HLT-362V Topic 5: Discovering Relationships and Building Models
HLT-362V Topic 5: Discovering Relationships and Building Models
HLT-362V Topic 5 Discovering Relationships and Building Models
In the current health practice, providers rely heavily on data to make appropriate practice changes. Most changes focus on improving health and ensuring that patients and populations live healthily. Epidemiological data is among the widely used data sources in health care settings. It provides information on the distribution and determinants of health-related events and conditions in specified populations (Fontaine, 2018). Through epidemiological data, health care providers can adequately understand the causes, patterns, and other particulars of diseases and other health-related events. The purpose of this paper is to describe how epidemiological data influences practice changes, examples, and the necessary data for guiding practice change.
How Epidemiological Data Influences Changes in Health Practices
Health practices in health care organizations are designed to address specified populations’ health needs. For instance, an area where riots and accidents are common compels health care organizations to design special units and programs to respond to related emergencies. In places where people consume a lot of fast foods, health care organizations experience increased visits of children and adults with lifestyle diseases like obesity and diabetes (Singh et al., 2021). In response, facilities design programs such as health education and community visits to reduce such infections.
In field epidemiology, health care professionals collect data from investigations and vital statistics. Such data provides insight regarding health events like diseases, injuries, and environmental hazards count rates and patterns in terms of place, people, and time (Fontaine, 2018). Interpreting patterns and comparing them to the desired situations inform health care professionals about possible changes in the type and numbers of patients expected in hospitals and other facilities. The potential increase in patients triggers preparations such as increasing staff, adopting appropriate technologies, and reorganizing how health care teams function.
Examples of Practice Changes
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, health care professionals and researchers have explored many features of the pandemic, including transmission, distribution in populations, death rates, and prevention measures. One of the common findings was the need for minimal physical contact and travel, leading to the adoption of telehealth to facilitate remote patient monitoring and support (Monaghesh & Hajizadeh, 2020). The pandemic also fueled an unexpected increase in patients in the emergency departments forcing health care facilities to employ temporary staff and assign nurses new roles. Kim and Kim (2021) further observed that health practitioners required adequate provision with protective personal equipment (PPEs) and basic education to reduce transmission and help patients readily and more professionally. The rise in patients and uncertainty about when the pandemic will end increased anxiety, worry, and burnout among nurses. Most organizations responded through psychiatric support, command centers to improve communication, and opportunities for self-care (Rose et al., 2021). The changes have been instrumental in supporting health and improving mental and physical preparedness to cope with the pandemic.
Necessary Data for Practice Changes
Descriptive data is the most appropriate for practice change. It involves organizing, inspecting, and interpreting data
to understand current and historical patterns. Through descriptive data, health care providers can accurately dissect a public health concern like the COVID-19 pandemic into its component parts. Other uses include identifying at-risk populations, measuring the progress of control measures and their effectiveness, and generating testable hypotheses (Fontaine, 2018). The data helps health care providers to prepare effectively and make appropriate, data-driven interventions.
Conclusion
Epidemiology involves studying patterns, causes, risk factors, and other crucial elements of health-related events. The data generated guides health care professionals in implementing evidence-based control measures to protect populations from adverse effects. The study and management of the COVID-19 pandemic exemplify the professional application of epidemiological data to protect the public’s health and safety. Control measures dominating the pandemic’s management include telehealth, using protective equipment, and mental health support for nurses and patients.
References
Fontaine, R. E. (2018). Describing epidemiological data. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/eis/field-epi-manual/chapters/Describing-Epi-Data.html
Kim, J., & Kim, S. (2021). Nurses’ Adaptations in Caring for COVID-19 Patients: A Grounded Theory Study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(19), 10141. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph181910141
Monaghesh, E., & Hajizadeh, A. (2020). The role of telehealth during COVID-19 outbreak: A systematic review based on current evidence. BMC Public Health, 20(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09301-4
Rose, S., Hartnett, J., & Pillai, S. (2021). Healthcare worker’s emotions, perceived stressors and coping mechanisms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Plos One, 16(7), e0254252. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254252
Singh, S, A., Dhanasekaran, D., Ganamurali, N., L, P., & Sabarathinam, S. (2021). Junk food-induced obesity- a growing threat to youngsters during the pandemic. Obesity Medicine, 26, 100364. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obmed.2021.100364
Description
Objectives:
Analyze a specified data set.
Describe how data influences epidemiological practices.
Evaluate data analyzed from research articles using different types of variables.
Study Materials
Applied Statistics for Health Care
Description:
Read Chapter 5 in Applied Statistics for Health Care.
Excel for Windows Training
Description:
Review the “Excel for Windows Training” modules, located on the Microsoft Office website, and use them as resources for the Summary and Descriptive Data assignment, as needed.
The Visual Learner: Statistics
Description:
Refer to the “Visual Learner: Statistics” to learn more about the statistical calculations presented in this topic.
Ethics in Medical Research and Publication
Description:
Read “Ethics in Medical Research and Publication,” by Masic, Hodzic, and Mulic, from International Journal of Preventative Medicine(2014).
Chapter 2. Health Databases and Health Database Organizations: Uses, Benefits, and Concerns
Description:
Read “Chapter 2. Health Databases and Health Database Organizations: Uses, Benefits, and Concerns,” by Donaldson and Lohr, from the online eBook, Health Data in the Information Age: Use, Discloser, and Privacy (1994), available on the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website.
Using Epidemiological Data to Guide Clinical Practice: Review of Studies on Cardiovascular Disease and Use of Combined Oral Contraceptives
Description:
Read “Using Epidemiological Data to Guide Clinical Practice: Review of Studies on Cardiovascular Disease and Use of Combined Oral Contraceptives,” by Hannaford and Owen-Smith, from BMJ (1998).
Secondary Data Analysis: Ethical Issues and Challenges
Description:
Tasks
While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.
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.
Summary and Descriptive Statistics
Description:
There is often the requirement to evaluate descriptive statistics for data within the organization or for health care information. Every year the National Cancer Institute collects and publishes data based on patient demographics. Understanding differences between the groups based upon the collected data often informs health care professionals towards research, treatment options, or patient education.
Using the data on the “National Cancer Institute Data” Excel spreadsheet, calculate the descriptive statistics indicated below for each of the Race/Ethnicity groups. Refer to your textbook and the Topic Materials, as needed, for assistance in with creating Excel formulas.
Provide the following descriptive statistics:
Measures of Central Tendency: Mean, Median, and Mode
Measures of Variation: Variance, Standard Deviation, and Range (a formula is not needed for Range).
Once the data is calculated, provide a 150-250 word analysis of the descriptive statistics on the spreadsheet. This should include differences and health outcomes between groups.
APA style is not required, but solid academic writingis expected.
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 not required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite.
Topic 5 DQ 1
Description:
Describe how epidemiological data influences changes in health practices. Provide an example and explain what data would be necessary to make a change in practice.
Topic 5 DQ 2
Description:
Discuss ways your organization uses technology to gather patient and health care information, and how this information and data are used to direct patient care and outcomes.
Topic 5 Participation
Description:
Class Effective Start: Mar 15, 2021
You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.
Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.
Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.
The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.
APA Writing Checklist
Use this document as a checklist for each paper you will write throughout your GCU graduate program. Follow specific instructions indicated in the assignment and use this checklist to help ensure correct grammar and APA formatting. Refer to the APA resources available in the GCU Library and Student Success Center.
☐ APA paper template (located in the Student Success Center/Writing Center) is utilized for the correct format of the paper. APA style is applied, and format is correct throughout.
☐ The title page is present. APA format is applied correctly. There are no errors.
☐ The introduction is present. APA format is applied correctly. There are no errors.
☐ Topic is well defined.
☐ Strong thesis statement is included in the introduction of the paper.
☐ The thesis statement is consistently threaded throughout the paper and included in the conclusion.
☐ Paragraph development: Each paragraph has an introductory statement, two or three sentences as the body of the paragraph, and a transition sentence to facilitate the flow of information. The sections of the main body are organized to reflect the main points of the author. APA format is applied correctly. There are no errors.
☐ All sources are cited. APA style and format are correctly applied and are free from error.
☐ Sources are completely and correctly documented on a References page, as appropriate to assignment and APA style, and format is free of error.
Scholarly Resources: Scholarly resources are written with a focus on a specific subject discipline and usually written by an expert in the same subject field. Scholarly resources are written for an academic audience.
Examples of Scholarly Resources include: Academic journals, books written by experts in a field, and formally published encyclopedias and dictionaries.
Peer-Reviewed Journals: Peer-reviewed journals are evaluated prior to publication by experts in the journal’s subject discipline. This process ensures that the articles published within the journal are academically rigorous and meet the required expectations of an article in that subject discipline.
Empirical Journal Article: This type of scholarly resource is a subset of scholarly articles that reports the original finding of an observational or experimental research study. Common aspects found within an empirical article include: literature review, methodology, results, and discussion.
Adapted from “Evaluating Resources: Defining Scholarly Resources,” located in Research Guides in the GCU Library.
☐ The writer is clearly in command of standard, written, academic English. Utilize writing resources such as Grammarly, LopesWrite report, and ThinkingStorm to check your writing.
