The Elderly Medical Ward - Assignment Example

Yano Ivory Ann Yano 11 May 2007 Reflection on the Elderly Medical Ward I had thought of something which, indeed, a drastically yet a veracious reality of how people live and, of course, magnanimously acclaim the worth of being old. Through the years of unflinching intrepid mode of lucrative life, beneath the toil and sublime state of success lies our inevitable fate of becoming old and soon depart the earthy world. Even the most powerful human being having the acquisition of the superb wealth cannot defeat the agony of having a disease in the latter part of life. Furthermore, we cannot manipulate our heart when to start beating and when to beat last. Aging is defined as "a universal, internally predictable biologic process following maturity" (Black, Hawk, & Keene 2001,12). All of us will experience the development of life since the day we were born up to the last breath we take. No one is exempted not to grow neither will live for a hundreds of years. Basically we grow, become mature, get a stable job, have a family, become old, and die. This is the sad irony of life. Physiologically, there are two factors which affect the process of aging. Smeltzer and Bare (2004,191) said that " intrinsic aging refers to those changes caused by the normal aging process that are genetically programmed and essentially universal within the species". Extrinsic aging, on the other hand, triggers the development of aging through accumulation of factors outside the body that contribute in its normal process. Medication, stress, and sedentary lifestyle are some of the examples of extrinsic factors that precipitate aging process. Through the years of living when a person reached the pinnacle of life, the body cannot function well already due to the deterioration if his body organs and the inability of the cells to regenerate. "Cells become less able to replace themselves, and they accumulate a pigment known as lipofuscin, a degradation of elastin and collagen causes connective tissue to become stiffer and less elastic" (Smeltzer & Bare 2004,191). It is certainly the reason why most of old age adults have the tendency to develop, or if not, more susceptible to acquire such diseases and illnesses. Generally, old age patients have different kinds of needs compared to pediatric patients and middle age patients. When a person got sick when he/she was still young, he/she can cope up easily depending on his immune system which helps the body fight against any infections that caused a disease or illness. But when she got old, his/her immune system will become weak and the organs of the body cannot function well just as how it functions during the early stage of life. Yano 2 Gawande (2007, 5) states that " the classical view of aging is that it happens because of wear and tear". If a person won't value his health and abuse it while he/she is still young, the higher the incidence he/she acquires a disease when he/she gets older. My experience as a student nurse in the elderly medical ward was fantastic. It helped me realize and understand how to properly intervene with the needs of the elderly people. During the early days of my exposure, I was able to render care especially with my patient having Alzheimer's disease. At first it was a bit hard to adjust but, nonetheless, I was able to cope up with the needs of my patient. As I reviewed the disease process, Alzheimer's disease is "a progressive, irreversible, degenerative neurologic disease that begins insidiously and is characterized by gradual losses of cognitive function and disturbances in behavior and affect " (Smeltzer & Bare 2004,205). This disease is a type of progressive and nonreversible dementia which affects the ability of a person to think and behave normally. Javier (2007, 2) states that before a diagnosis of dementia is made, memory impairment must be present and there must be evidence of decline in other cognitive skills. It has been said that even a person sometimes feel confused or agitated, it doesn't necessarily mean that the person can be diagnosed as having dementia already. It must be that all potential causes of cognitive and behavioral degeneration is considered and must be properly assessed. In giving medications for patients with Alzheimer's disease, it must be prescribed by specialists so that the patient must be assessed accordingly. Recently, there are five approved medications for Alzheimer's. To check the effectiveness of the medications, it must be regularly assessed and a review of these medications should occur every three months and examine if these drugs are effective for the patient (http://alzheimers.about.com/cs/treatmentoptions/a/Alz_drugs.htm2006). To prevent accidents and fall for a patient having Alzheimer's disease, there are some safety issues which, indeed, a big help for me in rendering care for my patient. Here are some tips to help the patient avoid the dangers (http://alzheimersolutions.stores.yahoo.net/cartipandhin.html2006): Floors should be kept clear of loose items. Remove scatter drugs. Roll up lamp cords. Roll up extension cords. Move furniture from walking areas Yano 3 Put decals on sliding glass doors so patients don't accidentally attempt to walk through them Alzheimer patients have a reduced ability to feel pain. Many patients are unable to speak, so they cannot tell you they are in pain. Therefore, never feed a patient food or liquid without testing the temperature first. Also, always test the water temperature before exposing the patient to shower or bath Placing outlet covers on electrical sockets will help prevent a patient from receiving an electrical shock, should they stick a piece of metal into the outlet Patients cannot see well in the dark. Provide night-lights in walking areas. Provide low-level table lighting for night use. Consider putting a safety gate at the top of stair at night Many Alzheimer patients wander. Remember to keep upstairs' windows locked. Consider removing mirrors from a patient's room. Some patients are unable to recognize themselves in a mirror. They may think a stranger is in their room. Patients who suffer from Alzheimer's disease are often misunderstood to some people who don't really know why it happened to them. Especially to their caregivers and nurses who handled that kind of person with that disease, it may sometimes be hard and treat them as a burden. But of course, it only needs a lot of patience to provide comfort to such people having the disease. Most of the patients in the ward are old age and they need a lot of help in doing activities of daily living. "In order to assess the functional status of the older adult, consider the client's level of independence within the environment" (Black, Hawks, & Keene 2001,52). During assessment, the basic activities which they usually perform must be assessed to determine what needs must be given to them especially in personal care. Through the entire exposure in the ward, I have learned a lot and gain more knowledge especially in the care of an old age adult. This experience is a challenge because caring of an old age is a lot more different from any other patients. As a health care professional, we must assure and assist their feelings of security, we must have the ability to be creative, we must have patience, and of course, we must love what we are doing in order to provide the necessities needed including all of our patients. I must say I'm not yet skilled in caring and comforting the Yano 4 elderly people but I'm proud to say that I enjoyed learning it. Also, it is our duty to teach and encourage our clients how to promote their health and prevent having a disease. Needless to say, I developed more confidence on administering medications. Most of the time my mentors allocated me and they teach me more on proper administration of the medication. I have known so far that such pharmacological changes happen in a geriatric client compare to those in pediatric clients. "Treating pain, reducing the burdens of medications, longetivity, and being close to family and friends are among the considerations of the elderly" (Waters 2007, 12). To provide maximum comfort for a client, it has been said that working with multidisciplinary team ensures the wellness of the client. " Multidisciplinary team working has been endorsed as the main mechanism to ensure truly holistic care for patients and a seamless service for patients throughout their disease trajectory and across the boundaries of primary, secondary, and tertiary care" (Jefferies & Chan 2004,211). As a member of one of the health care professionals, it must be one of our responsibilities to participate in giving care for our patients. There are plans that must be collaborated with other health care professionals that were also part of the team. "Interdisciplinary education and education in teamwork provides theoretic and practice-based learning to prepare for working as a member of a health team" (Robertson 2007, 4). Working with other team members must be carefully done to achieve the goal, which is to provide optimum care, needed for our patient. Yano 5 References Alzheimer Research Forum: Caregiving Tips. 2006. http://alzheimersolutions.stores.yahoo.net/cartipandhin.html (accessed May 10, 2007). Alzheimer's Disease: Overview Meds for Alzheimer's. 2006. http://alzheimers.about.com/cs/treatmentoptions/a/A12_drugs.htm (accessed May 10, 2007). Black, J.M., Hawks, J.H. & Keene, A.M. 2001. Medical-Surgical Nursing: Clinical Management for Positive Outcomes. 6th ed. Philadelphia: W.B Saunders Company. Gawande, A. 2007. The New Yorker: The Way We Age Now. [Online]. Available: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/04/30/070430fa_fact_gawande [10 May 2007]. Javier, H.C. 2007. BellaOnline: Alzheimer's Disease. [Online]. Available: http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art8348.asp [10 May 2007]. Jefferies, H. & Chan, K.K. 2004. Multidisciplinary Team Working: Is It Both holistic and Effective [Online]. Available: http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1048-891X.2004.014201.xcookieSet=1 [10 May 2007]. Robertson, D. 2007. Multidisciplinary Team. [Online]. Available: http://medicine.jrank.org/pages/1191/Multidisciplinary-Team.html [10 May 2007]. Smeltzer, S.C. & Bare, B.G. 2004. Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing. 10th ed. Philippines: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Waters, J. 2007. The Washington Times: Growing Old. [Online]. Available: http://washingtontimes.com/metro/20070212-103031-6155r.htm [10 May 2007]. Read More