, hospice, etc.).
Assignment: Submit a formal APA 6th ed. paper addressing each of the following criteria. The length of the paper excluding title page and reference list should be no longer than 8 pages. A minimum of three scholarly sources is needed to support this assignment. Be sure to review the Initiative. You may use a table/graph to help assist addressing numbers 4, 5, & 6 of the assignment requirements if you choose. A narrative description is equally acceptable.
Identify a current community or practice problem in your county/state/workplace setting. Consider these examples: the opioid epidemic, increased STDs, increased readmission rates of HF patients, insufficient management of the asthma needs of school children, concussion rates/treatment of high school athletes, psychiatric patients housed in ERs due to lack of treatment settings/options, etc. Make sure you describe the problem/challenge that requires care coordination to improve population health. Be sure to include elements of the Triple AIM into your discussion. Use the topics to be covered as subheadings (level 1 headings) to keep you focused and to ensure that you cover all required elements of the assignment.
An additional reference that may assist you in completion of this assignment may be found at: http://www.nursingworld.org/carecoordinationwhitepaper.
Always include an introduction and conclusion.
1. Describe the scope of care coordination.
2. Identify community partners and stakeholders to support your work.
3. Name the resources needed.
4. Establish a task list.
5. Assign responsibilities.
6. Define a timeline.
7. Describe the anticipated outcomes/measures of success.
8. Describe an evaluation process.
Evaluation Criteria
1. Creativity: Your ability to creatively engage the interest of the community by the development of a care coordination model that extends across the healthcare continuum.
2. Knowledge: Your understanding of the community partners and stakeholders needed to ensure success.
3. Intervention: Your knowledge of the steps involved in the process of effective care coordination or what is needed to improve in the future
