Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools

Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools

NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools

As geriatric patients age, their health and functional stability may decline resulting in the inability to perform basic activities of daily living. In your role as the advanced practice nurse, you must assess whether the needs of these aging patients are being met. Comprehensive geriatric assessments are used to determine whether these patients have developed or are at risk of developing age-related changes that interfere with their functional status. Since the health status and living situation of geriatric patients often differ, there are a variety of assessment tools that can be used to evaluate wellness and functional ability.

For this NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools, consider which assessment tools would be appropriate for the patients in the following three case studies:

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Case Study 1

Mr. Smith, age 77, reports for an annual physical examination. He says he is doing well. His only known problem is osteoarthritis. He also requests a flu shot. He takes no medications other than Tylenol for arthritis pain. When he walks into the exam room, you notice that he is using a straight cane in his right hand. When you ask about the cane, he says he began using the cane because the pain in his right hip had increased significantly over the past 6 months. NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools.

Case Study 2

Mr. Jones, a 68-year-old man, was referred to your office for a hearing evaluation. He continues to work in a printing company, although he works only part-time. He has worked at the printing company for the past 35 years. He complains that he cannot hear much of the dialogue on the television. He is accompanied by his wife, who states that her husband cannot hear her at home. He has no history of dizziness, tinnitus, or vertigo. He has had cerumen impactions removed from both ears in the past. Overall, his medical history is quite benign. His only medications are aspirin 81 mg daily, a multivitamin daily, and occasional ibuprofen for back pain. NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools.

Case Study 3

Mrs. Roberts, an 83-year-old widow, is brought to the office by her daughter. The daughter claims that her mother seems to be depressed. There is a history of depression approximately five years ago, shortly after Mrs. Roberts’ husband died. At that time, she was successfully treated with antidepressants. Currently, the daughter states that her mother’s memory for appointments and events has declined severely, and she can no longer drive because she does not remember the route to the store or other familiar places. The daughter also noted that her mother’s house seemed very disorganized and dirty, there was a limited amount of food in the kitchen, and the checkbook had not been balanced for several months. Mrs. Roberts appears slightly disheveled, she has a flat affect, and she does not maintain eye contact during your interview. NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools.

To prepare for NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools:

• Review the Rosen and Reuben article in this week’s Learning Resources. Consider how assessment tools are used to evaluate patients.
• Select one of the three case studies. Based on the provided information, think about a possible patient evaluation plan. As part of your evaluation planning, consider where the evaluation would take place, whether any other professionals or family members should be present, appropriate assessment tools and guidelines, and any other relevant information you may wish to address.
• Consider whether the assessment tool you identified was validated for use with this specific patient population and if this poses issues. Think about additional factors that might present issues when performing assessments, such as language, education, prosthetics, missing limbs, etc.

By Day 3

Post an explanation of your evaluation plan for the patient in the case study you selected and explain which type of assessment tool you might use for the patient. Explain whether the assessment tool was validated for use with this patient’s specific patient population and whether this poses issues. Include additional factors that might present issues when performing assessments, such as language, education, prosthetics, missing limbs, etc.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses. NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools.

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days in one or more of the ways listed below. Respond to colleagues who selected different case studies than you did.

• Suggest alternative assessment tools and explain why these tools might be appropriate for your colleagues’ patients.
• Recommend strategies for mitigating issues related to use of the assessment tools your colleagues discussed. NURS 6540 Week 2 Discussion: Assessment Tools.

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NURS 6540 Week 10 Discussion – Community Advocacy Agencies

Having received a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and encountering the associated stigmas, Michael Ellenbogen encourages increased advocacy efforts for the geriatric population struggling with this disease. He says, “We did nothing wrong to get this disease, and we need to speak up to let our voice be heard…There are no excuses for not wanting to help. The human cost factor is too high, and we are all accountable to do something” (Ellenbogen, 2012). As an advanced practice nurse caring for the geriatric population, it is important for you to join in advocacy efforts within your community whether it is in support of Alzheimer’s or another prevalent need such as abuse. You should be aware of community agencies that advocate for the well-being and care of your local geriatric population, as these agencies often provide resources and assistance to the elderly in need. In your role of care, you are able to identify prevalent needs and work with patients, their families, and agencies to promote change and impact lives.

To prepare:

Review this week’s media presentation, as well as the American Geriatric Society’s Public Policy and Advocacy website in the Learning Resources.

Locate and research two agencies that advocate for the elderly in your community. Consider their current advocacy actions and/or campaigns.

Reflect on your experiences and observations at your practicum site. Consider new advocacy actions you might suggest to the agencies you selected. Based on these advocacy actions, think about new policies that might improve the care of the population at your current practicum site.

Post on or before Day 3 a description of two agencies that advocate for the elderly in your community, including their current advocacy actions and/or campaigns. Then, explain new advocacy actions you might suggest to these agencies based on your experiences and observations at your practicum site. With these advocacy actions in mind, suggest at least one new policy that might improve the care of the population at your current practicum site.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.

Respond on or before Day 6 to at least two of your colleagues on two different days who are in different practicum settings than you. Explain issues within your own community that might impact the advocacy actions and policies suggested by your colleagues.

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NURS 6540 Week 11 Discussion – Discussing End-of-Life Care

There is a human tendency to postpone uncomfortable or unpleasant tasks.

—Nancy Kummer, geriatric patient

This human tendency to avoid the unpleasant makes end-of-life care and hospice decisions difficult for many patients to discuss with their families. Kummer is a former social worker who used to counsel patients with terminal illnesses, yet she avoided discussing her own end-of-life wishes with her children. While many Americans, like Kummer, agree that these discussions need to take place, few have actually had these conversations with their families (Lazar, 2012). Although initiating conversations about end-of-life care and hospice might be difficult for patients, as an advanced practice nurse, facilitating these conversations is an integral part of your geriatric nursing practice. For this Discussion, consider how you would facilitate care conversations with the patients and families in the following case studies:

Case Study 1:

Mrs. Sloan, a 69-year-old widow, is about to enter the hospital for an elective cholecystectomy; she is being medically cleared by her primary care provider. During the discussion, she requests to be placed on a no code status during her hospitalization. Mrs. Sloan claims that besides her gallbladder problem, her general health status is good. She wishes to have the surgery to avoid any further attacks, which have been very painful. She states, however, that if during surgery or her postoperative period, she undergoes a cardiac arrest, she would prefer not to be resuscitated. She has read about the chances of successful resuscitation, and has determined that the risk of brain damage is too high. For this reason, she is requesting a no code status.

Case Study 2:

Ms. Stearns is an 83-year-old nursing home resident with hypertension, coronary artery disease, arthritis, renal insufficiency, hearing impairment, and a previous history of stroke. She also has a foot deformity from childhood polio. She is disoriented at times. She has lived in the nursing home for 10 years and rarely leaves the chair beside her bed. She has recently developed urinary incontinence, but has refused a bladder catheterization to determine postvoid residual urine or possible bladder infection. She does not have a diagnosis of dementia; however, current testing reveals that she performs poorly on a standardized mental status examination. She can, however, identify all the staff in the nursing home, and she can describe each patient who has been in the bed next to hers over the past 10 years. When asked to explain why she does not want bladder catheterization, she gives several reasons. She states that the incontinence does not bother her, and that she has always been a very private person. She particularly dislikes and objects to any examination of her pelvic organs; in fact, she has never had a pelvic examination nor has she ever had sexual intercourse. She realizes that she has a number of medical problems and that any one of them could worsen at any time. She states she is not willing to undergo any treatment for any of her current problems should they become worse.

Case Study 3:

Mr. Marley, age 91, is admitted to the intensive care unit following a stroke. The stroke progressed from mild hemiparesis and difficulty speaking to complete unresponsiveness and an inability to swallow. His daughter feels certain, based on prior explicit conversations with her father, that he would not want to have any treatment that would prolong his life and leave him in a severely disabled state. Mr. Marley’s oldest son disagrees with his sister’s assessment of their father. The son claims that their father still has a strong desire to live, and that he has been very active in his church until this stroke. Because Mr. Marley cannot swallow, he cannot be fed. The family is asked about insertion of a feeding tube. It is explained to the family that without food and fluids, their father will die fairly quickly. There are no existing advance directives or a designated health care decision maker noted for Mr. Marley.

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To prepare:

Review Chapter 14 of the Holroyd-Leduc and Reddy text.

Reflect on the role of the advanced practice nurse in facilitating the discussion of end-of-life care with patients and their families.

Think about how you, as an advanced practice nurse, would approach a family who wants “everything” done for a patient with only a limited time to live.

Consider when it is appropriate to involve hospice and how to approach patients and/or families who refuse hospice services.

Select one of the three provided case studies related to the end-of-life care of the frail elderly. Reflect on potential patient outcomes and how you would facilitate the discussion of care with this patient’s family.

Post on or before Day 3 an explanation of the role of the advanced practice nurse in facilitating the discussion of end-of-life care with patients and their families. Explain how you would approach a family who wants “everything” done for a patient with only a limited time to live. Then, explain when it is appropriate to involve hospice and how to approach patients and/or families who refuse hospice services. Finally, explain potential outcomes of the patient in the case study you selected and how you would facilitate the discussion of end-of-life care with this patient’s family.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.

Respond on or before Day 6 to at least two of your colleagues on two different days who selected different case studies than you. Based on the site of care, suggest strategies for establishing the role of advanced practice nurses in end-of-life discussions with patients.

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