NR717 Week 6 Discussion Policy Analysis to Impact Population Health
Purpose
The purpose of this discussion is to analyze a health policy related to the selected population and practice problem.
This week, you discovered that the focus of healthcare policy has a growing emphasis on population health outcomes. As a DNP-prepared nurse, you must be able to critically appraise healthcare policies to influence policy decisions at every level.
Instructions
Review the lesson and readings about Bardach’s eightfold steps to policy analysis, especially in the Chapter 4 Policy Analysis section of the Patton text. Then, select a healthcare policy that impacts, or has the potential to impact, the practice problem and population selected in previous weeks of this course.
The following links will assist in your search for policies and/or bills.
- Current Legislative ActivitiesLinks to an external site. (Congress.gov)
- NursingLinks to an external site. (Gov info)
- NursingLinks to an external site. (Govtrack)
You can select a broad, national health policy (i.e., Accountable Care Act) or one that is specified for a specific health issue (i.e., Minority Diabetes Initiative Act).
Critically appraise the healthcare policy using Bardach’s eightfold steps to policy analysis:
- Define the problem
- Assemble evidence
- Develop alternatives
- Select criteria to evaluate the alternatives
- Project outcomes
- Analyze trade-offs
- Make decisions
- Communicate results
Solution: NR717 Week 6 Discussion Policy Analysis to Impact Population Health
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) disproportionately affects African Americans (AAs) in Jackson, Mississippi, due to systemic inequities in healthcare access, social determinants of health (SDOH), and higher prevalence of risk factors like hypertension and diabetes (Mississippi State Department of Health [MSDH], 2025; Wadhera & Joynt Maddox, 2024). The Affordable Care Act (ACA) represents a major national policy effort to address such disparities through coverage expansion, insurance reforms, and value-based payment models (Wadhera & Joynt Maddox, 2024). Here is an evaluation of the ACA’s impact on CVD outcomes for AAs in Jackson using Bardach’s eightfold policy analysis framework.
- Define the Problem
AAs in Jackson face a 20% higher CVD mortality rate than white Mississippians, driven by uninsurance rates, cost-related barriers to care, and SDOH like food insecurity and limited primary care access (MSDH, 2025). The ACA aimed to mitigate these disparities by expanding coverage and reforming insurance markets (Wadhera & Joynt Maddox, 2024).
- Assemble Evidence
Coverage Expansion: Medicaid expansion under the ACA reduced uninsured…Click the paypal icon to purchase full solution for $5