Introduction: Callista Roy’s Adaptation Model (RAM)
Making the necessary adjustments to help patients get used to the changes in their life caused by the disease and the introduction of the appropriate treatment strategies is crucial for the further success of the intervention. Herein lies the significance of Callista Roy’s Adaptation Model (RAM), which explains the nature of the adaptation process and, therefore, builds the premise for creating a comfortable environment in which the patient can adopt toward the change.
RAM is especially useful in the process of patient adaptation for asthmatic patients since the recommended treatment and disease management strategies must be maintained throughout the patient’s life and, therefore, need the development of specific habits, as well as the acquisition of the relevant knowledge and skills (Saini, Sharma, Arora, & Khan, 2017).
RAM implies that a patient should have four primary modes of adapting toward changes. These include self-concept, psychological needs, role function, and inter-dependence (Maghsoodi, Pak, & Naseri, 2016). As external factors exert their effect on a patient, the latter four systems serve as the tools for assisting the patient in their process of adapting toward the new environment. The model also implies that four cognitive-emotional channels should be activated so that the patient could develop the required coping strategy; these include perceptual and information processing, learning, judgment, and emotion (Saini et al., 2017).
It is remarkable that the identified approach also allows maintaining the spiritual progress of the patient, therefore, creating the environment in which the patient will feel confident and, therefore, enthusiastic about engaging in the communication with the nurse, as well as the acquisition of the relevant information and skills. Consequently, the education process remains consistent (Saini et al., 2017).
This paper includes four major parts, i.e., the introduction (the current section), the description of the healthcare concern that RAM is supposed to assist in addressing (asthma), the part describing the ways in which RAM can be used to meet the needs of patients with asthma, and the conclusion with a short summary and the recommendations concerning the application of the framework.
Assisting Patients with Asthma: Triggers and Treatments
The reasons for caring about asthma are quite numerous. Apart from the subject matter being impossible to cure completely, the effects of asthma are immense. According to the National Institute of Health (2017), asthma attacks “lead to more than 1.7 million emergency department visits and about 450,000 hospitalizations annually” (para. 4). Furthermore, the fact that the subject matter affects disadvantaged communities extensively needs to be mentioned.
Because of the lack of access to high-quality care, as well as health-related information, the members of low-income communities, as well as the populations that are disadvantaged in any other way, face significant difficulties managing asthma. In other words, the disease remains a common health issue that needs successful management. Particularly, extensive patient education and their further adjustment are required.
The negative effects of asthma include the development of acute respiratory conditions, breathing issues, etc. (Nkosi, Hoek, Wichmann, & Voyi, 2016). Furthermore, a recent study indicates that the development of asthma in women is likely to affect their fertility and, therefore, trigger possible complications during their pregnancy (Gade, Thomsen, Lindenberg, & Backer, 2014). Therefore, there is an urgent need to introduce the coping strategies that will allow patients to develop a responsible attitude toward the development of the necessary behaviors and skills. Patients should be viewed as the primary stakeholders in the identified scenario.
Using RAM to Help Asthma Patients Adapt
To manage the needs of patients with asthma successfully, one will have to adopt the RAM framework as the tool for helping the target population to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge, as well as develop the habits that will allow preventing the threat of an asthma attack. When considering the way in which RAM can be used to help patients with asthma, one must keep in mind that the management of the disease implies the adoption of the necessary strategies throughout the patient’s life since the disease is chronic (Londono & Schultz, 2014).
Therefore, the significance of assisting patients with the adaptation process is especially important. Unless the proper behaviors are developed successfully, the patient will have to face a consistent threat to their life (Londono & Schultz, 2014). Thus, the RAM framework is bound to have a positive effect on the well-being of the target population.
When addressing the issue of asthma with the help of the RAM model, one must carry out an overview of the current patient behaviors. Using each of the four adaptive modes, one will have to determine the factors that hinder the process of developing the relevant knowledge and skills among the target population. At present, it is assumed that it is the reliance on their personal (and often erroneous) interpretation of their disorder and needs that lead to the development of adaptation problems.
As a recent study shows, there is a propensity among asthma patients to neglect the significance of education about the subject matter and, instead, follow the myths that are frequently useless, at best, and dangerous, at worst (Londono & Schultz, 2014).
Particularly, Londono and Schultz’s (2014) experiment showed that “Fifty-nine percent of participants thought that their asthma was controlled even after experiencing shortening of breath, coughing, waking up at night, and not being able to do routine activities for a while” (p. 104). Put differently, there is a dangerous tendency among the target population to underestimate the gravity of failing to develop the skills that will help them detect the asthma-related threats and take the necessary measures instantly. The model, in turn, will help identify the area of concern at the first level of assessment, thus, building the premise for the development of a coherent strategy.
The strategy that is bound to help the target population to develop the necessary coping mechanisms that will allow them to acquire asthma-related skills and behaviors successfully, in turn, will have to be based on the patient-centered approach and imply that nurse educators should engage patients in the active dialogue. The identified technique will help determine the factors that affect the development of the required behaviors among asthmatic patients.
Furthermore, the framework is likely to encourage the target population to engage in a lifelong process of knowledge acquisition, therefore, improving their command of asthma management and increasing their chances of preventing and handling the instances of asthma attacks successfully. The use of emotional intelligence (EI) as the means of communicating with ICU patients as well as the ones that are suffering from an asthma attack is crucial for nurses since the specified skill will help identify the patients’ needs as fast and successfully as possible with the help of non-verbal communication.
Consequently, the threat of a lethal outcome will be reduced significantly, whereas the opportunities for providing the patients with the information required for developing the crucial coping skills during the asthma attack will multiply (Farshi, Vahidi, & Jabraeili, 2015). Therefore, the focus on active patient education coupled with consistent communication between a nurse and a patient should be viewed as the primary strategy that needs to be implemented to improve the nursing outcomes.
The implementation of the strategy will require a careful assessment of the patients’ current behaviors. The impaired activities in the physical-psychological mode will have to be identified in the process. Afterward, the self-concept mode will have to be activated so that the patient’s perception of self could be altered. Particularly, it is crucial to make the patients doubt the myths about asthma that affect their health negatively.
For instance, the misconception implying that medicine for asthma treatment should only be used during asthma attacks will have to be eradicated as extremely harmless and triggering especially powerful damage to the patients’ health. As a result, the prerequisites for the successful promotion of the required behaviors will become a possibility. The specified changes will be followed to the alteration of the patients’ role performance, i.e., the acquisition of the skills and knowledge provided to them by nurse educators.
Furthermore, future studies will have to be carried out to explore the significance of using RAM to address asthma as an important clinical issue. Particularly, the problems associated with the patient’s reluctance to abandon the harmful myths and accept the new behaviors will have to be explored.
The fact that the myths in question still remain part and parcel of the contemporary reality point to the need to develop a better understanding of what makes the target population cling to the wrong information even at the cost of their lives. Furthermore, the efficacy of the RAM framework as the tool for addressing asthma and promoting the required behaviors will need to be studied more thoroughly.
Conclusion: RAM as the Framework for Managing Asthma Patients’ Needs
Asthma still represents a major concern and remains one of the leading causes of death among the U.S. population (National Institute of Health, 2017). The identified situation can partially be attributed to the myths about the subject matter and the unwillingness of patients to change their behaviors. The RAM framework, in turn, can be used to help the patient transfer successfully to a new mode of living and acquire the corresponding skills. Therefore, RAM will have to be tested as the means of improving patient outcomes and eliminating the myths that surround the disease. As a result, a rapid drop in the number of recurrent asthma attacks, as well as lethal outcomes, can be expected.
The use of the theory will also provide a chance to construct a better understanding of the importance of patient education, as well as independence among patients. Learning about the model helped me recognize the necessity to encourage patients to develop independence and engage in the active acquisition of relevant knowledge and skills. The analysis of the problem showed that the application of RAM for managing asthma could be viewed as the extension of the concept of patient education and the promotion of independence among the target population. Shedding light on the specified issues, RAM has pointed to the new areas that need to be studied and explored in depth.
References
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Gade, E. J., Thomsen, S. F., Lindenberg, S., & Backer, V. (2014). Female asthma has a negative effect on fertility: What is the connection? Allergy, 2014(131092), 1-6. Web.
Londono, A. M. M., & Schultz, P. J. (2014). Impact of patients’ judgment skills on asthma self-management: A pilot study. Journal of Public Health Research, 3(3), 307. Web.
Maghsoodi, E., Pak, M. M., & Naseri, O. (2016). The effect of care plan application based on Roy’s Adaptation Model on the spiritual well-being of elderly people in Urmia nursing homes. International Journal of Medical Research & Health Sciences, 5(11), 158-164.
National Institute of Health. (2017). Asthma info. Web.
Nkosi, V., Hoek, G., Wichmann, J., & Voyi, K. (2016). Acute respiratory health effects of air pollution on asthmatic adolescents residing in a community in close proximity to-mine dump in South Africa: Panel study. International Research Journal of Public and Environmental Health, 3(11), 257-269. Web.
Saini, N., Sharma, V., Arora, S., & Khan, F. (2017). Roy’s Adaptation Model: Effect of care on pediatric patients. International Journal of Nursing and Midwifery, 4(1), 52-60. Web.