Older Adults Patient Education Issues - Essay Example

"Older Adults Patient Education Issues" is a perfect example of a paper on social and family issues.

Patient education plays a vital role in the recovery process of individuals suffering from diverse illnesses. Additionally, education increases the patient's independence and relieves care providers of the burden of following up with the patient after treatment. Elderly patients are more delicate, and caring for them requires specific skills, knowledge, and understanding. According to the wellness network (2016), patient education both the care providers and the patients in diverse ways. First, education programs attract patients to medical facilities and enhance patient satisfaction. Additionally, patient education reduces care providers' liability, promotes patient-centered care, and enhances adherence to treatment and medications. Education also reduces complications related to illnesses and ensures continuity of care. The result is a more efficient and cost-effective care delivery system.

Most elderly patients with complicated conditions undergo treatments from home, and learning about their condition helps to enhance home-based care safety. Education also helps to enhance the patients' confidence in the treatment, hence enhancing the efficiency of the treatment process. The more clearly an illness is understood by the patient, the higher the probability that the patient will be comfortable with the treatment and adhere to the vital administrations. Lack of patient education has been associated with non-adherence to treatments. To ascertain this opinion, I interviewed my 65 years old cousin who is suffering from diabetes and has been on home-based care for the past eight months. The interview was focused on five major concepts associated with diabetes management, including self-care, education on diet, physical activity, diabetes-related illnesses, and other coping methods. The respondent showed a lack of knowledge in almost all aspects, a factor that may have contributed to the prolonged suffering.

When questioned about self-care, the patient had no information at all about how to handle himself to enhance recovery. Similarly, his wife, who was the only caretaker, had little information about how to handle the husband to help him recover from the disease. Most of the activities he undertook were based on guesswork and advice from neighbors. I later found out that the care provider only prescribed medications without educating them on self-care methods. On the question of physical activity, the response was the same as the first question. The patient spends of the time in his bed because he was so weak and the care provider was worried that taking him out could cause more trouble. As a result, the patient was growing weaker and weaker and at some point, he had lost hope and refused to take the medicines. Similar negative responses were evident in coping strategies and dieting. As a result, related illnesses such as depression and cognitive dysfunction had also found a hub (Suhl & Bonsignore, 2006). All these issues could be attributed to a lack of knowledge.

Knowledge is the key to success in any undertaking and for effective care provision, physicians should spend more time educating patients on self-care. According to Paterick et al (2017), self-efficacy is pivotal in care provision because it challenges the patient to take personal responsibility. In the case of my interviewee, the patient was willing to take the measures but lack of knowledge was the major hindrance. The role of patient education in recovery and control of illnesses is key because it influences the perception of the patient about their condition.