A Nursing Intervention for 83 Year-old LC (USA in 1991) - 1100 Words

A Nursing Intervention for 83 Year-old LC (USA in 1991) (Essay Sample) Content: A Nursing Intervention for 83 Year-old LCNameInstitutionCourseIntroduction Once an adult attains the age of 70 s/he needs much more nursing attention than younger adults. The care required is vast and ranges from medical, diet, hygiene, and social care. All these aspects of nursing have to be administered or carefully monitored by a trained individual or a person with such knowledge. Best care will be assured to the elderly adult once the nursing needs are taken care of by such professional. A trained professional is capable of understanding the needs of the elderly adult, administer medication on schedule and keep progress records of his/her client. When handled by a professional, such nursing results in a more satisfied client. However, most families might not be able to afford the services of such a nurse. Despite these nursing challenges, a lot of caution has to be taken when administering nursing routines to the elderly (Fulmer, Foreman, Walker, 2001, p. 84). Th is nursing intervention plan focuses on an 83-year-old, LC, has Congestive heart failure (CHF), and hypertension. Assessment toolsSocial history83-year-old LC came to the USA in 1991 was married and lived most of her life as a housewife. English is her second language even though her English is excellent and she speaks just as natives. She got married, had six children, four girls and two boys. All her children are married and have given LC fifteen grandchildren. Her eldest son is now the head of the family. He coordinates the activities concerning LC. She is currently living with her third daughter. Even though she lives in her daughters house, all her children contribute to her needs. Being 83, her children take caution not to allow her to drive. She is also aware of the fact that she cannot drive herself at her advanced age. Consequently, her children drive her to places she wishes to visit or when she wants to visit a friend. LC has friends, but she prefers not to go to popular places all the time and is not active in community activities. She goes to church a lot and participates in church activities. She is proud of the fact that her family respects the elderly.Social assessmentGiven that LC is widowed and stays with her daughter, it follows that she has little authority on most decisions on her nursing. She agrees with whatever decision her children make concerning her life. This could be the reason she does not prefer going to social places. The lack of freedom of choice is an issue that affects her, but she endures it. This is deduced from the responses she provides to the social questions. It is important that an elderly adult gets the freedom of choice. Even though most elderly adults are victims of neglect, LC has not been overlooked. She is nursed by her children and has not been isolated in a nursing home. Her preference to stay with her third daughter is a family arrangement. This shows that her children are concerned about her and want to be cl oser to her. Nutrition Screening Initiative ChecklistLC scored quite well on her nutrition. However, there are areas she where her score went up to 3 to 4. This indicates a moderate risk for her nutrition. LC has a tooth and mouth problems that make it difficult for her to consume certain foods. Consequently, she takes over the counter nutritional supplements or drugs to cater for some of the nutrition she would get directly from food. LC also feeds herself even though she is not able to cook her meals. The conclusion here is that when there is no one around to prepare meals for LC she will most likely skip that meal or take it later. Her daughter might not be around at all times. Elderly persons need close monitoring when taking their meals. When LC feeds herself and most of the time eat alone, there are high chances that she could be dehydrating or developing nutritional problems, yet no one will notice (Milner, 2009, p. 377). Having LC unattended to by a nurse would put her in a state where she doesnt receive professional care. A professional nurse would use his/her expert knowledge and tools to check and determine her nutritional requirements. Since she scored 3 and four on some assessments, it follows that if extra caution is not taken these scores will persist and put her health at a higher risk. Katz Index of Independence in Activities of Daily Living At 83 years of age, LC has scored tremendously high on the Katz index of independence in activities of daily living. Having scored 6/6, she is highly independent. This score implies that during her early years, LC lived a healthy life. Her past healthy living improved her chances for a healthy old age. She probably took advantage of recommended preventive health services and made healthy lifestyle changes (Katz et al., 1970).Mini-Mental Status ExamDespite the fact that LC couldnt make up or write a sentence containing a verb and a noun, and also failed to copy the intersecting polygon, she scored so high . Having scored 28 out of 30, LCs cognitive is not impaired. As tested by this tool, LC is aware of her environment, can make deductions, and her sight is good. For a person of her age, she stands out as she requires minimal assistance and monitoring.Fall Prevention ScaleGetting a total of 4 on Hendrichs fall risk model, LC is amazingly strong. However, she experiences some dizziness on rare occasions. She doesnt need help when standing up, and she does it in one pushup attempt. Most elderly adults will be assisted to get up or try several times. LC neither struggles nor is she assisted in getting on her feet. She is not at high risk of falling and is stronger as indicated by her scores in the model. Overall ImpressionLC is a unique case of study among the elderly adults. She is a rare case, given that her score on assessment tools are very impressive. She passes for a healthy and independent elderly adult who needs minimal supervision. A nursing issue of concern is on LCs nutrition . She admitted to taking her meals alone most of the time and using over the counter prescribed drugs. Elderly adults need close supervision when taking their meals. LCs family might be misled by the fact that she appears heal...