Week 8: Marginalized Women and Childbearing Families
Requirements:
Read the following article, which can be found in the Chamberlain library:
Prodanâ€Bhalla, N., & Browne, A. J. (2019). Exploring women’s health care experiences through an equity lens: Findings from a community clinic serving marginalised women. Journal of clinical nursing, 28(19-20), 3459-3469. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14937
In your initial discussion post, respond to the discussion questions listed below and support your responses with at least one evidence-based reference (other than the assigned article)
Discussion Questions:
1. As an advanced practice nurse, what are three actions you can take to mitigate social impacts to marginalized women?
2. What role does policy at either government, state, or local level play in the marginalization of women and child bearing families?
3. Identify one policy that impacts marginalized groups (include whether the policy is at the federal, state, or local level).
4. Discuss how policy impacts marginalized group either positively or negatively.
Sample Paper
Marginalized Women and Childbearing Families
Actions to Mitigate Social Impacts to Marginalized Women
There are different actions that advanced practice can take to mitigate social impacts on marginalized women. The advanced practice nurse can reflect and gather experience on the marginalized women to improve the quality of care (Prodan‐Bhalla & Browne, 2019). Since marginalized groups are not included in the research, hearing their perspectives when providing care will set a framework to meet their unique needs. The nurse will have an increased understanding of the marginalized women and adopt a care plan that will mitigate the health inequity while increasing the competency of providers to care for this population (Prodan‐Bhalla & Browne, 2019). Healthcare professionals will be able to create a care plan that is accessible and welcoming to women facing barriers in their pursuit to access quality care.
The advanced practice nurse can also advocate for policies to protect marginalized women. For instance, Nurse practitioners (NP) find it challenging to rely on old traditional care approaches, which leaves them futile and powerless (Prodan‐Bhalla & Browne, 2019). NP who are influential in the policymaking process can therefore present necessary changes that should be adopted by the policymakers to better the quality of care among the marginalized women. This will ensure that the care plan for the marginalized women is designed to suit their unique needs protecting them from marginalization.
The final action that the advanced practice nurse can take to mitigate the social impact on marginalized women is creating a friendly, caring environment. NP who are mainly the first point of contact can significantly reduce the marginalization for women by developing a sense of trust, nondiscrimination, and safety to this population (Prodan‐Bhalla & Browne, 2019). The women will thus be open to returning for care since they will feel more secure with the services offered.
The Role Played by a Policy in the Marginalization of Women and Childbearing Families
Policies at government, state, and local levels have had a significant role in women and childbearing families’ marginalization. Women and childbearing families have been vulnerable to discrimination and unjust structural policies that negatively influence access to maternity leave, childcare, eldercare, child support agreement, and legal aid. Some of the government, state, and local procedures do not support women’s access to employment opportunities, which has led to low income (Prodan‐Bhalla & Browne, 2019). Systematic limiting policies such as lack of affordable childcare have increased health inequality, especially among marginalized women.
Policy Impacting Marginalized Group
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is a federal public health policy that impacts marginalized groups. ACA aims to expand healthcare coverage by reducing its cost and improving the quality of care for marginalized groups (Michener, 2020). It reduces health disparity by creating a marketplace where people can purchase health insurance and determine their eligibility to receive financial assistance. ACA health plan covers different health benefits such as ambulatory patient services, maternity, and newborn care, laboratory services, emergency services, rehabilitative and facilitative services, chronic disease management, substance use disorder, and mental health.
Impacts of Policy on Marginalized Groups
Policy has both positive and negative impacts on marginalized groups. Some of the positive impacts of policy to marginalized groups include increased access to quality care. Policy improves the health and well-being of marginalized groups, especially when these groups are involved in the policymaking process (Chauhan et al., 2020). The policy also helps increase patient safety and enhance the quality of care to marginalized groups. Policy may also impact marginalized groups negatively. For instance, lack of sufficient systems to support policies may lead to poor quality interaction between the marginalized groups and the providers, thus exacerbating the risk of safety events. Most of the time, marginalized groups are not involved in the planning and development of the policy (Chauhan et al., 2020). Therefore, the unique needs of these groups are not addressed in the development of the policy, which increases the dissatisfaction of the marginalized groups with the care services.
References
Chauhan, A., Walton, M., Manias, E., Walpola, R. L., Seale, H., Latanik, M., … & Harrison, R. (2020). The safety of health care for ethnic minority patients: a systematic review. International journal for equity in health, 19(1), 1-25. https://equityhealthj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12939-020-01223-2
Michener, J. (2020). Race, politics, and the affordable care act. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 45(4), 547-566. https://doi.org/10.1215/03616878-8255481
Prodan‐Bhalla, N., & Browne, A. J. (2019). Exploring women’s health care experiences through an equity lens: Findings from a community clinic serving marginalized women. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28(19-20), 3459-3469. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14937
