Preoperative fasting before undergoing surgical procedures that necessitate the use of anesthesia is meant to minimize the severity of complications. These complications are usually associated with regurgitation and aspiration. The ASA task force published practice standards, which dictate preoperative fasting procedures. These guidelines have also been approved by the CAS. Fasting regimes should be varied so as to accommodate different categories of patients such as children and pre-existing health conditions. Emergent procedures should be considered after evaluating the risk of postponing surgery against the potential for aspiration and regurgitation. The quantity and type of meal ingested need to be considered before the fasting duration is ascertained.
Equipment
- Medical records
- Audio and visual recording devices
- Weighing scale
- Thermometer
- Stethoscope
- Sterile gloves
- Emergency drugs
Recommended Practice
Preparation of children for preoperative fasting prior to elective surgery procedures
- The child and the parent should be briefed on the fasting regime that the patient will be placed under. It is important for the child and the parent to be informed of the significance of preoperative fasting before and during the surgery.
- The nurses preparing the child for preoperative fasting should build a good rapport with the patient and the patients.
- A medical background of the child should be obtained which should include history of allergies to particular drugs and foodstuffs.
- Obtain information about the dietary preferences of the child. This will be helpful when determining the appropriate fasting regime.
- Consult with an anesthetic specialist about the medical status of the patient.
- Plan for a fasting regime.
Procedures
Receive the patient when he/she arrives at the health facility. Make sure that the medical history of the child is obtained. This should include information about previous illness and other medical conditions.
- Direct the child and the parent to the counseling room and make sure that they are comfortable. At this point the nurse should build a good rapport with the child and the parent.
- Explain to the child and the parent why the patient has to be placed on a preoperative fasting regime. The nurse should emphasize on the significance of preoperative fasting regimes before and during the surgery. The nurse should be specific about the types of food that the child will be allowed to ingest and at what particular time.
- The nurse should then proceed to obtain an informed consent from the parent before the child’s vitals such as; blood pressure, blood sugar levels, weight, and pulse among others are taken.
- The child is then admitted and allocated bed space in the ward. Make sure to make arrangements for the parent to be allowed to accompany the child to the ward.
- After the child is settled in the ward, the nurse can proceed to determine a fasting regime based on the time the surgery is scheduled. At this time it is good to consult the anesthetic specialist and also confirm the time the surgery is to take place. This will avoid subjecting the patient to a long fasting period.
- Solid food should not be administered to the patient as at least 8 hours before surgery. Fried or meals containing a lot of fats will extend gastric release periods. Light meals such as clear fluids and slices of bread can be ingested 6 hours before surgery.
- For infants being breast feed on milk, they can breastfeed up to 4 hours before surgery. Infants feed on milk formulas are allowed to ingest milk 6 hours before surgical procedures. Clear fluids can be ingested 2 hours before surgical procedures.
- For surgical operations scheduled in the afternoon, patients may be given a light breakfast meal. This is comprised of a slice of bread without butter or porridge.
- No oral fluid should be ingested 2 hours before the surgical procedure with the exception of premeditations only.
- Intravenous fluids can be administered during fasting in the vent that the specific time for the surgery is unpredictable.
- Ensure the patient is ready for surgery by confirming if it is still scheduled or postponed.
- Hand over the patient with the medical records to the anesthetic team for surgery.
- Prepare a post-operative dietary regime and prepare the patient for discharge after the operation.
- Offer advice to the patient’s parent about the feeding regime of the patient after surgery.
Evidence Summary
For the evidence summary please refer to the reference page.
References
Brady M, Kinn S, Ness V, O’Rourke K, Randhawa N, Stuart P. Preoperative fasting for preventing perioperative complications in children. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews [serial on the Internet]. (2009); 14(4):38-51.
Robertson-Malt S, Winters A, Ewing S, Jackson D, Kiame G. Preoperative fasting for preventing perioperative complications in children. Australian Nursing Journal [serial on the Internet]. (2008),; 15(9):29-31.
Klemetti S, Kinnunen I, Suominen T, Antila H, Vahlberg T, Leino-Kilpi H, et al. The effect of preoperative nutritional face-to-face counseling about child’s fasting on parental knowledge, preoperative need-for-information, and anxiety, in pediatric ambulatory tonsillectomy. Patient Education & Counseling [serial on the Internet]. (2010); 80(1):64-70.
Klemetti S, Suominen T. Fasting in paediatric ambulatory surgery. International Journal of Nursing Practice [serial on the Internet]. (2008); 14(1):47-56.
Klemetti S, Kinnunen I, Suominen T, Antila H, Vahlberg T, Leino-Kilpi H, et al. The effect of preoperative fasting on postoperative thirst, hunger and oral intake in paediatric ambulatory tonsillectomy. Journal of Clinical Nursing [serial on the Internet]. (2010); 19(3-4):341-350.
Dock-Nascimento D B, Aguilar-Nascimento J E D, Caporossi C, Magalhães M S, Faria R, Caporossi F S, & Waitzberg D L. Safety of oral glutamine in the abbreviation of preoperative fasting; a double-blind, controlled, randomized clinical trial. Nutr Hosp. 2011; 26(1):86-90.
Schricker T, Meterissian S, Lattermann R, Adegoke O A, Marliss E B, Mazza L, & Wykes L. Anticatabolic effects of avoiding preoperative fasting by intravenous hypocaloric nutrition: a randomized clinical trial. Annals of surgery. 2008; 248(6): 1051-1059.
Klemetti S, Kinnunen I, Suominen T, Antila H, Vahlberg T, Grenman R, & Leino-Kilpi H. The effect of preoperative fasting on postoperative pain, nausea and vomiting in pediatric ambulatory tonsillectomy. International journal of pediatric otorhinolaryngology. 2009; 73(2):263-273.
Yurtcu M, Gunel E, Sahin T K, & Sivrikaya A. Effects of fasting and preoperative feeding in children. World journal of gastroenterology: WJG. 2009; 15(39):4919.
Shabana A M, Ghanem M A, Elsarraf W M R. Preoperative fasting regimen for clear fluids in healthy children, changing perspective. A randomized controlled single blinded study. Egyptian Journal of Anaesthesia. 2009; 25(2):83-86.
Kaška M, Grosmanová, T Á, Havel E, Hyšpler R, Petrová Z, Brtko, M & Sluka, M. The impact and safety of preoperative oral or intravenous carbohydrate administration versus fasting in colorectal surgery–a randomized controlled trial. Wiener klinische Wochenschrift. 2010; 122(1-2):23-30.
Faria M S, de Aguilar-Nascimento J E, Pimenta O S, Alvarenga Jr L C, Dock-Nascimento D B & Slhessarenko N. Preoperative fasting of 2 hours minimizes insulin resistance and organic response to trauma after video-cholecystectomy: a randomized, controlled, clinical trial. World journal of surgery. 2009; 33(6):1158-1164.
Bopp C, Hofer S, Klein A, Weigand M A, Martin E & Gust R. A liberal preoperative fasting regimen improves patient comfort and satisfaction with anesthesia care in day-stay minor surgery. Minerva anestesiologica. 2011; 77(7):680-682.
Meisner M, Ernhofer U & Schmidt J. Liberalisation of preoperative fasting guidelines: effects on patient comfort and clinical practicability during elective laparoscopic surgery of the lower abdomen. Zentralblatt für Chirurgie. 2008; 133(05):479-485.
Klemetti S, Kinnunen I, Suominen T, Antila H, Vahlberg T, Leino-Kilp H, et al. Active preoperative nutrition is safely implemented by the parents in pediatric ambulatory tonsillectomy. Ambulatory Surgery [serial on the Internet]. 2010; 16(3):75-79.
Applying Theory To A Practice Problem In Nursing
Introduction and Problem of Practice
This paper examines the significance of applications of theory in nursing practical situations. Concerned with the care of communities, families and individuals, nursing is an expansive discipline within the health sector, which encompasses collaborative and autonomous care of sick or health people in various settings. The nursing profession involves a range of definitions and specialties that would vary from place to place. However, in whatever specialties involved, the personnel in this profession have always strived to achieve the best results in their demanding discipline. In most cases, nursing profession is known to involve a lot of practical activities rather than theory. However, theoretical application is essential in such situations for it plays a key role in assisting the practitioners in achieving their goals effectively and for thus, it helps in facilitating positive development of the discipline.
The nursing scope of practice is usually surrounded by various issues, some of which could be more delicate to handle and in that case, there is always a need for the practitioners to consider applying the necessary steps that will help to improve the quality of their tasks. This report observes the analysis of clients’ assessment data as one of the most common practice problems facing many nurses today in their daily interactions with patients and clients. According to Tomey and Alligood (1998), analyzing assessment data is a critical approach in the operations of a nurse within a particular health setting. However, lack of enough skills and knowledge on how to go about this practice can be a major problem since this is among the core interventions which help nurses carry out the appropriate care actions on their patients and clients.
Nursing is a unique profession in the medical sector whose major responsibility revolves around variables affecting people in diverse environments (Barbara and Lynn, 2006). The actions of any nursing professional are initiated to best attain, retain, and uphold optimal client’s wellbeing or good health through the intervention of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of diseases and disorders. Nursing services can be administered from diverse settings which include hospitals, private homes, learning institutions, cruise ships, military facilities and pharmaceutical companies, among others. In most of these settings, nursing practitioners are capable of making necessary assessments, planning, implementation, and evaluation of patient care independently of doctors through the formalities of their discipline. More importantly, nursing professionals also provide significant support to physicians in some critical medical matters (George, 2002). In all these working circumstances within the nursing scope, effective practical situations would be critical in the provision of high quality services in all settings. In order to display professionalism and maturity in their work, nurses must always learn to sustain their practical situations with theoretical approach. Apart from helping them achieve their nursing goals efficiently, this would be a sure way to facilitate the professional maturity in the entire nursing staff.
Literature review
Studies pertaining to effective administration of nursing practices in various health settings have identified a high need for work-based learning programmes and practices that would help nurses accomplish their tasks more efficiently. A good example of these intervention practices can be through the sustainance of normal nursing practices with theory. Theory refers to any set of concepts designed with the objective of providing a systematic view of a particular phenomenon (Whall, 1999). Numerous theories would be based on assumptions and are composed of definitions, models, concepts and propositions (Mobley and Johnson-Russell, 2005). In this regard, nursing theories are sets of concepts, definitions and assumptions that are derived from the models of nursing. In other words, these are organized sets of statements that would be related to the concepts in the expansive discipline of nursing. Nursing theories are important in that, they offer in-depth descriptions and explanations of the nursing phenomenon, thus helping nurses carry out their duties effectively. As it would be observed, the very practice of analyzing assessment data has always proved to be a challenging experience to many people in this profession.
Assessment is the first step of the nursing process which involves the continuous collection, confirmation and communication of a patient’s data as it would be compared to the norm. In this stage, information concerning the health status of a patient is assembled and assessed to assist health practitioners in making relevant care plan decisions on the patients. This approach is vital in assisting nurses devise the most appropriate care fit for their patients. In order to develop effective care plans on patients, nurses ought to draft informed assessments for the right decision making upon their clients (Potter and Perry, 2005). Being the first stage in the patients’ problem-solving framework, assessment is vital and for thus, it is likely to influence all the other phases of the process. This simply means that, improper assessment on patients would definitely lead to poor execution of the care plan. This can result to serious medical blunders and it is here where theory comes in to spare nurses the big disappointments of miscalculated actions in their profession.
The above scenario explains the significance of applying theory to practical situations as far as nursing profession is concerned. According to Benjamin and Curtis (1992), nursing theory comes with a wide range of benefits to the health practitioners. First of all, it provides a reliable framework for generating new ideas and knowledge, thus helping nurses to come into terms with some important knowledge gaps in their line of duty. The framework also serves as an informed guide to practical nursing situations. In most cases, these theories would tend to relate directly to the undertaken practices, thus helping nurses achieve their goals and objectives successfully. Nursing theory is also significant in that, it guarantees for diverse patterns of knowledge which could be lacking in practical situations (Reed, 1991). More importantly, apart from the benefit of word definitions, new ideas are likely to develop through nursing theories and this is certain to make a positive outcome in the implementation of nursing practices. Underpinning knowledge is ever present in those environments where nurses are much concerned about the welfare of their patients and clients, to support and sustain their practice circumstances. It is interesting to note that, one of the most common manner by which nursing theory has been organized into practical approaches is in the process of planning and analyzing assessment data (Barker, 2009). This has actually played a significant role in helping nurses to successfully overcome the practice problem in question. Application of nursing theories in the daily operations of a nurse is a clear outline of the essential changes that ought to be embraced for outstanding professional conduct and safe care in the nursing profession.
Application of Middle-Range Theory to Problem
Middle range theory refers to an approach to sociological theorizing which is aimed at integrating theoretical approach and empirical research (Peterson, 2008). The concept was first developed by Robert Merton, undoubtedly one of the most distinguished sociologists in the American history. Robert was born in the year 1910 in Philadelphia. As a young man, he grew up in the midst of cultural and educational centers and this would undoubtedly come to form the basis of his lifestyle that was characterized by a big desire to learn. As a matter of fact, the events surrounding Merton’s early life played a significant role in shaping one of the biggest science sociologists in history, out of him; a career he would strongly uphold till the time of his death in February 2003. Merton is recognized for developing notable concepts, some of which have greatly steered modern global developments in sociology. Some of these concepts include; the reference group, unintended consequences, role model, role strain and self-fulfilling prophecy, among others. Merton is also recognized for the development of the middle rage theory; a sociological approach which has found immense use in many sectors of our modern world.
Merton’s theory is rather an approach on the construction theory and for thus; it does not necessarily refer to any particular theory. In most cases, the work of Merton can be compared to that of Talcott Parsons; his biggest influence in sociology, even though the two would differ greatly in their assumptions and definition of terms. One outstanding difference between the two sociologists was that, Parsons would tend to emphasize the necessity for social science in establishing a general foundation, while Merton preferred middle-range theories that were limited. As a testable theory bearing limited variables and scope, middle-range theory has continued to enjoy sufficient application in many sectors, including practical nursing. In nursing, middle-range theory is defined as a set of interrelated ideas that are focused on limited dimension of the nursing reality. In the highly reputed discipline of nursing, middle-range theories are incorporated on the basis of offering guidance for the daily tasks rooted to the profession (Alligood, 2002). As it would be observed, the general interest of the concept among nursing faculty has continued to take shape owing to the fact that, it informs research and practice in routine nursing tasks, thus helping nurses make informed care decisions and approaches on their patients and clients.
According to Johnson (1998), middle-range theory forms part of the framework of the nursing discipline. This concept addresses the substantive knowledge and understanding of the sector by emphasizing on various specific phenomena or guidelines related to the nursing process. Owing to its effectiveness, the concept has found constant use in nursing research and practices all over the world. Considering the practice problem identified in part 1 of this paper, this theory can play a significant role by equipping nurses with sufficient theoretical knowledge to sustain their nursing practices, thus helping to bring about the desired results in the nursing care. Incorporation of the theory in the nursing discipline is likely to steer positive outcomes in the sector thus leading to continued development of the discipline (Miranda, 2003). In this regard, this theory proves appropriate in equipping nurses with informed understanding of various practices in their disciplining such as analyzing assessment data among other significant nursing interventions.
Application of Borrowed Theory to Problem
Borrowed theory refers to a theory applied in a particular field, but which has been developed or shaped in another discipline (Villarruel and Bishop, 2001). As observed from various studies, the practice of health care disciplines borrowing theories from one another has become a norm in the contemporary world. Just like any other discipline in the health sector, nursing discipline has continued to rely on theories borrowed from other disciplines and this has raised constant debates and questioning on whether those theories, having been developed in other disciplines would bear adequate explanations of the nursing phenomena (Crosta, 2009). However, the truth of the matter here is that, by applying borrowed theories, nursing would be describing phenomena associated with those disciplines whereby propositions remains in the borrowed theory’s context. Based on this understanding, application of borrowed theory in the practice problem mentioned in part one would not be empirically adequate in defining the phenomena in the discipline of nursing. In that case, the idea of a borrowed theory may prove inappropriate in helping nurses deal with the big problem of analyzing assessment data of patients and clients.
Conclusion
While significant progress is notable in the development of the nursing discipline, there is still much concern on the interventions that need to be administered in ensuring that effective and high quality nursing care is executed upon patients and clients (McEwen and Wills, 2010). As observed from this report, the application of nursing theories to practice situations proves to be a significant approach towards the overall achievement of nursing goals and missions within various health settings. Nurses are most likely to achieve the best value of their work through informed and guided nursing processes. Part 2 of this paper observes the middle-range theory as a significant intervention to the practice problem identified in part 1. Part 3 observes the idea of borrowed theory in nursing and the relevance this would have on the identified practice problem which proves to be inappropriate. However, the application of the two theories presented in part 2 and 3 is observed to have continued to raise some problems of inconsistency. Talking of middle-range theories, they are firmly sustained with empirical data and this may not be easy to achieve in some cases. On the other hand, borrowed theory is likely to raise issues by connecting theory and research in nursing.
References
Alligood, M. (2002). Nursing Theory: Utilization & Application (3rd ed). Missouri: Elsevier Mosby Publications.
Barbara, M. & Lynn, K. (2009). Holistic Nursing: A Handbook for Practice (5 ed.). New York: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Barker, A. (2009). Advanced practice nursing: Essential knowledge for the profession (1st ed.). Boston: Jones and Bartlett.
Benjamin, M. and Curtis, J. (1992). Ethics in nursing. New York: Oxford University Press.
Crosta, M. (2009). “What Is Nursing? What Does a Nurse Do?” Medical News Today. Web.
George, J. (2002). Nursing Theories: The Base for Professional Nursing Practice.5th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Johnson, D. (1998). Symposium on theory development in nursing. Theory in nursing: borrowed and unique. Nursing Research, 17 (3), 206.
McEwen, M. & Wills, E. (2010). Theoretical basis for nursing (3rd ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.
Miranda, D. (2003). Nursing activities score. Critical care medicine, 31 (2), 374.
Mobley, C. & Johnson-Russell, J. (2005). Theory-directed nursing practice. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Peterson, S. (2008). Middle range theories: application to nursing research. Maryland: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Potter, P. and Perry, A. (2005). Fundamentals of nursing. Missouri: mosby.
Reed, P. (1991). Toward a nursing theory of self-transcendence: Deductive reformulation using developmental theories. Advances in Nursing Science, 17 (4), 56-64.
Tomey, A. & Alligood, M. (1998). Nursing Theorists and Their Work, 4th ed. Boston: Mosby.
Villarruel, A. and Bishop, T. (2001). Borrowed theories, shared theories, and the advancement of nursing knowledge. Nursing Science Quarterly, 14 (2), 158.
Whall, A. (1999). Conceptual models of nursing: Analysis and application. New York: Hall Publishers.
Heart Disease And Stroke: Project Proposal And Budgeting
Introduction
This paper is a project proposal for the management of heart disease and stroke in Minnesota. It outlines a leadership and strategic plan for addressing the high incidences of the health conditions in the state. The first section of the paper describes the community’s health problems and explains why they are leadership problems. This section of the paper also explains how the leadership and strategy plan complements Minnesota’s Community Healthy 2020 objectives. Lastly, the second section of this paper explores the budget issues surrounding the program.
Description of Community Health Problem
Heart disease and stroke are leading causes of adult mortality in many American states (Bisognano, Baker, & Earley, 2009). Compared to the national average, Minnesota has a relatively high incidence of heart disease and stroke (Bisognano et al., 2009). The graph below shows that both conditions are among many other non-communicable diseases that affect Minnesotans.
According to 2010 statistics, heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and unintentional injuries account for more than half of the main causes of death in Minnesota (Minnesota Department of Health, 2012b). These diseases come with a high social and economic cost to their victims because they require costly health care services, shorten life, and cause human suffering (Public Health Leadership Society, 2002). Based on this background, there is a need to change these health outcomes through leadership.
Why is this Health Issue a Leadership Problem?
Heart disease and strokes are both health conditions caused by lifestyle factors, such as binge drinking, smoking, poor diet and such like factors (Bisognano et al., 2009). These lifestyle factors come from personal factors and environmental conditions, which are subject to cultural and economic conditions. Leadership could influence the outcomes of these health concerns because it can change people’s lifestyle choices and behavioral risk patterns (Thomas, 2004). This assertion reinforces the views of the Minnesota Department of Health (2012b) which says three-quarters of all causes of death in America stem from lifestyle factors (mostly attributed to tobacco use, poor diet and sedentary lifestyles). Therefore, heart disease management is a leadership problem that resonates at individual and institutional levels (Jennings, Kahn, Mastroianni, & Parker, 2003). This paper highlights this fact because it emphasizes the “healthy choice” as the “easiest choice.”
How the Health Problem relates to the Healthy 2020 Objectives
The aim of the proposed health leadership program is to reduce the incidence of heart disease and stroke in Minnesota. The Minnesota Healthy 2020 plan strives to promote community health through a shared common sense approach that builds on past and present health initiatives (Minnesota Department of Health, 2012a). The health leadership program for heart diseases and strokes will complement the Healthy 2020 objectives because it focuses on two key areas – cardiovascular disease prevention and reducing injuries (disabilities caused by chronic health conditions). The health plan outlined in this paper also aligns with the Healthy Minnesota 2020 plan by complementing its broader effort to create a revolutionary health improvement framework for residents of Minnesota.
List of Potential Sources of Data
- Health Statistics
- Behavioral risk factor surveys
- Meta-analyses
- General Social Surveys
- Online data archive for population studies
- State Departmental Health Surveys
- Government publications
- Corporate reports
- Economic handbooks
- Funding Proposals
- Public Health Reports
Funding Issues
Funding Issues often derail health care programs. The leadership program highlighted in this paper could similarly suffer the same fate. However, different funding issues affect the program. Some may affect its long-term effectiveness, while others may only affect its success in the short-term (Johnson, 2014). Funding issues may also affect different stakeholders in different sectors of the health leadership program. Key stakeholders that may experience its effects, in this regard, include the Minnesota community and health care workers. Funding issues may also affect accessibility as a key area of the health care program. The following section of this paper categorizes these factors into short-term and long-term challenges.
Long-Term
Poor Accessibility
The main aim of starting the leadership program outlined in this paper is to reach many people. Minnesota is an expansive area and the 21st most populous state in America (Anderson & Watkins, 2009, p. 115). In this regard, the region needs an elaborate leadership program that would reach all people, effectively (Public Health Leadership Society, 2002). However, health workers and stakeholders need enough resources to come up with such a program (Suarez, Lesneski, & Denison, 2011). Resource limitations (funding limitations) may affect their performance in this regard. Stated differently without proper financing to implement this program, the health care workers would only reach a few people. Funding issues may emerge because of several reasons. First, if a program depends on state or federal funding, the competition for public resources may cause the government to reduce program funding. Secondly, if the health program is private-sponsored, economic challenges, or the withdrawal of a key sponsor, may affect the sustainability of the project. The main stakeholder that is likely to experience this challenge is the Minnesota community because the leadership program aims to improve its welfare through the reduction of heart diseases and stroke. Therefore, with poor funding, residents of Minnesota would not understand the value of adopting lifestyle changes that would reduce their risk of suffering from heart diseases and strokes.
Short-Term
Loss of Vital Services
The health leadership program strives to provide several services for residents of Minnesota, which directly affect their risk exposures to factors that cause heart diseases and strokes. These services may include education, screening, and health management services (Minnesota Department of Health, 2012a). Most of these services depend on proper funding to attain their goals. For example, health education requires adequate funding to pay workers, advertise for seminars and promote other platforms of interaction. Therefore, inadequate funding could lead to the loss of these vital services. However, this challenge is short-term because health care workers could seek alternative and inexpensive services to meet the same goals of the program.
Poor Access to Medications and Crisis Services
As highlighted in this report, the leadership program proposed in this paper strives to provide a holistic approach to health care services. Therefore, besides providing preventive services to the residents of Minnesota, it also strives to provide pre-diagnostic services for disease management. Since heart diseases and strokes are incurable diseases, most patients usually subscribe to a treatment regime to manage such conditions (Minnesota Department of Health, 2012a). Usually, this strategy involves giving patients adequate access to medications. However, such a strategy depends on institutional commitments and the willingness of sponsors to provide medications to patients. Albeit a last stage of the health leadership program, funding challenges may undermine the program goals. The main stakeholder affected by this process is the patients because they use medications.
Recommendations for Potential Funding Sources
Finding the right partners to finance a project could be a daunting task. In fact, Bisognano et al., (2009) say many potential sponsors do not fund a project without inviting applicants, first. Therefore, the approach that a project manager takes when seeking potential sponsors affects the financial success of a project. This paper proposes that the best candidate for sponsorship includes those that offer free grants to undertake health projects. The following alternatives are the best choices for funding the Minnesota health program
Federal Funding
Federal funding could be a good source of funding the Minnesota health plan because this government source strives to improve community health outcomes (part of the objective of government). Proponents of the program could make their applications through the official website for seeking grants (Grants.gov, n.d.). The Public Health Finance and Management (n.d.) supports this assertion by saying that seeking for funds through this website (Grants.gov, n.d.) is the quickest way of seeking federal funding and conducting a federally funded research. The main advantage of seeking federal funding is the possibility of receiving huge financial support through only one application. In this regard, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2014) says federal funding could provide millions of dollars for one health program. Therefore, it could cover most of the financial obligations of the Minnesota health program. Furthermore, programs that receive funding from federal sources improve their credibility to other potential and alternative sponsors, such as private organizations (Grants.gov, n.d.). Therefore, it is the first step of seeking health care funding for the Minnesota health care program. Lastly, government funding has low variability (stability of funding over lengthy periods). In fact, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2014) says there is a low likelihood that the government would default on paying (throughout the program’s lifetime) after approving funding. Therefore, although getting federal funding is subject to bureaucracy (Minnesota Department of Health, 2012b), it is still an attractive source of funding for the Minnesota community health project because it builds the program’s credibility to seek other sources of funding, such as corporate funding.
Corporate Funding
Corporate funding could include a group of investors who share the same goal, or view, of the Minnesota health care plan. This investment strategy is advantageous to the Minnesota health care program because it raises funds for the program without placing the risk on one entity alone (or the proponents of the program) (Bisognano et al., 2009). The main disadvantage of this funding strategy is the increased control of the corporate sponsors on the health care project. Bisognano et al., (2009) adds that although some of these corporate organizations may be silent partners, proponents of the program always need to make them happy. Compared to federal funding, corporate funding is variable because most corporate organizations prefer to peg their funding on results. Therefore, if the program fails to meet some specified goals, the organizations may withdraw their financial support (Bisognano et al., 2009). However, corporate funding is still an attractive source of funding for the Minnesota health care project because the program intends to achieve its goals. Therefore, undoubtedly, the corporate sponsors would be happy to collaborate with the community in improving health outcomes.
References
Bisognano, J., Baker, M., & Earley, M. (2009). Manual of Heart Failure Management. New York, NY: Springer Science & Business Media.
Jennings, B., Kahn, J., Mastroianni, A., & Parker, L. S. (2003). Ethics and public health: Model curriculum. Web.
Minnesota Department of Health. (2012a). Healthy Minnesota 2020: Statewide Health Improvement Framework. Web.
Minnesota Department of Health. (2012b). Healthy Minnesota 2020: Chronic Disease and Injury Plan. Web.
Public Health Leadership Society. (2002). Principles of the ethical practice of public health. Web.
Thomas, J. (2004). Skills for the ethical practice of public health. Web.
Anderson, P., & Watkins, S. (2009). The State Economic Handbook 2010. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.
Bisognano, J., Baker, M., & Earley, M. (2009). Manual of Heart Failure Management. New York, NY: Springer Science & Business Media.
Grants.gov. (n.d.). About Grants.gov. Web.
Johnson, T. D. (2014). Prevention and public health fund paying off in communities: Success threatened by cuts to fund. Web.
Minnesota Department of Health. (2012a). Healthy Minnesota 2020: Statewide Health Improvement Framework. Web.
Minnesota Department of Health. (2012b). Healthy Minnesota 2020: Chronic Disease and Injury Plan. Web.
Public Health Finance and Management. (n.d.). Search for Funding. Web.
Suarez, V., Lesneski, C., & Denison, D. (2011). Making the case for using financial indicators in local public health agencies. American Journal of Public Health, 101(3), 419–425.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2014). Grants/funding. Web.