Also: Why Functional Medicine & Functional Health Need More Nurses
Have you ever wondered what a Functional Health Nurse does? If Functional Medicine or Functional Health are new terms to you, I highly recommend checking out this post first.
In healthcare, Functional Medicine practitioners like doctors, nutritionists, and coaches often take the spotlight. However, nurses – integral members of the healthcare team – are sometimes overlooked. It’s time for that to change.
Picture health as a spectrum, ranging from optimal well-being to dysfunction finally, disease. Nurses are uniquely positioned to identify where an individual is headed on this spectrum and guide them toward better health. Through education and empowerment, nurses can help people know what proactive steps to take in order to prevent illness and improve their health.
According to the American Nurses Association, nursing encompasses a wide array of responsibilities, including the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, as well as the prevention of illness and injury. While many associate nurses with in-hospital bedside care, their expertise extends far beyond this role.
Imagine having a nurse with years of education and hands-on experience by your side, working with you to protect, promote, and optimize your health and abilities! Imagine having someone who can identify areas of concern before they escalate into disease and provide actionable steps to reverse course. This aligns perfectly with the nurse’s role in alleviating suffering and advocating for each individual’s care.
So, what would this look like? Let’s consider a scenario where someone learns they’re pre-diabetic. While they may not yet be so bad that they require medication, they aren’t given much insight as far as what they can do, other than being given a generic handout about eating healthy, losing weight, and a reminder to make another checkup in a few months. They might feel powerless about their health and that being fully diabetic is inevitable, just a matter of time.
This is where a Functional Health Nurse can step in. This is where there’s nope. After a full health assessment and consultation, the nurse would provide personalized education on evidence-based diet and lifestyle strategies as well as individual health coaching for consistent support along the way.
By collaborating with a Functional Health Nurse, this person could gain insight into the dietary and lifestyle factors influencing their blood sugar levels. This person will feel confident because they understand what changes to make and why, all while having the support of a nurse while making those changes. With this level of personalized guidance and support, it’s very likely they can avoid progressing to a full diabetes diagnosis and regain control over their health journey. That’s getting to the root of the problem and health from the inside out.
Another example would be if you don’t have any major health issues but just want to know what you are doing right, where you could fine tune, as well as what you can do to prevent any health issues going forward. This is particularly helpful for women wanting to get pregnant, women approaching perimenopause/menopause and anyone interested in longevity and aging well. A Functional Health Nurse can do a full health assessment and consultation, identifying areas of imbalance (or areas at risk for imbalance), and provide education on evidence-based diet and lifestyle strategies to support your personal health goals.
As your Functional Health Nurse, I’m here to provide more than just support – I’m here to empower you with knowledge about how your body works and equip you with the tools you need to get and stay healthy. If you’re ready for a partner on your health journey, click here to fill out an application to work with me.