Management of Dementia Patients in the Acute Care Setting - Essay Example

Management of Dementia Patients in the Acute Care Setting Introduction Ageing is a naturally occurring process in the lives of human beings but as much as one wishes to age gracefully, there are complications most of the time. Poor health is one of the negative effects that come with aging. However, this problem is approached by enrolling the aged into nursing homes where they can receive proper medical attention. Dementia has been one of the most common problems that the aged have been battling with for quite a long time. It mainly affects the memory of the victim leading to irrational behaviour as well. Understanding Patients with Dementia Dementia is a condition that affects the normal functioning of the brain, leading to effects such as loss of memory, irrational behaviour and other related effects. Alzheimer’s disease is among the leading dementias leading to the death and suffering of many aged individuals (Myonghwa, et al., 2004, pp. 330). Treating patients with dementia is not easy because it is very expensive and may affect the acute care system. Hospitals that have to take care of many aged individuals are forced to battle with financial problems due to the high treatment costs. The high costs are mainly attributed to the fact that the patients have to be treated for other life threatening infections and diseases. Such conditions lead to the patients spending a lot of time in the hospitals and this means more financial additions. Patients suffering from dementia are not aware of it until they are hospitalized for other reasons such as; infections or other related diseases. It has been proven that it is very difficult for medical professionals to detect cognitive impairment in old people. It is quite difficult for patients suffering from dementia to process information and may have problems when placed in new environments. Hence, providing nursing care to such individuals may appear to be quite different. Understanding patients suffering from dementia is important because it will help the nurses provide better care for them especially in acute care settings. Nursing Practice in the Care of Acutely Ill Hospitalized Dementia Patients Nurses should be able to recognise patients with cognitive impairment even in the old patients. This should be possible even in acute health care conditions. As mentioned earlier dementia diagnosis is quite difficult especially for the aged people and the professionals need to work harder on this section (Rockwood & Mac Knight, 200, pp. 164). There are some important facts that the nurses to be aware of in order to provide good care. A patient suffering form dementia will be forced to relocate from their normal surroundings to the hospital or nursing home. This is a process for the patient as they will have to adjust to the new environment. This might take time and it may agitate the patient more. Hence, the nurses need to have patience with the patients. Patients with dementia tend to have a sense of despair since they are away from their families and comfort zones. Love from their families is an important aspect needed for acute care. This will make them feel more cared for and safe even if they are in an unfamiliar environment. Occasional visits and constant communication helps patients with dementia a lot. Caring for dementia patients is not an easy task as they do not identify with the acute ward. Suggestions have been made that wards and acute health care centers should deploy technology in their institutions. This can be incorporated in the wrist bands that they wear to monitor them when they wander out of the ward. Availability of personal information will also help the patients receive good treatment in relation to their illness. This information is required at an early stage to enable the nurses to facilitate proper treatment for the patients. Nurses’ Decision Making Task Individual decision making is not an easy task especially if the life of another individual depended on it. Nurses are forced with the task of making decisions that involve the health of the patients. If the wrong decisions are made then the patients’ lives may be at high risk. Nurses making decisions is being improved by the aid of improved technology. This will help the nurses make more accurate decisions according to the clinical system. The use of PDAs and other hand held devices can be a major contributor in helping the nurses make more correct choices and reduce the risk of misdiagnoses. These devices should be able to provide the nurses with all the information necessary for them to make the correct decisions. Nurses’ decisions include administering drugs to the patients, discharging the patients from the hospital among other related decisions. Incase the decisions made are wrong then the patients might have their health at risk. Nurses can also use the implementation of this new technology to their advantage by creating a new learning environment for themselves. The PDAs can be used as a source of information from other sources posted by professionals. The nurses can review this with their mentors later on and clarify areas that may seem quite vague to them. This is a good advantage as it will be beneficial to the nurses and the patients as well. Changes Initiated By Dementia Patients Patients suffering from dementia in the acute hospital system inspire several changes in their surrounding environment. The changes are made to facilitate a suitable environment for theses patients. Patients suffering from dementia are enrolled in a health care center as they pose risk to themselves and to others. The changes made in their environment include structural as well as personal (Zerky, et al, 2009, pp. 285). The staff has to adjust to several changes as well that will enable them to take care of the patients effectively. Hospitals and health care centers that cater to people with dementia have to rely on colourful material to help guide the patients. People suffering form dementia are more likely to relate to colours than to names (Leung & Todd, 2010). Hence, certain areas should be marked with certain colours such as toilets and the rest rooms. This will also help them avoid unnecessary accidents such as falling since the colours will help them differentiate surfaces. The staff taking care of the patients needs to be well trained considering most the patients are frail and vulnerable. All the professionals and nurses are required to have special training that will enable them to handle the patients appropriately (Tolson, Smith & Knight, 1999, pp. 1129). All theses measures are necessary in acute hospital settings to help take care of patients with dementia. However, there are complaints made concerning the treatment being delivered dementia patients. This is because the patients find the experience at the possible quite agitating and distressing. The staff does not communicate effectively with the patients especially about their future plans. Medication Safety It is very important that patients be medicated appropriately to avoid placing their lives at risk. The same applies for patients with dementia as they too require proper administration of drugs and treatment. Patients with dementia are aged and mostly suffering from other infections ass well. Health professionals have admitted to misdiagnosing patients with dementia before, thus, it is a common factor (Phend, 2008). Although there have not been severe cases reported because the problem was taken care of at an early stage, it still places the patient at a risk. Therefore, doctors and physicians should approach the issues being suffered by patients with dementia in caution. The necessary tests should be carried out before a diagnosis is established. The nurses are responsible for making sure the patients take their drugs according to the prescription provided. The nurses are supposed to be well informed as well since they might administer the wrong medication to the patient considering they are taking care of many patients and one may easily make mistakes. The training that the nurses take so as to be able to cater to patients suffering from dementia should be able to guide them when carrying out their tasks. Ethical Issues Every health institution carries out their duties while observing codes of ethics set by the government branches dealing with health. The same applies for acute health care centers (Cowdell, 2010, pp. 42). This includes constant communication with the patient or with the family members of the patient, this will keep them more informed of the treatment they are receiving and how it affects them. In case they do not agree, then they are at liberty to reject the treatment being offered. Proper administration of drugs is also part of the ethics that the staff is supposed to observe at all times. This is in relation with human life as wrong administration may lead to death placing the institution at a vulnerable position. Conclusion In general, patients suffering from dementia are mostly aged and seek treatment in acute health care settings. Their treatment requires a lot of skill and practice so as administer the correct treatment to them. All these are a process and it takes time since the professionals have to understand the patients and all complications they might be suffering from. Professionals have admitted to making the wrong diagnosis before and this is dangerous thus most institutions are looking for methods to minimise this risk. The implementation of technology in such institutions is being recommended as it would reduce such cases. It would also be quite advantageous to the nurses and the patients as well. Hence, there are steps being taken to implement any factors that may help reduce the risks involved in treating patients with dementia in acute settings. Bibliographies Cowdell, F. , 2010. Care of older people with dementia in an acute hospital setting. Nursing Standard. 24(23), 42-48. Myonghwa, P. et al. , 2004. Using a nursing minimum data set with older patients with Dementia in an acute care setting. Journal of Advanced Learning, 47(3), 329- 339. Phend, C. , 2008. DCC: stepped-up fall prevention needed in acute dementia care. [Online] (26 August 2008) Available at: http://www.medpagetoday.com/MeetingCoverage/DCC/10664 [Accessed 21 September 2010] Rockwood, K & MacKnight, C. , 2001. About dementia: understanding dementia behaviour disturbances. A Primer of Diagnosis and Management, [Online]. 10, pp.163- 166. Available at: http://www.dementiaguide.com/aboutdementia/understanding/behaviour_disturba nces [Accessed 21 September 2010] Tolson, D. , Smith, M. & Knight, P., 1999. An investigation of the components of best nursing practice in the care of acutely ill hospitalized older patients with coincidental dementia: a multi-method design. Journal of Advanced Learning, 30(5), 1127- 1136. Zerky, D. et al. , 2009. Does dementia predict adverse hospitalization outcomes? a prospective study in aged inpatients. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 24, 283- 291. Read More