As a part of my primary health care practice, I was posted in a rural clinical setting which is located in the North Island of New Zealand. The main objectives of my clinical setting are to provide patient-centered care, promote health and well-being of the patient and to provide support to the family/whanau as well (Registered Nurse [RN], personal communication, February 10, 2016). Primary health care services deliver a wide range of health services which include treatment, health education, counseling, screening services and prevention of diseases (Ministry of health [MOH], 2014).
The clinical setting where I was posted consists of two rural registered nurses and one social worker. A doctor visits the community weekly. The services …show more content…
In New Zealand, the estimated population for 2013 was 4,242,051 and the local population of my clinical setting is 12,450. The highest proportion of people in my clinical setting is European New Zealanders with 66.7 percent which is similar to the national level at 74.0 percent. The second majority of people in my clinical are Māori with 40.7 percent which is approximately four times higher than the national level (14.9 percent) (Statistics New Zealand, 2013). The percentage of Pacific people and Asians are 2.2% and 2.8% respectively which is less than the national level with Pacific people at 7.4% and Asians at 11.8 %. The smallest proportion of people who identify themselves as Middle Eastern/Latin American/African at my setting are with 0.2% which is less than the national level with 1.2% (Statistics New Zealand, 2013). Overall, according to the 2013 statistics, the European ethnic group is the major ethnic group in my clinical …show more content…
Diabetes mellitus is the largest and fastest health issue in New Zealand Zimmet, Magliano, Herman, & Shaw, 2014). According to my preceptor, 30% of the clients enrolled in my clinical area have type 2 DM which is around five times higher than the national level of 6.1% (Ministry of Health [MOH], 2013). Moreover around 100,000 people in New Zealand remain undiagnosed with DM (Taal et al., 2011)). In New Zealand, the Polynesian (Samoans, Tongans, Cook Island Maori and New Zealand Maori) population have three times prevalence of type 2 DM than the total population. Furthermore, these populations also have higher burden of diabetes co-morbidities and complications which has contributed to marked health inequalities (Sukala,