Health and Illness Across the Lifespan of Diabetes - Case Study Example

HEALTH AND ILLNESS ACROSS THE LIFESPAN OF DIABETES Location Health and Illness across the Lifespan of Diabetes Introduction Diabetes is one of the most prevalent among the many diseases affecting people in the world. It affects many countries globally, and statistics report increasing numbers daily. Many countries in the world have done much effort in ensuring treatment of the already affected victims, and preventing further infections (Finkelman, & Kenner 2010, p. 32). If untreated, diabetes can lead to other ailments like, kidney failure, stoke, heart disease and blindness. Diabetes is one of the major health challenges facing the UK, with number of infected people increasing daily, and if not well treated, the number is estimated to go up. All countries around the world should ensure proper care on those infected, to improve their lifespan. Pathophysiology of Diabetes Diabetic pathophysiology calls for the comprehension of knowledge of the essentials of carbohydrate metabolism and the insulin action. Diabetes would then occur when there is an imbalance between the demand and the processing of the hormone insulin in the body. The bigger picture here is the control of the blood sugar (Katon et al 2013, p. 78). Food taken is broken down into sizeable components. The breaking down of sugars and carbohydrates into glucose gives the body some energy reservoir. A healthy individual would have insulin to regulate the excess sugar in the body. This is the reason as to the explanation of the fall of insulin in the case where the blood glucose level goes down too and vice versa (Chang & Johnson, 2008, p. 90). If insulin production and secretion gets interference from body anomaly, the blood glucose dynamics would definitely change. In the case where glucose penetration into body cells finds a challenge, the resultant effect is hyperglycemia. Causes of Diabetes From the nurse’s desk, many things would make one diabetic. Some like one’s weight, and how one exercises, heart disease, and stroke may get a quick remedy from a nurse. On other occasions, one’s age, family history is not a preventable bite for one to turning diabetic. According to research, there are some groups of individuals prone to getting diabetes (Snoek, & Skinner 2005, p. 88). Among these, people who have close relatives who are diabetic, people over 40 years of age, and those who have periodic high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels or other fats in their body blood. Other vulnerable groups include those individuals who have had prior gestational diabetes or having given birth to a baby that weighed more than 4 kilograms. Those who with some sought of disabilities and those diagnosed with pre-diabetes fall in the same category of those vulnerable (Egede, & Ellis 2010, p. 86). This explains why the genetics of this disease varies, and a nurse would prescribe, and one cannot solely bring out one reason as to the reason behind the diabetic cases. In addition, places with cold weather like the cases in Canada and England, the presence of intense winter triggers diabetic cases (Chang & Johnson, 2008, p. 210). On another occasion, people may get diabetes when their bodies make antibodies, which ends up destroying the body’s own insulin-making beta cells. There are differences in explanation as to the causes of diabetes and this can only put into the record through the cross-examination of the patient, his background and context (Nouwen et al 2010, p. 132). In alleviating the effects of diabetes, socio-economic factors play a key role. The nurses prescribe the diet that a patient of diabetic condition makes is a complex area because there are a number of factors that ought to rhyme in order to ensure safe and healthy management of the disease (Egede & Ellis 2010, p. 100). There are sociological factors such as culture, ethnicity, ways of life that the counselling of a nurse would tame its effects. One would find it healthy living with diabetes in an environment that understand the ailment properly. Changing needs of a patient The effect of diabetes has numerous changing needs of the patient across his life span. This would be in cognitive, developmental, behavioural, and psycho-educational levels (Chang & Johnson, 2008, p. 87). In cognitive realm, the struggle of the patient to adapt to the diabetic condition of her body is the main challenge. This challenge requires emotional responsiveness, right behaviour and relevant skills in order for one to mitigate the daily struggle (Leifer, & Fleck 2013, p. 70). The struggles may vary patients behavior from complications resulting out of stress, dietary choices, insufficient exercising, and blood testing, making proper decisions and taking medications appropriately. This is not a patient’s challenge, but also the family finds itself in the thick of the issue. Some patients have challenges in getting their personality to cope with the situation at hand. The presence of a nurse eradicates most of these. Cognitive cases, require responsible individual personality dynamics, which would in turn aid in combating the menace of being diabetic (Egede, & Ellis 2010, p. 60). A nurse would impart positive personality which would also boast in patient’s coping well with his status as well as level of his family life and cycle, and the cultural perspective at large. This is one area where the patient and the family may underachieve without proper professional prescriptions. The family and the society may find itself in a dilemma in the ability to make changes and their actual performance. Too much cognitive pressure, the patient may give up too easily, or think it is too late to help the condition (Suls, & Wallston 2007, p. 66). The challenge of economic and the developing capability of these patients may also accompany diabetic patients (Chang & Johnson, 2008, p. 67). Since people have to change within their life span and learn how to cope with their adversities, placing diabetes within the context of hope and normal aging phase, the guide of a practicing nurse would seal any loopholes. Medics are there to highlights the possible paths one can take and be healthy (Pan et al 2010, p. 90). This minimizes denial and feelings of powerlessness and pessimism within the family, patient and the community. At the end of it all, there is a no much demage to one’s development and economic strain. Effect of Diabetes to NHS Management of diabetes through the NHS has become a subject of challenge because of the impact it brings with it. United Kingdom analysis shows that the twelve-monthly NHS outlay of the direct handling of diabetic cases may amplify from £9.8 billion to £16.9 billion as times goes. As a result, this would equal to the NHS expenses of around17% from its own lottery (Suls, J, & Wallston, K 2007, p. 124). This again would be a 10% increment. This is devastating. One of the notable changes due to diabetes case’s impact has been the low achievement of treatment standards. Statistics have shown that every diabetic case in U.K, that develops and proper care never comes by, a percentage in quality services goes down in the NHS. There has also been a high number of avoidable deaths as well as annual expenditure rising to an estimated $3.9 billion. These are some of the impacts of diabetes on NHS (Chen, Magliano & Zimmer 2012, p. 108). For example, like Morse put it that the department of health of England had failed to tame the impact of diabetes, according to the standards it aligned along with 2001. Research showed that diabetic complications such as amputations, kidney breakdown, stroke, nerve damage as well as blindness charge is doubling from £7.7 billion at this time to £13.5 billion. This lapse is what mounts a lot of pressure on NHS care services since the result of this was that diabetic people developed avoidable complications and the death toll went up, an issue, which was avoidable. The non-yielding performance of the department of health reflects the destructive burden on the side of NHS care. The speculation is that in England and Asia, there would a diabetic rise of patients to 23% by 2020 (Chan et al 2009, p. 78) If measures are not taken in advance, 2035 a sixth of NHS funding will be spent on the disease. What this translates to the NHS is that the NHS would be unable to offer quality care to these patients. Its resources would strain to satisfy each patient qualitatively, and the only way to avoid this is to improve the efficiency and the effectiveness of existing services (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 96). Diabetes seems to munch through £16.9bn of the NHS’s budget and threaten to "bankrupt" the service within a generation because so many people are being diagnosed with the disease, according to research. Better management of people struggling with diabetes would translate to many savings for the NHS, an estimated $170 million annually. Professional Responsibilities of a Nurse in Health Promotion The family and the nurse have definite responsibilities to manage diabetic individuals. Their care and nursing experience should aim at mitigating the effects diabetes on the physical, financial, and emotional challenges not only to the individual, but also to the family at large (Finkelman & Kenner 2010, p. 80). This may come through proper communication and accountability towards the right measures in such a condition (Pan et al, 2010, p. 89). One of the best policies is to uphold tam work, something that the cares or the nurse as a professional must guide the rest into understanding that. Maintaining these, conditions in a manageable state create a healing path to the patient. The nurse should maintain the diabetic condition at a manageable level by safeguarding the health and well-being of the patient (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 54). The appropriateness of the nurse should serve as the source of the standards required, to give guidance and advice according to the required norms of the patients with diabetes. There are Professional responsibilities that this nursing, as defined by the NMC code of 2008, should adhere to help any diabetic patient (Finkelman & Kenner 2010, p. 95). Nurses have a big responsibility to play in prevention of illness and promoting well-being. Since nurses pass through professional training about health matters, they can make a big impact in the prevention of diabetes as well as promotion of health and lifespan of the affected patients (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 81). One of the crucial modality as a nurse is to ensure that the patients trust the nurse with their health and well-being. The foundation of good nursing practice, and a key tool, is in safeguarding the health and wellbeing of his patients. Creation of consent between the two parties may form a key note in alleviating any diabetic condition. Consent requires the nurse to seek permission and approval from the patient in order for the two forge a forcible healing process. Many have deteriorated their condition due to changes in nurses, as this may come without the patient’s approval (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 80). Professionalism involves cultivating trust with patients. In order to win their attentions, confidentiality is the key. The nurse ought to assure his patients that any personal information regarding their prescription is subject to the pair unless under any patient’s directions. Doing this cultivates trust between the two, a key ingredient towards the patient’s stability. It also creates at will conversation, which helps the nurse to examine his patient in sincerity (Egede & Ellis 2010, p. 110). Accountability in nursing is very important. For example, a diabetic patient would want to know that her health and life can be counted on her nurse’s actions (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 95). A nurse ought to be reliable, and responsible enough to guide his diabetic patient with the right information in her condition. Responsibility even mandates one to confess honestly, when conditions are deplorable rather than mind games. Another principle as a nurse is to make the patient’s one’s first priority, by treating them as individuals and respecting their dignity. Through these measures, the nurse would always work with other individuals to protect and promote not only the health of his patients, but also their families, carers, and the bigger community (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 108). In order to achieve maximum results in managing the impact of diabetes, the nurse ought to provide a high standard of practice in his responsibilities and care of the people at all times (Finkelman& Kenner 2010, p. 108). Finally, the nurse as a professional must be open and honest in guiding his patient for his dignity in his ethics helps to uphold his reputation and professionalism, a personality highly needed in mitigating the impact of diabetes. This promotes the health of a diabetic individual in much better ways. Due to advances in information technology, there are many sites on the website that talk about diabetes, and with the professional knowledge that nurses have, they can help promote the health of diabetic people. It is a nurses’ responsibility to apply knowledge gained during training when working under health promotion on diabetic persons. For example, when dressing ulcers related to diabetes, nurses use their professionalability to test blood sugar levels. These professional abilities help nurses to promote the health of the diabetic persons.Professionalism helps nurses to understand all health promotion services needed on people with diabetes. Conclusion In conclusion, many would agree that diabetes is a very serious illness and one that has a big impact on the NHS. The number of people in the UK over 17years diagnosed with diabetes rose from 2.2 million in 2006 to 2.9 million last year (Walsh 2009, p. 66). A further 850,000 presumably have it, but have not been diagnosed, and another 30,000 under-17s have diabetes. Diabetic condition provides a daily regimen that one has to follow in order to overcome the challenges. Nurses play a very important role in promoting health of diabetic persons, since they use their knowledge in health promotion services. Away from the effects that accompany this illness, one can overcome diabetes effects (Dimond & Jones, 2003, p. 127). As a lifespan process, most doctors urge patients to have continual exercise and managed diets. Every day, as human beings, have to eat to keep ourselves healthy and nourished (Borgelt, 2010, p. 67). Unfortunately, as a diabetic some type of foods if not eaten in moderation can make one very ill. If this fails, mediation process takes over. The incorporation of these concepts, with the help of qualified personnel can help mitigate diabetic challenges and even place a manageable burden upon the NHS centre. 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