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Family Health Assessment Paper

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Family Focused Health Assessment
L. L.
Grand Canyon University

August 11, 2013

Family Focused Health Assessment
As the society we live in continues to transform, nurses need a comprehensive tool to assess family’s health patterns. Family units are influenced by environment, biological, mental, social and spiritual factors. Assessing these areas for health promotion and disease prevention will take all of these influences into consideration (Edelman & Mandle, 2010). A priority to a family focused health assessment approach is to adequately question, assess and examine these areas. A tool to assist a family health assessment using a family focused approach is Gordon’s 11 Functional Patterns. This paper will use these 11 …show more content…

Lake re-gain his lost weight. The observation made during this assessment is Mr. Lake appears very thin, he states he is 6’4” and weighs 172 lbs. Despite this, he presents with a general appearance of well-being and health. Mrs. Lake does feel supported by her husband as she states he has recently started helping in preparing his own snacks (a lot), to increase his intake and calories. Despite the knowledge that no health conditions presented themselves, the concern that something is still amiss is undeniable.
Coping-Stress-Tolerance Pattern
The next area of focus presented itself after asking certain questions in this area. Mr. and Mrs. Lake discuss the emotional stress brought on by moving from California to Arizona last year and leaving their 23 year old handicapped son Brad behind in California. Brad resides in a group home where he has lived for the past 10 years. He is very accustomed to his environment there; his needs are put first and it is best for him to stay there. To cope they contact his’ group home weekly to evaluate his needs and concerns the home may have. In addition, plans are made so Mrs. Lake can drive or fly to California to attend important meetings and appointments with her son Bradley. She describes the stress of being so far from her son very hard. She states she relies on her husband, Christian faith, and Brads’ care-takers to help her cope. Observations of this couple show a very solid support system provided

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