Introduction
Apart from providing medical assistance, nursing has a plethora of other functions. For example, nurses are also responsible for increasing health literacy and promoting a healthy lifestyle (Persson & Benzein, 2014). At the same time, one cannot underestimate the importance of family health assessment, as this tool is used to evaluate family’s condition from dissimilar perspectives (Barnes & Rowe, 2013). Utilizing this instrument not only helps propose a precise diagnosis but also suggests the ways for improvement. Consequentially, the primary goal of the paper is to present the summary of family assessment while covering different topics such as sexuality, nutrition, and coping strategies. In the end, conclusions are drawn to propose nursing wellness diagnoses based on the findings.
Family Health Assessment
In the first place, the respondent indicates that he and his family take health exams when it is necessary and prescribed by a doctor. The members of the family consider their health status as good. However, a father has to take medications, as he has some problems with his back. The rest of the family that is represented by his wife and two children considers themselves as healthy.
The family tends to have well-prepared meals with meat and vegetables three times a day, but they also may have snacks due to the lack of time. They usually eat fresh food at home, but the respondent with the rest of his family may have dinner at a fast food restaurant. However, this situation incurs rarely. The respondent states that he usually has 6-7 hours of sleep, as he sometimes goes to bed at one or two a.m. This situation exists since the interviewee spends many hours on the Internet during the evening. However, he ensures that he has no sleep disturbances.
As for the elimination, the respondent states that he has no problems or pains, and he considers his routine as normal, but he is not eager to provide more information covering this subject. Nonetheless, he claims that he may go to the bathroom several times at night (once or twice). As for exercising, the respondent says that he does not exercise regularly, but his younger brother is fond of softball. In this case, the interviewee often attends games and tries to support his brother during the intense competition. In turn, he spends many hours (4-7) in front of the computer, especially, during evenings, but sometimes, the respondent likes to go cycling. It is only one active occupation that he has, but other hobbies include reading and watching series.
When discovering health literacy, the respondent considers himself as educated, as he is aware of the main health problems and the ways to deal with them. Nonetheless, the family prefers to contact a doctor if one of the members is not feeling well. As for reading, the respondent claims that reading is one of his hobbies, but he does not research different topics about health. Apart from that, the family has enough knowledge to determine when somebody is feeling unwell. Another important matter to consider is communication between different family members. They tend to have conversations during evenings, and they often show affection to each other by giving presents and offering support.
In turn, the respondent states that all of his senses are functioning well. Speaking of family coping strategies, they refer to having conversations and sharing feelings with each other. It assists in strengthening family bonds and finding the most appropriate solution to the existent problems. The respondent states that he cherishes and loves his family and values love, freedom, recognition, and support. Apart from that, the interviewee underlines the significance of trust, as this matter along with commitment can help create and maintain a friendly atmosphere in the family. The respondent prioritizes these values and highlights them as the most important dogmas in his life when making decisions.
The findings indicated previously underline that the respondent perceives the relationships in his family as trusting, as the family members tend to work as a team to find appropriate solutions to the problems. Nonetheless, it could be said that the father can be viewed as a distinct leader, as the final decision is dependent on his opinion. Apart from the well-defined frontrunner and decision-maker in the family, the viewpoints and perspectives of every member are considered of equal significance. For example, the father has a conversation with every family member including the respondent and forms his opinion based on these findings. As for sexuality topic, it is discussed during some evenings in the family, but it is not usually the main theme, and the respondent states that it is important to practice safe relationships. Meanwhile, children interact successfully with the members of the opposite sex.
Lastly, it is vital to consider the ways to overcome stress. Nonetheless, apart from having well-developed relationships with the family members, the respondent will not be eager to share some of his issues with the rest of the family while being more interested in expressing his concerns to his friends. For example, the most stressful situation for him was break-up with his girlfriend, but he only shared the existence of this incident with his family after several weeks from its occurrence. The respondent states that he tends to express his main emotions, but some of his feelings are private, and he does not want to upset his family members.
Conclusion: Nursing Wellness Diagnoses
Overall, based on the summary and interpretation of the interview mentioned above, it is possible to propose several different nursing wellness diagnoses to determine the results of family health assessment. In this case, wellness nursing diagnosis implies a reaction of an individual or family to different states of wellness that can be actively improved (James, Nelson, & Ashwill, 2014; Rodriguez, 2014). In this instance, one of the potential diagnoses can be formulated as the respondent and his family seek healthcare assistance when appropriate (for example, they are not aware of the ways to treat a disease or illness) and have a relatively high level of health literacy.
Another one may refer to their eating habits and lifestyle, and it can be formulated as “the family tries to have relatively healthy lifestyle by rarely eating at fast food restaurants and having active hobbies”. As for communication, in this instance, the wellness diagnosis implies that the family has an effective support network for finding solutions to the most significant issues by working in a collaboration or as a team. Nonetheless, it could be said that the family’s coping strategies are not as effective as described, as the respondent does not want to share some of his feelings with the rest of the family. In the end, the interviewee’s family pursues relatively healthy lifestyle, but they have to enhance their level of health literacy and avoid eating at fast food restaurants to become healthier.
References
Barnes, M., & Rowe, J. (2013). Child, youth and family health: Strengthening communities. Sydney, Australia: Elsevier.
James, S., Nelson, K., & Ashwill, J. (2014). Nursing care of children: Principles and practice. Sydney, Australia: Elsevier.
Persson, C., & Benzein, E. (2014). Family health conversations: How do they support health? Nursing Research and Practice, 1(1), 1-11.
Rodriguez, D. (2014). The balance concepts in health and nursing: A universal approach to care and survival. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse LLC.