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Running head: HEALTH PROMOTION 1

Health Promotion

Amanda L. Rush

Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing

NUR 4113

April 12, 2018

Tamera Krukiel, RN, MSN, ANP-BC, PMHNP-BC

“I pledge…”
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Assessment

The client interviewed for the Health Promotion Project was a 72-year-old Caucasian

male who is retired but still enjoys writing Civil War novels. He explained that he struggles with

his hearing as he has gotten older and must wear his hearing aids all day every day. He also

wears glasses at all time. I learned that the patient has high blood pressure and high cholesterol

that are controlled by medications and is also a stroke patient. He spoke very highly of his family

and the dynamic that exists which I think is beneficial for the aging population especially. He is

consistent with taking his medications daily as prescribed, with the help of his wife. He

explained that his weight has been a battle since he has gotten older mostly because he loves

sweets. Since the goal of Healthy People 2020 is to, “improve health, function, and quality of life

of older adults” (2018), I feel that the client strives to achieve this goal with eagerness to learn

tools to succeed.

Nursing Diagnosis

The nursing diagnosis for this client is “Risk for falls related to CVA as evidence by

unstable gait”. This diagnosis is important for this client because falls can be incredibly

dangerous especially for the older population. The client explains that his gait has been unsteady

since his stroke two years ago and that he does not feel comfortable walking without holding

onto someone or something. That being said, he recently obtained a cane but “doesn’t use it as

much as he should”. A short-term outcome is to relate the intent to use safety measures to prevent

falls by the end of the session. This will be easily measured by having the client repeat back

some of the teaching material. A long-term outcome is that the patient will not sustain a fall in

the next six months. This outcome can be followed-up upon.


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Teaching Plan

From the learning assessment tool and knowing that the client is an author, I knew that he

would prefer learning by reading especially since he mentioned that he enjoys reading for

pleasure. Since the client wanted to address making better eating choices, I used My Plate to give

a visualization of the material. I also found brochures from the Centers for Disease Control that

gave facts about falls and ways to prevent them. The client mentioned that he liked that the

teaching tools were visually appealing. I was able to assess education level, socioeconomic status,

and use the Survey of Preferred Learning results to develop an appropriate way to teach the

patient fall prevention strategies and nutrition education using visual aids.

The short-term outcome was that the patient would relate the intent to use safety

measures to prevent falls by the end of the teaching lesson. With the use of learning aids, the goal

was met because the client was able to verbally give examples of ways to prevent falls, such as

incorporating exercises to improve balance and making the home safer by providing more

lighting in some areas. With the information provided, the client states that he feels he has the

tools needed to prevent falls. The long-term outcome can be followed-up on.

Evaluation

The nursing outcomes were related to primary prevention because education was used as

a prevention strategy. While the teaching may have been effective during the session, I worry

that the client will struggle with forgetfulness with the information provided. His cognitive

dysfunction since the CVA have been a limitation and I suspect that learning new information

will be no different. That being said, at the time the client was very eager to learn and asked

appropriate questions. I did notice that he repeated some questions such as the use of night-lights

close to the floor starting around dusk. Although I gave information about My Plate, the client
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said that he most likely “will not cut back on sweets” but did mention that he would make more

of an effort to achieve a more balanced diet. As far as what could have been done differently, I

think that I would have done the assessment tools and screenings one day and do teaching

another day. Perhaps it was too much information at once.

Summary

This Health Promotion Project was a humbling experience. While it was interesting to

learn about the assessment tools in lecture, I appreciate being able to put them to use on a client

from a nursing role. It also took me to another end of the spectrum since this semester focused so

much on pediatric assessment in other coursework. I liked being able to compare being able to

work with the different populations. From this project I learned that I have more patience than I

thought I had. Since the client had cognitive decline, I found myself repeating a lot of

information. I noticed that instead of getting frustrated, I found ways to better explain the

information and give him time to respond and ask questions. I always enjoy the role of nurse-

teacher because I believe that knowledge is power.


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References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Healthy people 2020. (2018, April 12). Retrieved

April 12, 2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/dhdsp/hp2020.htm

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. STEADI- older adult fall prevention. (2017,

September 19). Retrieved April 12, 2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/patient.html

National Council on Aging. Falls prevention fact sheet. (2018). Retrieved April 12, 2018, from

https://www.ncoa.org/resources/falls-prevention-fact-sheet/

United States Department of Agriculture. Choose my plate. Retrieved April 12, 2018, from

https://www.choosemyplate.gov

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