Presentation of Approved Intervention to the Patient, Family, or Group
Hypertension was the health problem that I handled for the Capstone project. In this project, I interacted with Mrs. S.J., a 71-year-old-female hypertensive female, and her family. Wenger et al. (2018) showed that hypertension kills 1 in 5 American women and is a severe health burden in women compared to men. Scientists have linked hypertension to a high sodium diet, smoking, a sedentary lifestyle, and poor diet, leading to increased mortality rates because of cardiovascular diseases (Kumar et al., 2018). Addressing hypertension among women is essential in improving the life’s quality, decreasing associated mortality rates, decreasing the health expenditure cost, and strengthening patients’ safety.
The health intervention program on Mrs. S.J stressed health education, lifestyle change practice, and home-based blood pressure management. I emphasized and encouraged her to practice the lifestyle change practices: quitting smoking, reducing salt consumption, healthy diet consumption, and regular exercise. The education program on healthy living ensured that the patient was also actively involved in improving her health. Incorporating telehealth and m-health intervention programs into the condition’s management effectively enhanced the monitoring of blood pressure and improved patient communication with the practitioner (Tuckson et al., 2017). It improved the quality of health offered, quality of care provided, and patient safety.
Assessment of the contribution of the Intervention to Patient or Family Satisfaction and Life’s Quality
Mrs. S.J was actively involved in the intervention program and showed me her willingness to lifestyle modification. The daughter also responded positively to the interventions meant to improve her mother’s health. Drowos (2019) showed how the combination of proper diet and lifestyle modification could effectively help hypertensives. She regularly practiced running, morning walks, and other aerobic exercises to burn excess fats. Mrs. S.J started having a diet with low sodium, decreased saturated fats, vegetables and fruits. The effective communication and collaboration practice I built between Mrs. S.J and her daughter improved my experience and satisfaction during the capstone project. I created a strong trust relationship between the patient and me; thus, she conveyed vital information that helped me appropriately manage her condition. Using telehealth and m-health enabled me to call the patient and advise on proper medication, diet, and blood pressure monitoring. Therefore, Mrs. S.J and her daughter were highly satisfied with the interventions I had started to help control hypertension.
Evidence and Peer-reviewed Literature in Planning and Implementation of the Capstone project
I reviewed the relevant, credible, and current evidence-based literature on hypertension to ensure that I gave the best and most well-proven interventions for hypertension management. Using recent evidence-based literature within five years ensures the researcher finds the most up-to-date methods of controlling diseases. I reviewed scholarly literature on hypertension, its control, collaboration approaches, communication tactics, and patient care coordination. The patient’s and family’s suggestions were also considered in the research of the interventions to adopt. Utilizing the knowledge obtained from the peer-reviewed literature, I analyzed Mrs. S.J’s preferences and desires. I used my clinical experience to maximize the quality of health care delivered to attain the best patient outcome. I also spent time with an IT lecturer from Harvard University who advised me to incorporate telehealth and m-health in medical practice.
Integration of Technology into Capstone Project to improve Patient’s Outcome and Communication
My capstone project significantly incorporated technology to strengthen practitioner-client communication and enable self-management of hypertension. My technology incorporation involved telehealth video calls with the patient to continue to assess the progressive state of hypertension. In these video calls, I could easily access and help the patient monitor hypertension by offering advice on medication, exercise, and diet. These video calls significantly reduced the cost of seeking access to health care by the patient, as she did not travel many times to seek my services. At the comfort of Mrs. S.J’s home, I could offer her advice even if we were geographically apart. The questions asked by the client could be answered by me over the telehealth technology. I also used the hospital resource center computers to ensure effective and safe storage of patient data. This data storage effectively ensured I kept track of the intervention practices suggested to her and her family.
Influence of Health Policies on Planning and Implementation of the Capstone Project and Contributions of the Project to Policy Development
Health care policies play a huge role in the plans, decisions, and interventions undertaken to improve patients’ health. Figueiredo et al. (2017) argued that the health policies significantly determine the cost the people incur in seeking health. In this Capstone project, I studied health policies that directly affect the nursing practice and the technology to incorporate into the health care system. I reviewed the Affordable Care Act (ACA), HIPAA protocols, Nurse Code of Conduct and Scope of Practice, and Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (PSQIA). HIPAA guidelines encourage the safety and confidentiality of the patient’s data (Vanderpool, 2019). PSIQ aims to promote the delivery of health care services and improve patients’ safety by ensuring data availability (Gluck, 2019). The nursing practice standards encompass the values of non-maleficence, autonomy, confidentiality, beneficence, and nurses’ accountability of actions (Ahmed et al., 2020). My project aimed to ensure that Mrs. S.J had access to health through ACA and quality health care at a minimized cost. As a baccalaureate-prepared nurse, I assured I met the needs and preferences of my patient.
Explanation of whether the Capstone Project Matched Initial Predictions
The outcomes of my capstone project matched the initial expectations I had for the project; the project aimed to improve the quality of healthcare among hypertensives through effective management of the condition. Utilizing telehealth practice enabled Mrs. S.J to monitor her blood pressure successfully and perform the suggested interventions correctly. The cost-effective nature of the intervention made the client and families satisfied in the healthcare delivery process. My other initial prediction was to improve the communication and collaboration between the practitioners and clients during the project. I spent around three hours on physical encounters with the client and even more hours on video calls with the patient.
I efficiently developed strong communication and cooperation between the patient and her family to ensure Mrs. S.J’s control of her hypertension condition. The support I also received from my fellow practitioners encouraged me to help the hypertensive lady. Goda et al. (2018) suggest that nurses’ inter collaboration improves the safety of the patient. The success evidenced by the adoption of the intervention will help in widespread incorporation into the healthcare practice. Using telehealth and m-health technology in controlling chronic illnesses such as hypertension and diabetes will promote cost-effective healthcare practice.
Assessment of Personal and Professional Growth Through the Capstone Project and RN-to-BSN Program
It is factual that the Capstone Project has enormously contributed to my personal and professional growth. Through the ethical principles emphasized in the project, I have learned to incorporate autonomy, accountability, non-maleficence, and justice to improve the patients’ safety and enhance quality health care delivery. The evidence-based scholarly articles I have reviewed in the project have enormously enhanced my knowledge of hypertension and its appropriate management. I also learned the patient and family values crucial in my nursing practice to improve my decision-making. Understanding how technology can be used in cost-effective intervention methods to control diseases has been now understood. I have acknowledged that an inter-collaborative approach is crucial in improving the health personnel’s service delivery.
References
Ahmed, Ahmed, Heyam Saad Ali, and Mansour A. Mahmoud. “Prioritizing well-being of patients through consideration of ethical principles in healthcare settings: Concepts and practices.” Systematic Reviews in Pharmacy 11.5 (2020): 643-648. Web.
Drowos, J. L. (2019). Prevention and screening, an issue of primary care: clinics in office practice. In Google Books. Elsevier Health Sciences. Web.
Figueiredo, F. W. dos S., Almeida, T. C. do C., Cardial, D. T., Maciel, É. da S., Fonseca, F. L. A., & Adami, F. (2017). The role of health policy in the burden of breast cancer in Brazil. BMC Women’s Health, 17(1). Web.
Gluck, P. (2019). Patient safety in obstetrics and gynecology, an issue of obstetrics and gynecology clinics. In Google Books. Elsevier Health Sciences. Web.
Goda, L. R., Aref, S. M., & Abdel-Razek, A. M. (2018). Perception of nurses and physicians about importance of their collaboration in the work. Minia Scientific Nursing Journal, 003(1), 9–15. Web.
Kumar, V., Abbas, A. K., Aster, J. C., & Perkins, J. A. (2018). Robbins Basic Pathology (10th ed.). Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Elsevier.
Tuckson, R. V., Edmunds, M., & Hodgkins, M. L. (2017). Telehealth. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(16), 1585–1592. Web.
Vanderpool, D. (2019). HIPAA Compliance: A common sense approach. Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, 16(1-2), 38–41. Web.
Wenger, N. K., Arnold, A., Bairey Merz, C. N., Cooper-DeHoff, R. M., Ferdinand, K. C., Fleg, J. L., Gulati, M., Isiadinso, I., Itchhaporia, D., Light-McGroary, K., Lindley, K. J., Mieres, J. H., Rosser, M. L., Saade, G. R., Walsh, M. N., & Pepine, C. J. (2018). Hypertension across a woman’s life cycle. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 71(16), 1797–1813. Web.