The object of my case study is Mrs. Anette Parker, who is 69 years old and has been diagnosed with dementia of the vascular type. Several main challenges and needs were identified in the Case Study of the previous assignment. They all represent different aspects, such as spiritual, physical, mental, and social. As it was mentioned in the previous assignment, the healing process consists of several aspects, including physical, mental, social, and spiritual elements of the recovery of the patient. Further, we will submit a brief review of the needs and rationales for each of the patterns for this particular case.
Requirements for physical aspects are quite common, as the patient does not have any specific conditions. As the patient does not show any signs of acute illnesses, it is best to provide standard measures for maintaining vital activity and well-being. The mental element is included in the chain of the aspects of the treatment that helps to achieve the most rapid recovery. The problem with this issue is that the patient is showing signs of fear, distrust, anxiety, and anger. It could be a challenge for nurses to gain the trust of the patient to start the path to recovery. The main challenge of the social aspect is to maintain a healthful and nurturing social environment for the patient during the whole treatment. Positive energy is crucial in holistic care, so it is necessary to prevent contacts and conversations with people with negative influence, even if they are relatives or friends. The challenge of the spiritual element is to take into consideration the beliefs of the patient in divine intervention. It is well known that spiritual potential cannot prosper on its own, without any attention; furthermore, the nurses have to support the patient in her beliefs. This will lay the firm foundation for the recovery of the patient.
We should identify the outcomes for each challenge, need, or problem that is briefly described above. Physical issue faces a need to strengthen the health of the patient and to improve the general state. As an outcome, Mrs. Parker should be cured of her fatigue and feel better in general by the time of the hospital discharge. The nurses have to provide not only essential measures for maintaining vital activity and well-being but also procedures of holistic interventions that will be described further. The outcome for the problem regarding mental facet has to lead to a patient’s at least partial trust in nurses during the first week. Moreover, the patient has to overcome fear and anxiety, which will result in a more rapid recovery. The next problem that lies on the way to the recovery of the patient is a social context. The expected outcome is to achieve a healthful and nurturing social environment by restricting access to negative energy, even if it is coming from the family or close friends. The effect should be accomplished during the first several days; otherwise, the recovery of the patient would be reluctant. The most difficult achieved outcome is for the spiritual aspect, as the patient has strong beliefs and refuses to receive any traditional medical help. The nurses have to conduct voluminous work of holistic interventions to make the patient believe that she is getting better with the help of the supreme power. As a result, by the end of the first week, the patient has to accept the full help of the nurses.
Nursing intervention is denned as “any act by a nurse that implements the nursing care plan or any specific objective of that plan” (Oliver & Hill, 1992, p. 184). Conventional nursing interventions require fundamental abilities, methods, measures, and approaches that are taught to nurses in schools during their education. The interventions may vary from quite primary to complicate; one of the examples of simple intervention is making the bed for the admitted patient or gently holding his hand while the patient goes through procedures. On the contrary, providing full care for an intubated person with certain medical problems, including measures for pulmonic hygiene is believed to be convoluted. The course of holistic interventions depends on the background of the patient’s story, as well as the educational philosophy of the nursing institution.
Putting aside everything said in the previous assignments, the patient needs some holistic interventions to improve her physical state. Physical contact is considered to be a decisive approach in the process of nursing, treatment, and recovery of the patient. According to research, one of the main forms of holistic interventions for adults with dementia is a massage. This form of physical contact represents a body-based complementary therapy, which can be used alone or combined with other practices of holistic intervention, such as music, aromatherapy, communication, and acupuncture; moreover, elders with dementia often note that massage helps them to deal with pain and enhance their nutritional intake (Adler, 2009). The effect of this holistic intervention can be evaluated by the doctor or the patient herself.
The outcome for the mental aspect can be achieved with the assistance of phytotherapy. The anxiety, fear, and anger of the patient can be treated with the help of medicinal herbal production, as it reduces the pervasive psychotropic activity. The studies show that the prescription of medicinal herbs helps the nurses to take full proper care of the patient; moreover, it ensures the safety of the patient’s health, as all medicinal plants are natural and have no artificial supplements. The improvement of the mental state of the patient and her serenity will indicate the positive impact of phytotherapy on the healing process.
As for the social outcome, it may be useful for the patient to work with a special social worker or a nurse, who will fully focus on the life of Mrs. Parker. Moreover, the patient needs to feel positive energy, so the nurse should establish a strong connection with her. “Rhythmic breathing as a nursing intervention is integral to the art of nursing practice and can facilitate comfort and healing in the hospitalized patient” (Oliver & Hill, 1992, p. 185). The evaluation criterion for this intervention is the comfort and pacification of the patient.
The spiritual nursing interventions will cause an enhanced outcome in the health of adults who suffer from dementia. The patient with dementia will reciprocate to the holistic treatment if it contains a spiritual intervention, music, and ceremonies, to be precise. In the case of Mrs. Parker, the spiritual interventions have to include prayers and church-attending, if the physical state allows it. Moreover, music is widely used in spiritual nursing interventions, as it “can invoke a sense of comfort, derived from the memory or nostalgia ingrained with certain spiritual songs” (Ennis & Kazer, 2013, p. 110). The patient will soon feel calm, comfortable, and enlightened; she even may accept medical aid from the nurses. That will be the evaluation criteria for this intervention.
References
Adler, P. (2009). Teaching massage to nursing students of geriatrics through active learning. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 27(1), 51-56.
Ennis, E., & Kazer, M. (2013). The role of spiritual nursing interventions on improved outcomes in older adults with dementia. Holistic Nursing Practice, 27(2), 106–113.
Oliver, N., & Hill, L. (1992). Teaching complex nursing interventions: integrating holistic and traditional behaviour. Journal of Nursing Education, 31(4), 184-185.