rESPOND

• Yerenis Llanes 

Introduction to Women's Health

• In terms of the prevention essential health benefits enjoyed by women, the most prominent aspect of the Affordable Care Act is that it makes quality and affordable health coverage available to millions of underinsured or uninsured women. Additionally, it provides protections to every woman in the U.S., including those who already have preexisting conditions (HRSA, 2020). Women who possess small employer or non-grandfathered individual insurance are also legible for certain essential health benefits under the Affordable Care Act. An excellent example of these benefits includes maternity and newborn care. Other benefits are accessible and preventative services, including screenings for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer, screenings of sexually transmitted infections, as well as screening for osteoporosis for older women devoid of cost sharing (HRSA, 2020). Apart from screenings, women also benefit from the addressing of their lifestyle issues during well-woman visits.

When it comes to the psychological development of women in early adulthood, Erikson’s model identifies two crises that tend to occur. First, women in this development stage usually experience intimacy versus isolation, that is, the process of forming a life partnership with another person (Schuiling and Likis, 2020). A common notion that manifests during early adulthood is gender assumptions regarding demeanor, for example, women are normally assumed to require intimacy, as a requirement for their identity development to be complete. Second, women in adulthood deal with the generative versus stagnation psychological struggle. Attaining a generative status requires either service to others or reproduction and parenting. Stagnation, on the other hand, entails the situation whereby the woman cannot step outside of herself and become generative. More specifically, women contend with various factors that influence their psychological development during early adulthood, including formulating a career, providing care to elderly parents, becoming a parent, and creating lasting relationships, among others.

In terms of clinical education and clinical interventions for women in early adulthood, contraceptive decisions are incredibly vital. As such, it is essential for women in this development phase to receive and access education and comprehensive information regarding ideal contraceptive options and promotion of healthy behaviors. A significant portion of the healthcare services and patient education for women in this stage relate to the making of decisions regarding childbearing (Feldman, 2011). Even though young adult women tend to be primary healthy, their exposure to life events that can adversely impact their health necessitates the need for the utilization of clinical interventions that prevent or curb the occurrence of lifestyle-related health challenges.

Primary prevention entails measures aimed at preventing an illness from occurring in a susceptible person. it usually comprises activities that improve the immunity of a woman at risk or decrease risk exposure to avert the progression of a disease into a subclinical malady. An excellent example of primary prevention is immunization such as the HPV vaccine. When it comes to secondary prevention, the emphasis is on the early detection of an illness in women while it is still in the subclinical form. Examples of secondary prevention include a Pap smear for diagnosing cervical cancer. Lastly, tertiary prevention is utilized in symptomatic patients to decrease the severity of an illness or harm caused by the disease, such as death or disability, through treatment and rehabilitation (Institute for Work & Health, 2015). A good example is a surgical procedure to remove a tumor to prevent it from spreading.

References

Feldman, R. (2011). Development across the life span. Prentice Hall.

HRSA. (2020). Women’s preventive services guidelines. Official web site of the U.S. Health Resources & Services Administration. Retrieved 16 March 2021, from https://www.hrsa.gov/womens-guidelines/index.html (Links to an external site.).

Institute for Work & Health. (2015). Primary, secondary and tertiary prevention. Iwh.on.ca (Links to an external site.). Retrieved 16 March 2021, from https://www.iwh.on.ca/what-researchers-mean-by/primary-secondary-and-tertiary-prevention (Links to an external site.).

Schuiling, K., & Likis, F. (2020). Gynecological health care: With an introduction to prenatal and postpartum care (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.