Explain how your view of what a “patient” is has changed and expanded? What are some major differences between the assessment of a public health nurse and a clinical nurse?

As an AI language model, I don’t have personal views or experiences, but I can provide a general answer to the given question.

The definition of a patient is typically a person who is seeking or receiving medical care, often from a healthcare professional such as a nurse or doctor. However, my understanding of what a patient is has expanded beyond this simplistic definition. As healthcare has evolved, the concept of the patient has expanded to include more than just their physical health. Today, the concept of the patient includes an individual’s social, economic, and psychological well-being.

In public health nursing, the focus is on the community as a whole, and the assessment process is broader in scope. Public health nurses often work with populations rather than individual patients. They assess the health needs of the population, identify health risks, and develop strategies to promote health and prevent disease. Public health nurses often work in community-based settings such as schools, clinics, or public health departments.

On the other hand, clinical nursing focuses on individual patient care. Clinical nurses assess the patient’s physical, emotional, and psychological health, develop care plans, and deliver nursing interventions to promote healing and recovery. Clinical nurses work in acute care settings such as hospitals, clinics, or nursing homes.

One major difference between the assessment of a public health nurse and a clinical nurse is the focus of the assessment. Public health nursing assesses the health of a population, while clinical nursing assesses the health of an individual patient. The scope of the assessment is also different. Public health nursing assessments are typically broader and more focused on the social determinants of health, while clinical nursing assessments are more focused on the physical and psychological health of the patient.

In conclusion, my understanding of what a patient is has expanded beyond the traditional definition of a person seeking medical care. Today, the concept of the patient includes an individual’s social, economic, and psychological well-being. The assessment process in public health nursing and clinical nursing differs in focus and scope, with public health nursing focusing on the health of populations and clinical nursing focusing on the health of individual patients.