Health Care Response essay Assignment on Special Population: Peer Responses

Peer 1 Sydney

The special population that I selected to focus on for this discussion and the remainder of the course is children. I have always had a deep passion for those that cannot advocate for themselves, and children are some of our most vulnerable members of society. This topic is also important to me due to the ever-rising costs of health care in the United States and the very high probability of children being dependent on others to provide care in many ways: recognizing concerning symptoms, scheduling appointments, coordinating transportation, and paying bills. Children with increased health disparities from a young age often have higher rates of health concerns as adults (Kominski, 2014).

I have had a variety of experiences working with children in the health care setting. I worked at Seattle Children’s Hospital, a specialty hospital, and research institute. I also worked at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in Seattle. This organization has extensive grants and programming focused on children’s health and welfare. Most recently, I have worked at a federally qualified health care center called Community Health Partners in Bozeman, MT that serving a range of populations with several of the most marginalized being homeless youth and children of migrant workers.

The ethics related to children’s health care is also a challenging topic. During my time at Seattle Children’s Hospital, there were many instances of patients under the age of 18 seeking care for behavioral health, sexual/reproductive health, or other care that they were hesitant to share with parents or guardians. The nuances of patient privacy are complex and it was a challenging system to navigate. This can become incredibly difficult in situations of terminal or life-threatening illnesses such as cancer. “Pediatric care is special because of children’s need to have a parent/guardian present and participate in caring procedure and decisions but also because of the rights of children for respect of their views and wishes, according to their developmental level and growing autonomy” (Bartholdson et. al, 2015). I am very interested to continue to learn more about different policies and laws surrounding children’s health care and this balance of a need for guardianship and respect for a child’s own wishes.

 

Bartholdson, C., Lützén, K., Blomgren, K., & Pergert, P. (2015). Experiences of ethical issues when caring for children with cancer. Cancer Nursing, 38(2), 125-132. https://doi.org/10.1097/NCC.0000000000000130

Kominski, G. F. (2014). Changing the U.S. health care system: Key issues in health services policy and management (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Peer 2 Rachel

I chose to research the elderly population for the rest of the course. The reason that  I decided to study this is because of my personal experience taking care of both of my grandparents at the end stages of their lives, as well as remembering my mother caring for several of my elderly family members when I was a child. Growing up, there was rarely a time that we did not have a family member or 2 staying in our home either recovering from an illness or surgery, getting back on their feet after losing a job, or just on an extended vacation that seemed never to end. My parents rarely turned someone away that needed a place to sleep. As an adult, I have found myself also caring for grandparents, in-laws, etc who were sick or in need.

While looking at the reading for this week, one of the things that stuck out to me was in discussing the elderly population it mentioning the transition to nursing homes as more of a medical facility, and how hospitals would tend to cut short the stay of the patient and move them to a nursing home to finish their stay and continue to recover (Kominski, 2013). I remember when this trend was very common. Many times I would see my family members released from the hospital after just a few days, just to be sent to the nursing home to “rehab” there until they were ready to go home.

I personally find it very rewarding to care for my loved ones at a time when they are most vulnerable and unable to care for themselves. I have volunteered in nursing homes and had family members that did live in nursing homes, and I understand that sometimes that is the only option for some people. But when at all possible, I want to be able to take care of my loved ones in my home or theirs and give them the kind of care and dignity they deserve.

 

Resources:
Kominski, G. F. (2014). Changing the U.S. health care system: Key issues in health services policy and management (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Chapter 16, “Long-Term Services and Supports for the Elderly Population,” pages 495–518

 

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