Gerontology and Gerontic Nursing Practice

In 2009, An Bord Altranais published guidelines for nursing older people, person centred care and its provision was discussed in depth as a Standard in Nursing Practice, it is also the number one Standard in Nursing Practice. Person centred nursing care is provided within the organising framework of assessment, identification of needs, planning, implementation and evaluation (An Bord Altranais, 2009). Besides her hair going grey and wrinkles appearing a number of other changes are slowly happening within the body during the ageing process. These include changes to the cardiovascular system, the digestive system, cognition and memory, the bladder, bones, the senses and sexual function. (www.mayoclinic.org/healthy/lifestyle/healthy-aging/in-depth/aging/art-20026070 ).Their functionality may slow down, or begin to fail, leaving the older person in the care of a nurse. I t is the nurses duty to deliver person centred care in doing so recognise the individual and their unique interests, qualities, needs and preferences, rather than solely focusing on the illness. (

Darby, S. Marr, J. Crump, A Scurfield, M (1999) Older People, Nursing & Mental Health. Oxford: Buterworth-Heinemann.

Many elderly and their family cannot determine what are normal aging and what are not; therefore, educating them is the key role for nurses to promote safety and health for older adults. Not only assessing physical changes but also mental health assessment is important because those age-related physical changes may cause depression in older adults, which leads to other problems like “difficulty with sleeping,

Nurse practitioners are advanced registered nurses who have been obligated with providing professional care to patients within their jurisdiction. They are expected to perform comprehensive healthcare services from caring for acute illnesses, injuries, and immunization to the treatment of chronic conditions (Cusack, et al., 2015).

According to Statistics Canada, aging population has steadily increased since the mid-1960. The age of 65 and older comprised 15.7% of the country’s population. Promoting health in these aging population is very crucial to minimise the severity of health complications that might occur in the long run. Gerontological Nursing involves the care of aging people and emphasize the promotion of the highest possible quality of life and wellness throughout the lifespan (Eliopoulos, c2014 p73). Aging people need Gerontological Nurses who are knowledgeable and willing to promote health and optimum quality of life with the consideration of their core needs such as physiological balance, connection and gratification (Eliopoulos, c2014 p78).

The elderly patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) who have been diagnosed with delirium have unique characteristics (Britton, & Russell, 2003). Some of the

Delirium is a serious decline in mental capacity of an individual that results in confused thinking and reduced awareness. Although difficult to accurately define, delirium is a major factor in reducing quality of life for inpatients and affects up to half the hospitalized elderly. However, despite its prevalence and seriousness, delirium is often undiagnosed and can lead to poorer prognosis through noncompliance or risky activities such as unsupervised movement. Some risk factors of delirium are nonmodifiable such as prior dementia, advancing age or other previous neurological diseases, but others can be controlled such as emotional distress, environment and medical interventions. Thus, to reduce the load on medical interventions required for progressed delirium, it is important to educate and support patients and their families to reduce the risk of delirium occurring. This can happen in the hospital through staff of volunteers who are trained to recognise and help delirium or confusion before it can progress to a more permanent dementia. This assignment details the

The geriatric population is a very vulnerable population, which needs great care. The main concerns are attributed to the age, educational background, medication experiences, living conditions and diet. All these contribute to factors which make it difficult to be adherent to their goals, which have been developed to improve their health.

The residential aged care policies are constantly changing over the years. This paper will explore and compare policies that were not present before. I interviewed one of my co-workers, who have the same cultural background as me. She responded to my question of how things work in the aged care back then about handling difficult patients and restraints. The interviewee responded, 20 to 30 years ago, when a resident is in a distressing and uncontrollable manner, there are forms of restraints available to protect the resident from harm and possible fall. An example given by the interviewee was when a resident is sitting on a chair, there is an available tie at the back to secure the resident and to avoid the possibility of a fall, the interviewee described it as an apron-like restraint. However, at that time, the place where the interviewee works is called a hostel for the elderly and transitioned into an ageing place few years ago. She also added an example that when a resident is on bed, rails can be raised up as per request by the resident without a doctors’ order. At this time, it is illegal to use physical restraints without the consent of the doctor, legal representative and if possible, the resident. Nowadays, appropriate checks and

Falls are easily one of the biggest safety risks to any patient in acute or chronic care. Falls themselves can result in secondary problems that can change a patient’s life and every precaution should be taken to prevent falls in the first place, no matter where care is being given. Many precautions and plans have been made by many different types of health professionals to help assess and prevent the risks and decrease the probability of falls. The majority of the patients in hospitals and acute and chronic care centers are a fall risk and their safety is top priority. Increased education and implementation of fall safety will help nursing staff provide better care for their patients. If the same type of precautions, education, and care were given in every facility, the amount of falls could decrease dramatically. Hospitals are prime examples of a facility that makes fall safety one of their top priorities (Neiman, 2011). In centers like nursing homes and long term care facilities, the nursing staff can become less vigilant about implementing fall safety plans to their highest potential. The differences are little, but have a significant impact on the likelihood of a patient falling. The same risks are everywhere.

Delirium can have adverse effects on the patients, family and the healthcare system. Delirium has been defined as a sharp change in cognition that cannot be associated with dementia which is either evolving or already in existence. These sharp changes in cognition will normally occur within hours or days (Alzhemiers, 2002). It is categorized as reversible. Some of the symptoms for patients who have delirium include lack of attention, disorganized mode of thinking, altered mode of attention and consciousness, and continuous disturbances. One of the remedies for treating delirium is early diagnosis and treatment. Elderly patients are prone to delirium and, therefore, are more affected. The problem with elderly patients is that they are often affected by other conditions that come with age, like depression, and dementia. In many cases, the elderly patients will who suffer from delirium will pass as being depressed or having dementia, and the patient shall have been misdiagnosed. This aspect calls for a need to have a method of identifying delirium. The gap that has enhanced this limitation is lack of a nursing education model. One approach for developing an effective way to identify delirium in elderly patients is to have an education model for nursing that will improve delirium

This may also include environmental restraints, in which the patient is locked in their room or seclusion from others. These are usually used to prevent patients from injuries sustained from falls or other accidents. Also, it is used to administer treatment when a patient is not compliant with medical practitioners.

Through the advancement of technology and medicine, individuals are extending their lifespans. As we age, our social interaction, physical being, and psychological function change. Families try to take on additional responsibilities to care for their loved one, but sometimes it is too much. When this happens, the older adult may need to be placed in an extended care facility, or receive home health. Falls also can occur creating surgeries and rehabilitation needs. A gerontological nurse is someone who delivers exceptional care to the older adult population. They are knowledgeable about the changes in mind, body, spirit, health, and the disease process. Moreover, promoting wellness, functionality, comfort, and ability to do as much for

Social protection specialists keeping up a key separation from eye contact with normal people does not offer as satisfying curve in the patients view. Med understudies surging affected down the hallways, verging on running down the moderate moving patients who won't keep up. Patients neglected by therapeutic guardians who haven't yet checked in and thusly don't comprehend they are presently addressing their association (Cambrosio , 2012). Experts in the passageway clamorously carrying on about the relative points of interest of different Ravine Ranch trips they've taken. Two radios playing promptly from two administrative domains. Confection machines that are chosen to keep a safe distance for organization uncertainly. Treat machines that require exact change, however there's no change machine.

Biology is one of the disciplines that will discuss elderly patient care. Biology means the study of life, but it also has much more to the definition. “Biology stresses the value of classification and experimental control. The latter is the means of identifying true causes, and therefore privileges experimental methods over all other methods of obtaining information” (Repko, 2008). There are many ways that show how biology plays a role in caring for the elderly. Age has been a good indicator of health. The elderly face additional disease and injuries than other age groups. A study was done that compared fatality rate of those older than 65 with those who were younger. The categories that were studied