The nurse is teaching at a community center about how the focus on car

QUESTION

The nurse is teaching at a community center about how the focus on care provision has shifted from the hospital to the community and a public health focus.

The nurse teaches the community members that health care systems organized around acute, episodic care no longer suffice as a primary service model due to the complexity of contemporary health care, which requires a different care process to match new health realities. The nurse lists which of the following reasons for this?

a. Decreased ethnic and racial diversity
b. Overall shorter life spans secondary to superinfections
c. Oversupply of highly skilled physicians and registered nurses
d. Higher incidence of chronic health conditions

ANSWER:

ANS: D
Health care systems organized around acute, episodic care no longer suffice as a primary service model. The complexity of contemporary health care requires a different care process to match new health realities. There are several reasons: demographics of the population with greater ethnic and racial diversity, longer life spans, serious economic challenges, and health disparities associated with social determinants of health, globalization, and significant skilled provider shortages, most notably physicians and nurses. Technical and scientific advances have revolutionized the prevention and diagnosis and treatment of acute illness. As people live longer, however, there is a higher incidence of chronic conditions requiring an array of supportive health care services. For these reasons, and more, focus on care provision has shifted from the hospital to the community and a public health focus.