N104: Essentials of Nursing Care - Health Safety

N104: Essentials of Nursing Care – Health Safety Study Guide economic resources can play a huge role in health maintenance. The poor are less likely to obtain preventative care and will be more likely to be much sicker when they finally come to the provider for health care. Those living in poverty will typically have poor nutrition and sanitation conditions and are more likely to die from preventable conditions. • Culture, values and beliefs: Ethnic, cultural, and religious groups have different views of healthcare and health behaviors. It is critical that the nurse understand the values and beliefs of various groups. For example, many groups believe that family is critical in the health of the individual. For these groups, it is not unusual for the family to arrive at the hospital as a group and stay there for the course of the patient's hospital stay. If the nurse does not understand cultural and spiritual differences, health maintenance issues will not be adequately addressed. • Physical condition: General physical condition can have a huge influence on health maintenance behaviors. An individual with a chronic disease will have a much different focus on health maintenance than a person without the disease. For example, an individual with arthritis will not focus maintenance energy on preventing the disease. Rather, health maintenance for this individual will involve minimizing further injury, learning how to move to decrease pain, and adhering to the prescribed medication regimen. A basic health recommendation for all people is to maintain a healthy height-weight ratio. • Environment: The individual's environment may result in poor health maintenance if air pollution and unsanitary conditions are prevalent. Long work hours and an unhealthy work environment can lead to deficits in health maintenance. A person in a rural area may have access to healthy foods, but may not have ready access to preventative care. • Occupation: An individual who is not employed may not have access to healthcare insurance, while a person who is employed may have health insurance that will provide access to preventative care. Many employers also offer access to health activities and services in the employment setting. An occupational health nurse in the employment setting can help to promote healthy lifestyles and health maintenance behaviors. Some employment settings can put the individual at risk due to stress, poor lightning, noise,and other occupation related hazards. Knowledge of the patient's occupation can help the nurse determine specific risks that the patient might experience. 4.4 The Nursing Process in Health and Illness The nurse uses the nursing process to evaluate the patient in times of health and illness. Assessment The comprehensive assessment for health and illness will include: • Demographic data: Name, age, gender, marital status, occupation, and any other factor that could be useful in developing the patient’s plan of care • The reason for the visit: Often called the chief complaint; the reason for the visit is the patient's report, in her own words, of why she is seekingcare; this information can be elicited by simply asking, “What brings you here today?” • Age-specific screening: This will help the nurse understand and prevent risks that are

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