The article written by Velayutham, Chandra, Bharath, and Shankar (2017) is focused on the identification of the influence provided by the subclinical involvement of gait and balance parameters on the well-being of patients who are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. To conduct their research, professionals gathered two groups of a sample, one of which consisted of those individuals who experienced normal aging and did not have any symptoms associated with the mentioned illnesses. Conducting their quantitative research, Velayutham et al. (2017) managed to find out what were the normal parameters of aging and what indicators should be considered when diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. The authors concluded that balance and gait problems were not critical in patients with normal aging in comparison to those who had cognitive issues. Moreover, gait abnormalities were observed more frequently in patients with frontotemporal dementia than with Alzheimer’s disease while the results associated with postural stability were the opposite.
The findings presented by Velayutham et al. (2017) seem to be advantageous for practice, as they prove healthcare professionals with an opportunity to focus on the possibility to use a new biomarker for the analysis of cognitive functions and to develop innovative training for falls prevention. Nevertheless, I would not apply the evidence from the article in practice because it is based on a small sample size (24 participants in total). In particular, each group of patients was represented only by 8 individuals, which increases the possibility of biased results. This limitation questions the usefulness of the interventions and their significance. I believe that it is critical to conduct a study on a large sample to ensure that the application of evidence is needed.
The clinical issue that attracts my attention deals with the pressure ulcers that are found in immobile patients. In particular, I am interested in the ways they can be prevented. Professionals reveal that pressure ulcer prevalence in some hospitals is more than 30% among in-patients, which proves that this problem is critical enough to develop new preventive measures and facilitate changes in practice (Martin et al., 2017). For instance, the implementation of an evidence‐based pressure ulcer prevention program (PUPP) is recommended because it is believed to enhance the frontline staff’s knowledge and skills needed to prevent this issue. The necessity to improve nurses’ knowledge regarding the practices that can be used to treat pressure ulcers is also supported by Mwebaza, Katende, Groves, and Nankumbi (2014). The scientists state that protocols that guide nurses should be created and “risk assessment tools, such as the Braden scale,” should be used in hospital settings (Mwebaza et al., p. 5). Developing a research study focused on the effectiveness of these interventions and translating them into practice, I have to start with their evaluation in practice.
To present my evidence to peers, I need to focus on the particular effectiveness of the proposed interventions. In addition to that, I will explain the way nurses should be educated, mentioning all steps that should be considered by the seniors. What is more, it will be advantageous to compare the effectiveness of nurses’ education and the use of specific tools for the prevention of pressure ulcers. The findings of my study will be published in a peer-reviewed article so that they can be discussed by other professionals.
References
Martin, D., Albensi, L., Haute, S., Froese, M., Montgomery, M., Lam, M.,… Basova, N. (2017). Healthy skin wins: A glowing pressure ulcer prevention program that can guide evidence‐based practice. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 14(6), 473-483.
Mwebaza, I., Katende, G., Groves, S., & Nankumbi, J. (2014). Nurses’ knowledge, practices, and barriers in care of patients with pressure ulcers in a Ugandan teaching hospital. Nursing Research and Practice, 2014, 1-6.
Velayutham, S. G., Chandra, S. R., Bharath, S., & Shankar, R. G. (2017). Quantitative balance and gait measurement in patients with frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer diseases: A pilot study. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 39(2), 176-182. Web.