Discussion Peer/Participation Prompt Due Sunday by 11:59 pm
Instructions:
Please respond to at least 2 of your peer’s posts. To ensure that your responses are substantive, use at least two of these prompts:
Do you agree with your peers’ assessment?
Take an opposing view to a peer and present a logical argument supporting an alternate opinion.
Share your thoughts on how you support their opinion and explain why.
Present new references that support your opinions.
Responses need to address all components of the question, demonstrate critical thinking and analysis, and include peer reviewed journal evidence to support the student’s position.
Please be sure to validate your opinions and ideas with in-text citations and corresponding references in APA format.
Please review the rubric to ensure that your response meets the criteria..PLEASE USE UPDATED REFERENCES FOR BOTH PEER RESPONSE I AM GOING TO PROVIDE EACH PEER POST TO RESPOND BELOW:
Scott Krueger
TuesdayNov 9 at 12:24pm
Health History
Obtaining a complete health history on an older adult can prevent some challenges due to the frequency of diseases like dementia. The inability to recall information can make the health history assessment tedious and time consuming. However, it is important to remain patient and be proactive as a provider, as missed information from the health history can put a patient’s safety at risk.
Strategies
It is imperative that health care providers have access to and obtain past patient medical history documents. With the emergence of informatics and electronic technology, a strategy to obtain a health history centers around gathering preliminary data by requesting previous medical records from the appropriate entities (National, 2017). This could be the hospital the patient is being transferred from or previous healthcare providers that have a history with the patient.
Rationale
Another strategy to employ in obtaining a complete health history on an older adult would be to talk with family members or friends. According to National (2017), a form (health history) can be mailed out ahead of time to the patient’s family member to facilitate information gathering in an efficient manner. This strategy would be effective because it will allow the healthcare provider to obtain relevant health history data that an elderly patient with dementia would not likely be able to provide. Obtaining a health history from previous providers would be effective because they are likely to have kept a detailed record of patient encounters, surgeries, diagnosis, medications, and allergies.
Reference
National Institute on Aging. (2017, May 17). Obtaining an Older Patient’s Medical History. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/obtaining-older-patients-medical-history (Links to an external site.)
#2
Initial Discussion Post
In order to obtain the health history of someone that I may not be able to communicate with, I would attempt several approaches. If the person was escorted by a guardian, I may ask them about the patient’s history. I would also look back in the patient’s chart as long as I am not violating HIPAA regulations. Thirdly, I would continue an in-depth physical assessment and look for findings of overall nutrition, health, and emotional demeanor. I can assess for pain utilizing the CPOT or the Wong-Baker Faces Scale because even those who cannot verbalize pain can still express pain. The Wong-Baker Faces Scale works exceptionally well for patients with language barriers or cognitive impairments as well as children (Bickley, 2021). This may be demonstrated as crying, wincing, grimacing, guarding, and even agitation. If I were examining an infant or child, I may pay attention to signs that would indicate possible neglect or abuse. This is not to assume that every child is abused, however, if they are unable to advocate for themselves, my obligation is to do so. Also, in regard to abuse, it is possible that the guardian may be the abuser. If a child or baby has inexplicable injuries or inconsistent injuries with what the guardian presented, I would be suspicious and act accordingly.
In cases where patients speak another language, I would provide a translator for them to give independent translations. The Affordable Care Act requires federal funds to offer appropriate translations (Showstack, 2019). This may be through a professional translator in person or someone over a FaceTime call. I would attempt to avoid using family for interpretations. This can cause miscommunications, frustrations, and unnecessary dependence on and between family members.
References
Bickley, L.S. (2021). Overview: Physical examination and history taking. Bates’ guide to physical examination and history-taking, 13th ed. New York: Lippincott, Williams, & Wilkins. ISN-13:9781496398178
Showstack, R (Links to an external site.). (2019). Patients don’t have language barriers; the healthcare system does. Emergency Medicine Journal, (Links to an external site.)36(10) (Links to an external site.)580. DOI:10.1136/emermed-2019-208929
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