Some healthcare conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, have high morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. They also increase the workload for healthcare providers, and attending to them is integral. Healthcare providers periodically evaluate population problems and develop evidence-based interventions to prevent risks, reduce compilations, and improve the health outcomes of populations. Some populations are vulnerable to specific health conditions.
For example, youths between 15-24 years are prone to sexually transmitted illnesses, while females between 40-55 years are prone to post-menopausal syndrome. Healthcare providers assess their population’s needs to determine their risks and intervene for better health outcomes. This paper presents a population problem, expounds on the population affected and the risks, and explores interventions that could help reduce the problem’s effects and promote better health outcomes.
Metabolic syndrome features at least three medical conditions occurring together, increasing a population’s risk for diabetes, stroke, and heart disease (Nilsson et al., 2019). These conditions include high blood pressure, blood sugar abnormalities, excess belly fat, and abnormal cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Having one f these conditions does not mean one has the disease but has an increased risk for diabetes, stroke, and heart disease. The condition presents less apparent symptoms such as body fat around the waist and some symptoms of diabetes such as thirst and fatigue. Metabolic syndrome is caused by increased insulin resistance, overweight and obesity, and inactivity.
The risk factors for the condition include diabetes, age (risk increases with age), ethnicity (Hispanic women are at the most significant risk), and other diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and sleep apnea (Nilsson et al., 2019). Medications such as second-generation psychotropics that lead to weight gain, increased insulin resistance, and alteration in body fats and glucose metabolism significantly increase the risk for metabolic syndrome. Aggressive lifestyle and therapy changes can help reduce the risk of developing metabolic syndromes or metabolic syndrome complications. The condition’s prevalence is gradually rising, affecting about a third of the US population leading to poor quality of life through reduced abilities and increased susceptibility to life-threatening illnesses (Hirode & Wong, 20). The condition is preventable, and there is a need to implement change interventions that can help alleviate the problem
Patients with mental health conditions such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are some of the most neglected populations. Caring for mentally ill patients requires long-term treatment interventions. Healthcare providers prescribe medications and other interventions such as cognitive behavior therapy depending on patient needs and response to medications. These medications affect other areas, such as hypertension in CNS-acting drugs. Second-generation antipsychotics are associated with increased risk for metabolic syndrome due to their effects on weight gain and insulin resistance. Thus, populations with mental health issues such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are thus at risk for metabolic syndrome. The risk for mental health illnesses increases with age; thus, the population of interest is adults aged 20 and above.
The area of interest is a healthcare facility in the Bronx, New York, ZXIPI CODE 10451-5253, serving minority black and Hispanics. The target population is the minority blacks and Hispanics, ethnic groups that carry the most significant risk for metabolic syndrome. Hispanics, especially Hispanic women, have the most significant risk for metabolic syndrome (Phenninx & Lange, 2022). The population is also prone to poor access to mental health care and other social determinants of health such as low income, unemployment, cultural practices (eating practices), and genetic predisposition. Hispanic whites are also exposed to mental health issues due to similar determinants of health, such as low-income families and unemployment. Mental health issues and the genetic predisposition to the condition increase the risk and severity of metabolic syndrome in this population.
Measures to prevent metabolic syndrome are varied depending on the cause. The most common interventions in mental health include lifestyle changes such as increasing exercise and activity, diet changes, quitting smoking, treatment for obesity and overweight, and changes in treatment therapies associated with the development of metabolic syndrome. Nilsson et al. (2019) note that diet plays a significant role in determining the high-
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