Question

Difficulty: MediumHealth Promotion and Disease Prevention

A registered nurse coordinating an occupational health and wellness program at a corporate facility is planning activities for the upcoming fiscal year. Which of the proposed activities should the nurse classify as primary prevention strategies? Select all that apply.

  1. A
    Establishing a supervised exercise therapy program for employees with diagnosed coronary artery disease.
  2. Providing prophylactic tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap) vaccinations to warehouse personnel.Answer
  3. C
    Performing annual spirometry testing for employees exposed to airborne particulates.
  4. Teaching proper biomechanics and safe lifting techniques to newly hired manufacturing staff.Answer
  5. E
    Organizing a confidential weekly support group for employees recovering from substance use disorders.
  6. Implementing a facility-wide healthy nutrition and smoking cessation education campaign.Answer

Answer

The primary prevention strategies are providing prophylactic Tdap vaccinations, teaching proper biomechanics, and implementing a healthy nutrition and smoking cessation campaign.
Primary prevention strategies are designed to prevent disease, illness, or injury before they occur. These interventions involve health promotion, education, and specific protection measures. Providing immunizations, teaching proper body mechanics to prevent workplace injuries, and educating staff on healthy lifestyle choices (like nutrition and smoking cessation) all actively work to stop health issues from developing in a healthy population. Therefore, they are all correctly classified as primary prevention.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Recall the definition of primary prevention.
Primary prevention focuses on health promotion and protection against specific health problems before they ever occur.
Establishing the correct definition is necessary to differentiate primary interventions from secondary (screening) and tertiary (rehabilitation) interventions.
2
Evaluate each proposed activity against the definitions of the prevention levels.
Vaccinations, safety training, and health education campaigns prevent disease or injury before occurrence (primary). Spirometry testing aims for early detection (secondary). Exercise therapy for coronary artery disease and support groups for recovery focus on managing existing conditions (tertiary).
Systematically categorizing each option ensures accurate selection based on the clinical intent of the intervention.
3
Select all options that represent primary prevention.
The correct choices are the Tdap vaccinations, biomechanics teaching, and the education campaign.
These three actions meet the criteria for preventing pathology before it begins.

Key Concept

Levels of Disease Prevention
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