Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Nursing Chlamydia is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States. Chlamydia is transmitted through direct contact through mucus membranes
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Nursing Chlamydia is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States. Chlamydia is transmitted through direct contact through mucus membranes
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Nursing
Chlamydia is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States. Chlamydia is transmitted through direct contact through mucus membranes such as eyes, throat, and genital areas. It may also be transmitted to babies during vaginal delivery at birth, resulting in conjunctivitis or pneumonia. Chlamydia is considered a silent epidemic because individuals with the disease are often asymptomatic and go untreated. Left untreated, Chlamydia can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, sterility, scarred fallopian tubes, and ectopic pregnancies.
The vulnerable population includes uninsured and underinsured females 25 years old and younger who participate in unprotected sex (Region VIII, n.d., p. 1). This paper will discuss epidemiology as it relates to Chlamydia and the increase in the prevalence of the disease. Epidemiology will be defined, and the Epidemiological Triangle will be described in context with Chlamydia. Epidemiology methods and the steps of epidemiology will be explained.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiology can be defined as “the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states in specified populations, and the application of this study to control health problems" (Center for Disease Control and Prevention website, 2004). Surveillance and data collection are important requirements for epidemiology to be effective. Public health wellness is the objective of epidemiology and the nursing process. The steps of epidemiology and the nursing process go hand in hand. Improved public health wellness is achievable by following steps that have proved to be reliable.
The six steps of epidemiology include surveillance, field investigation, analytic studies, evaluation, linkages, and policy development. The six epidemiology steps works in conjunction with the steps of the nursing process. Accurate completion of each step is imperative to create a successful treatment plan for public health wellness. Surveillance and field investigation parallel the assessment part of the nursing process. Information is collected and during the assessment part of the nursing process and the surveillance and field investigation step of epidemiology. Analytic studies and nursing diagnosis is the process of putting data in the proper bins. The planning phase in nursing process and the evaluation step is the development of the care and treatment plans.
Linkage and implementation begin to put the plan into action by connecting treatment to patients. The evaluation phase in the nursing process demonstrates if the care was effective and leads to evidenced-based nursing practice standards. The policy development phase in epidemiology is driven by the success of prevention or increased public wellness (United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc. [USET, Inc.], 2009).
References
Center for Disease Control and Prevention website. (2004). http://www.cdc.gov/excite/classroom/intro_epi.htm Introduction to epidemiology. (n.d.). Region VIII. (n.d.). About the Region VIII infertility prevention project (IPP). Retrieved from Region8IPP website: http://www.region8ipp.com/Docs/ipp_brief.pdf United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc. (2009). What is epidemiology? Retrieved from United South and Easter Tribes, Inc website: http://www.usetinc.org/programs/uset-thps/tribalepicenter/definingepidemiology.aspx Women’s Health.Gov. (2009). Human papillomavirus (HPV) and genital warts fact sheet. Retrieved from Women’s Health.Gov website: http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/human-papillomavirus.cfm
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Nursing
Chlamydia is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted disease in the United States. Chlamydia is transmitted through direct contact through mucus membranes such as eyes, throat, and genital areas. It may also be transmitted to babies during vaginal delivery at birth, resulting in conjunctivitis or pneumonia. Chlamydia is considered a silent epidemic because individuals with the disease are often asymptomatic and go untreated. Left untreated, Chlamydia can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, sterility, scarred fallopian tubes, and ectopic pregnancies.