A Chronically Ill Group and Rationale for Selecting This Illness and the Participants
Obesity is the excessive accumulation of fats that may lead to severe health and medical conditions. According to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2021), in 2016, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight; of these, over 650 million were obese. 39% of adults aged 18 years and over were overweight in 2016, and 13% were obese. The number of people who are obese is gradually growing throughout the world, making it an epidemic.
The participant for this study operation on a care plan was a restaurant supervisor and a family friend. N. J. is a 35-year-old African-American male who is obese. He was picked as the person who should fill out the questionnaire because of his weight problem. He rated his health status as average, scoring a 6 out of 10. He also indicated the presence of chronic and hereditary disease obesity.
Healthy People 2030 Chosen Topic
Due to the increasing number of people who are becoming obese, the topic selected was overweight and obesity. The primary aim of this is to help reduce overweight and obesity by encouraging people to eat healthily and engage in physical activity (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion [ODPHP], n.d.). As people continue to work in office jobs, rely on transportation, and seek convenience through the delivery of products and processed foods, obesity is likely to worsen. By inspiring people to eat healthily, the amount of foods high in fat and sugars consumed will be reduced. Physical activity, on the other hand, will increase the number of fats a person burns daily.
Holistic Plan of Care
A holistic care plan is crucial for the effective healing of the patient. A care plan should include coping mechanisms and promote the patient’s best interests. It helps nurses to deliver patient-centered care. Designing a care plan is collaborating with healthcare practitioners, patients, family, and friends. The patient, family, and friends have to be helped to accept the diagnosis. This will motivate the patient and help build a relationship with the family where they can help each other during the weight-loss period.
Acceptance of the Diagnosis, Coping, and Impact on the Plan of Care
Nurses play an essential role in helping families accept the diagnosis of their members and include them in the care plan. They also help them accept the situation and the family member’s condition. Nurses show empathy and sympathy to what the family is going through and help them by ensuring they change their lifestyle, thus enabling them to cope with the illness. They also create a plan of care that outlines how the patient can achieve the desired weight. Providing information on the different ways they can lose weight and resources to help them greatly impacts their care plan.
Summary of the Information Gathered
Obesity is a severe medical condition that increases the risk of infection with other diseases and health problems. Some medical conditions associated with obesity are high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancers such as endometrial, breast, ovarian, prostate, liver, gallbladder, kidney, and colon (WHO, 2021). The leading cause of obesity is an imbalance of calories consumed and calories expended. The amount of calories people take into the body is mostly more than they expel. This happens because many people do not work out or engage in activities that burn fats, causing a build-up of excess calories in the body.
The increasing amount of processed foods is a significant cause of obesity. People have access to different manufactured and processed foods being marketed everywhere, making it a global epidemic and not just an individual problem. The influence of the social environment is, therefore, the most dangerous factor in increasing the ratio of obese people. Having system-based laws and rules to help reduce obesity rates would be an effective way to reduce the numbers.
According to WHO (2021), overweight is a Body mass index greater than or equal to 25, while obesity is a BMI greater than or equal to 30. To get these BMIs, one needs to either eat fewer fats and sugars or ensure they are burning more calories than they are consuming. According to Fruh (2017), the goal of healthy eating plans is to limit daily caloric intake to the suggested maximum of 1800 for men and 1500 for women.
Many patients diagnosed with obesity are usually stigmatized and isolated, which may lead to depression. Obese persons are often blamed for their weight, with common perceptions that weight stigmatization is justifiable. People believe that stigmatization will motivate individuals to adopt healthier behaviors. However, this only makes the patient withdrawn, lose a sense of belonging, and develop mental health issues. This makes it hard for them to go for check-ups with doctors, which may deteriorate the condition further. Instead of discriminating against obese patients, members of the public should encourage them and motivate them to lose weight and improve their quality of life.
Nursing Diagnosis
Imbalanced nutrition in obesity is having more than the body’s requirements needs. It is caused by excessive intake of foods and unhealthy food choices. A sedentary lifestyle is a lifestyle that involves a lot of lying around or sleeping. This means that the person gets little to no physical activities throughout the day, thus reducing their calorie-burning activities. Disturbed body image is also a nursing diagnosis in obese patients. This is when the patient lacks self-esteem and has no sense of self-worth.
Assessment Data (Objective and Subjective)
The interview was conducted in the form of a questionnaire, as well as taking some measurements and conducting some assessments. The participant was expected to complete the questionnaire and provide the necessary information. These details would be used to determine his general physical and mental health state. Social and interpersonal life, work, mobility, self-esteem, sexual life, activities of daily living, and comfort with food are some of the subjective data collected from N.J. Heart rate monitoring, accelerometry, blood pressure, and body mass indexing were the objectives data collected and used.
Desired Outcomes and Evaluation Criteria
The desired outcome was to determine how the patient is affected by the illness and how he copes with and manages the condition. It was also an excellent way to determine the participant’s family relationship. It was also meant to establish how the family and friends of the participant feel about his condition and the measures and strategies they have in place to help him.
The outcomes are evaluated by checking the patient’s body mass index and his overall weight. Measuring the waist circumference of the patient is also an evaluation criterion used. Nurses and caregivers also assess how patients view their bodies and find out how they feel about their weight.
Actions and Interventions
The actions and interventions to be taken are helping N.J. change his lifestyle. This involves assisting him in eating healthily, exercising more, reducing, if not stopping, his alcoholism as a coping mechanism, and dietary changes. Some of the nutritional changes include meal replacements, restricting certain foods, cutting calories, and feeling full on less. This should be done gradually to prepare his body for the changes and adjustments. Other interventions include enrolling him in weight management programs, purchasing weight loss medicines and devices, providing special diets, and going through bariatric surgery.
Evaluation of Patient Outcomes
The body weight and mass are measured and recorded to evaluate the patient’s outcomes during the start of the weight loss journey. The evaluation outcomes should be done weekly by checking his body weight and how close they are to achieving their desired body mass. Another evaluation method is measuring N.J.’s waist circumference. If he loses weight, his waist circumference should reduce as he continues his weight-loss journey.
N.J. expressed that he eats more than four times a day. Checking his eating habits may be a way to evaluate the outcomes. If he eats less and follows his diet, his body is losing weight as it should. Checking his blood pressure weekly is also a good evaluation of the patient’s outcomes. Weight loss reduces blood pressure by reducing the strain on the heart and normalizing the blood pressure.
Strategies for the Family or Caregiver in the Care Plan and Rationale
The strategies for the family include creating a dieting plan that involves the whole family and fun recreational activities. This will engage everyone and involve them in the health journey. It will also help the entire family change their lifestyle and embrace healthy eating. These strategies will work as they affect the whole family and motivate them to work on themselves. Involving the entire family reduces the possibilities of stress, depression, and trauma, as N.J. will feel understood and motivated, eliciting positive feelings such as self-acceptance and self-image.
References
Fruh S. M. (2017). Obesity: Risk factors, complications, and strategies for sustainable long-term weight management. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 29(S1), S3–S14. Web.
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (n.d.). Overweight and obesity. Healthy People 2030. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Web.
World Health Organization. (2021). Overweight and obesity. Web.