The National Library of Medicine supports several sites such as MedlinePlus, NIH Senior Health, and ClinicalTrials.gov.
nursing11TT34
Half of page per response to my peers, with references, use first person, thank you. Discussion
attached.
Respond in one or more of the following ways:
1)Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research
using an in-text citation in APA format.
2)Share an insight from having read your colleagues postings, synthesizing the information to provide
new perspectives.
3)Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.
4)Expand on your colleagues postings by providing additional insights or contrasting perspectives based
on readings and evidence.
(Beverly)
Health Literacy
Education is essential to the workplace not only for the patient but for the nurse who is providing
care to the patient. Many healthcare workers such as nurses do not realize how important it is to
educate patients on managing their own care to prevent or reduce health issues. Stress symptoms may be
affecting your health, even though you might not realize it. You may think illness is to blame for that
nagging headache, your frequent insomnia or your decreased productivity at work. But stress may actually
be the culprit (American Psychological Association, 2010). Stress is a leading cause of staff turnover
even for nurses. Given the growing importance of the issues of recruitment and retention to nursing in
general, and some specialty areas in particular, there is a need to understand the career pathways of
nurses and the factors that impact upon these (Kovner & Knickman, 2011, p.361).
Nurses Role in Improving the Health Literacy
In an article by Dorothy Dunn, she discusses the role of nurses in health literacy particularly in
screening and assessing for health literacy levels among patients and their families at each health care
encounter (Dunn, 2010). Health literacy can have a positive outcome for patients diagnosis and
treatment plan. The assessment and the use of plain language among healthcare professionals when
communicating with patients increase health literacy. This is a vital role of the nurse to improve
health literacy.
Resource for Evaluating Online Health Information
One resource I would recommend to patients for evaluating online health information is MedlinePlus
because it is resourceful and the information is reliable and the National Institutes of Healths Web
site is for patients and their caregivers, family members and friends. MedlinePlus is produced by the
National Library of Medicine which is the worlds largest medical library. A patient is able to get
information about diseases, treatments and wellness issues in the language that they speak whether it is
English or Spanish. MedlinePlus is reliable, up-to-date health information that can be assessed from
anywhere free of charge and no password needed.
MedlinePlus Beneficial
MedlinePlus is beneficial and can be used to educate on the latest treatments for conditions,
information on a drug or supplement and medical terminology. There are medical videos and illustrations
available. Another benefit in using MedlinePlus is links are available to the latest medical research on
topics clinical trials on a disease or condition. Health professionals and consumers alike can depend on
it for information that is authoritative and up-to-date. MedlinePlus has extensive information from the
National Institutes of Health and other trusted sources on over 950 diseases and conditions. There are
directories, a medical encyclopedia and a medical dictionary, health information in Spanish, extensive
information on prescription and nonprescription drugs, health information from the media, and links to
thousands of clinical trials. MedlinePlus is updated daily and can be bookmarked at the URL:
http://medlineplus.gov/.There is no advertising on this site, nor does MedlinePlus endorse any company
or product (MedlinePlus, 2015).
Assisting Patients in Online Health Information
Patient access to health information and their personal health records is important in todays
healthcare. Additional strategies for assisting patients in becoming informed consumers of online health
information are educating patients on the different resources that are available to them online and
possible demonstrating how to access this information. The National Library of Medicine supports several
sites such as MedlinePlus, NIH Senior Health, and ClinicalTrials.gov. All of these sites are designed to
get medical information directly to the patients. These sites increase patient access to information.
Patient should be educated on how to access information such as electronic health records for
facilitating increased patient-provider communication and information sharing.
Resources
Dunn, D. (2010). The Nurse Role in Health Literacy. Retrieved
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