Achieving these outcomes requires stakeholders to pay for care and implement desired changes. For this purpose, healthcare organizations must have adequate resources to provide attentive care to people with diabetes regarding peripheral neuropathy, where adequate foot examinations are conducted, and nurses guide patients to self-care for their feet by regulating their blood glucose levels. Moreover, external resources such as Medicare and Medicaid programs of the Affordable Care Act that provide health insurance coverage for older people with chronic diseases and promote care delivery in low-income individuals are also potential sources (Duru et al., 2020).
Some factors that limit the achievement of these outcomes are the need for more human and financial resources, lack of adequate inter-professional collaboration and patient compliance. The optimal healthcare solutions to achieve these desirable outcomes include implementing inter-professional collaboration in delivering patient-centered care to manage diabetes in patients and training physicians and nurses on performing foot examinations properly. Additionally, providing effective foot care to avoid long-term complications of peripheral neuropathy is imperative (Aalaa et al., 2022).
Health Care System Comparative Analysis
We have conducted a comparative analysis on managing and preventing peripheral neuropathy in two non-U.S. healthcare systems to gain broader knowledge and find a better approach. The National Health Service (NHS) healthcare system in the United Kingdom follows the guidelines provided by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), specifically about managing diabetes and associated complications of peripheral neuropathy. NICE recommends that healthcare organizations conduct regular foot examinations and promote patient education in people with diabetes on self-management and self-care feet to prevent peripheral neuropathy and the associated complications (NICE, 2019). NICE provides guidelines on the frequency of foot assessment for all age groups with diabetes, mainly focusing on adults with diabetes to assess feet on diagnosis and annual checkups or when foot problems arise.
NURS FPX 6218 Assessment 1 Proposing Evidence-Based Change
Furthermore, it guides the investigation and treatment of foot ulcers, infections, and Charcot arthropathy. Another valuable healthcare system based in Australia follows the guidelines from the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS) which has a particular division on Diabetes Feet Australia (DFA). It provides comprehensive guidelines and strategies to manage foot care in diabetic patients. DFA offers educational webinars and events on foot care and preventive measures to delay peripheral neuropathy. Furthermore, it has recently launched digital DFA guidelines platforms where patients with diabetes can take guidelines for foot care digitally and daily foot care checklists (Diabetes Feet Australia, n.d.).
These two non-US-based health approaches towards peripheral neuropathy can guide the US healthcare system in implementing similar strategies to prevent foot complications due to peripheral neuropathy. In the local healthcare systems of Colorado, annual foot examinations for diabetics must be conducted, and physicians must be trained on evaluating and assessing foot diseases to provide appropriate and timely care treatments. Moreover, the US-based healthcare systems can develop educational events on foot care for people with diabetes to enhance their knowledge on peripheral neuropathy and the importance of foot care as created by Australian healthcare systems.
The Rationale for the Proposed Change
These specific proposed changes can improve outcomes in diabetic patients in terms of peripheral neuropathy. Through adequate peripheral neuropathy prevention and management, as directed by NICE guidelines and DFA recommendations and strategies, patients with diabetes will have a longer life span with intact mobility and physical activity as their peripheral nerves stay intact. Moreover, lower limb amputation will be prevented as the regular monitoring of glycemic levels is conducted along with appropriate foot examination and care (Selvarajah et al., 2019). Furthermore, the proposed change will enable people with diabetes to self-care for their diabetes and foot by regularly finding foot-related symptoms and seeking medical care promptly.
Financial and Health Implications
Implementing proposed changes for preventing and managing peripheral neuropathy in people with diabetes can have potential financial and health implications. Timely prevention of peripheral neuropathy through proposed change can avoid the financial costs required to treat peripheral neuropathy and long-
Struggling with online classes or exams? Get expert help to ace your coursework, assignments, and tests stress-free!