Diabetes Management and Nurses Research Paper

Nursing and Diabetics Relationship

Assess the past and present impact nurses, including advanced professional/advanced practice nurses, have made in addressing this health issue. The growing number of diabetics as well as the condition's characteristic lasting effects and associated high cost of treatment have given many health personnel sleepless nights. Due to its frightening numbers, the importance of nurses in assisting patients so as to reduce illnesses and deaths among diabetics is on the rise. Some of the roles the concerned nurses can play include patient examination for signs of the disease, placing the patient on effective treatment patterns, assisting the patient to create and work towards health objectives and provide quality care for problems related to the disease when they occur. By carrying out these roles effectively, nurses can be on the frontlines of diabetics training about the complicated nature of the disease and how crucial early treatment could be (Levich, 2011)

The first contact diabetics have with health care personnel are most times with the nurses and they are expected to bring their acquired skills and knowledge to train and encourage diabetics about the importance of insulin and the best steps to take towards improving their conditions. Nurses directly involved in treatment procedures are best equipped to deliver the above when compared with administrative nurses who have limited training restricted to certain tasks. The opinions of diabetics about their new way of living such as when to eat and how important it is to carry insulin around in its various forms could have adverse effect on treatment. Nurses are tasked with the duty of dispelling these opinions and pointing the patient to appropriate treatments that doesn't interfere with the patient's daily functions thus ensuring a high lifestyle quality (Levich, 2011)

Nurses are important for both immediate treatments such as HbA1C, FPG, and PPG as well as long-term training and monitoring so as to assist the diabetics keep their sugar levels under control. Some of the practical steps to achieving this are: motivating the patients to take the monitoring of their blood sugar, blood pressure, microalbumin and cholesterol levels very seriously through consistent medication use, suggesting certain changes to daily activities like meal times and exercise frequency, creating a specific routine time for checkups for diabetes comorbidities, encouraging patient attendance of diabetes management trainings at local credible centers and supplying all relevant information and devices that could help the patient successfully manage the disease on their own (Levich, 2011).

Describe how nurses can become more broadly involved with influencing health policy related to this issue. Include resources available.

Nurses are well positioned to sway government policies on the care of diabetics due to their societal esteem and collective strength. It is therefore imperative that they use this to their advantage and request favorable policies concerning the care of diabetics. However, they need to firstly get educated on the peculiarities of the political sphere. Formerly, nurses were content to simply sit back and shun all forms of politics and instead take care of their patients to the best of their ability. It is clear that nurses are best placed to fight for the diabetics due to their knowledge of the challenges and how they can…