NSU3407 - Primary Health Care 1 Home Assignment 1 Due Date: 25 th April 2016 Dear Student, Welcome to Family Health! This assignment is to assist you to learn about health promotion with a family that you would select as a client and increase your practice skills with the family. The experience you gain will help you to understand individuals better, and family connections and how to deal with different situations. The nurse is called upon to promote health of families in illness and wellness. Specialized nursing knowledge and skills are required to deliver family health care. The health of the families is the foundation for the health of the society and the nation. The nurse who takes up for family nursing will act in more healthful ways and develop their skills to be more effective resource persons who can better support families. Medical research has come a long way, and as a result people live longer than they used to. No one can argue that expanding the average person s lifespan is good, many are not enjoying the quality of life that we would hope as they get older. Many of the elderly have chronic conditions that make them frustrated or they get diseases repeatedly. Learning about and practicing preventive health care to maintain your body and good health throughout your entire lifetime, is properly the best method to prevent diseases. When you are sick you have no choice but to think about your health and feel awful and it is very clearly shown in your face. Preventive health care must be planned and executed ahead of time even when illness is absent. People must build healthy habits even when it is not convenient. They must believe that maintaining a healthy life style is important enough to make a few sacrifices. Eating right, getting exercises and avoiding destructive substances like tobacco, alcohol and excessive amounts of sugar, salt are crucial, as is getting enough sleep in the night. HEALTHY HABITS ARE AN AUTOMATIC DEFENCE AGAINST MOST ILLNESSES AND CAN PROVIDE US A LONG HEALTHY AND A HAPPY LIFE. 1
Concepts of Family Health and Current Trend in Family Health Nursing The concern and interest of Public Health Nurses is being generated for providing comprehensive Family Health and consider the family as a unit of service. Today there is a shift from the concept of hospital care for the individual to the concept of family as the client. The Public Health Nurse gears her health services to meet the goal of enabling the families to manage their own health problems using their own potentialities and resources. Family Health Nursing serves not only as a means of providing and extending health services to the sick members of the family but acts as a strong force for developing health attitudes of the family members towards the promotion and maintenance of their own health, using the family and community resources. Health teaching is widely recognized as a part of good nursing care. Community health nurse goes beyond teaching personal hygiene, medication and diet. She educates people on promotion of health, prevention of diseases, early detection and go for early treatment/ management. Establishes community groups, women s organizations Industrial worker groups and school children and teachers to improve active wellness programmes. These are areas that has to be strengthened for the benefit of community. Family Health Nursing comprises a broad programme of therapeutic, educational and supportive services, provided to the family by a Public Health Nurse and by the health team within the frame work of the Health Care System as a whole. It is characterized by a partnership between the nurse and family, based upon the sharing of decision and action. It is also characterized by equal concern of wellness, as for illness and for the development and nurturance of family. It is concerned with the quality of life for the entire family as well as the survival of the individual patient. Although these concepts are well accepted today in theory the services fall far too short of their goals. Health care does not always reach the needy and moreover comprehensive health services are not provided at all. Nursing care is available to 2
women and children but many others may receive just a little attention or may be totally neglected. Compared to developing countries, Sri Lanka is well recognized for her achievements in family health. But we must realize that there is a lot more for us to achieve. There are three components in the Sri Lankan Family Health Programme; Maternal Health, Infant & Child Health and Family Planning. You may learn all about these programs as you proceed. Nurses' leadership in health care is essential because the health care system and the health of the people are dependent upon the nurse as on no other professional particularly for the advancement of primary health care. The policy planners should utilize the "nursing force" more effectively. Nurses have the resourcefulness, flexibility and critical thinking skills to discover and mobilize rich resources overlooked by others. Nurses working in the community know that every community no matter how disadvantaged has assets. Nurse working in the community is blessed with capabilities and attitudes to handle very difficult situations. Practicum Assignment You are expected to do a practicum assignment which you will enjoy. You will understand what difficulties people undergo to survive. Your ability to help one such family will make you feel very happy and contended. For the first time you will realize that we are still a poor country and people are struggling to live and how you could contribute for it. This assignment is a paper which describes your visits and will require you to work through the first three steps of Nursing process, i.e. 1. Assessment 2. Diagnosis 3. Planning Visit the office of the Divisional Director of Health Services and meet the Divisional Director of Health Services (Medical Offices of Health MOH) and the Public Health Nursing Sisters (PHNS) and explain the purpose of your visit. Here you will get the 3
experience of meeting professionals from different service areas and how to carry out a discussion. How to build up a professional yet a friendly environment that can be added to your experience. You will gain experience in team work and see how it brings dividends. This experience of working for the selected family will be remembered by you through out your career. Discuss about the practicum assignment given to you by the Open University of Sri Lanka and the guidance and cooperation you need from them to make it a success. Preceptor for the Practicum Your preceptor will be an experienced and qualified Public Health Nursing Sister who is currently practicing in the community. The preceptor will be a resource to you because of the vast experience and knowledge gained by working with families. The preceptor may be identified by the students themselves. Once the preceptor has been identified and has agreed to the placement, the Nursing division of OUSL will confirm the arrangement and ensure that the preceptor understands all responsibilities, including student evaluation. Please send the following particulars of your preceptor to reach me on or before March 2 nd 2016. 1. Name of student: 2. Registered Number: 3. Name of the PHNS: 4. Official Address & Tele. No. of the PHNS: 5. Private address of the PHNS & Tel. No: 6. Student's signature: 7. Date: 4
Preceptor s Role Today, the PHNS practices in a variety of settings. The role varies from educator, service provider, administrator, counselor, manager, planner, organizer, coordinator, collaborator, leader and researcher. In this practicum the preceptor will Act as a resource and a role model to the undergraduate Select the family and obtain consent from the family Introduce the undergraduate to the family Contribute to the undergraduate's evaluation which will be finally marked by the course coordinator of the OUSL Practicum Assignment Visit the family assigned to you by the preceptor and carry out the following activities, with the help of the guidelines given in the appendices 1-5 in your Text Book of PHC-1, Unit 4. Collect base line information - Guideline 1 1. Assess health care needs and identify risk factors - Guideline 2 2. Classify family as per risk category - Guideline 3 3. Identify family's coping behaviors and functional abilities Guideline 4 4. Develop strategies for meeting the needs of the family with their participation 5. Make recommendations for interventions You are learning a great deal when you collect the information following the guidelines and work methodically. Assessment of family will identify actual and potential risk factors. You will learn to differentiate them and be able to plan efficiently and carryout work effectively. 5
It is anticipated that this will require approximately 3 home visits and each visit will require 2-3 hours. In the conclusion of your paper make recommendations for implementing the strategies you developed to meet the family's health care needs. May discuss with your preceptor and clarify doubts before attempting to write the assignment. Delivery of Assignments: The completed assignment should be handed over to the office on the due date 25 th April 2016. The enclosed guide will assist you with details Student s Guide Practicum Experience on Assignment of Family Health Needs The objective of the assignment is for you to be able to: 1. Identify the health needs of the family you selected by applying the theoretical knowledge gained from the unit on family health. 2. To write a paper describing a) the assessment techniques you studied and used in this b) the family health needs identified and Nursing diagnosis c). Your plan and recommendations for meeting the identified needs Description of the Practicum It is anticipated that this practicum will require approximately 10-15 hours of work.these hours will include time spent in reviewing the literature, meeting with the preceptor, actual assessment of the family and writing the discussion paper. Before giving thought to start the practicum it should be emphasized that you should first study the entire unit on "family health. Follow the guidance given in writing your assignment. 6
Introduction The background for the assignment, intent and the focus of the paper should be clearly stated. Review of Literature You are expected to review literature and write relevant references according to the APA format. It is important to describe current major trends and issues related to the topic. Discuss these in relation to your experience and practice Assessment, Nursing Diagnosis and Strategic Plan In this you should describe your approach to the family assessment and findings. To do this, make notes while you are getting about with your assignment work. It is very essential that you organize the contents of the paper in a logical and orderly manner. So that the paper "flows" and does not sound disjointed. It should flow as given below: - Assessment - Nursing Diagnosis - Strategic Plan Recommendations At the end of the discussion, you are expected to make suitable recommendations for meeting the needs which you have identified. As time does not permit you to work through the recommendations subsequently, they will be passed on to your preceptor for implementation. Conclusion Try to conclude the paper with a statement of your own or a summarization of the main points, limitations and implication for practice. List of References The list of references should be given at the end of the paper according to the APA format. Remember, you should cite all appropriate references in the body of the paper as required. 7
The length of the Assignment - 2000-2250 words ( double space) At the end of the paper please indicate the number of words This assignment should be typed. Marking Criteria 1. Presentation 05 2. Introduction 10 3. Use of related literature 10 4. Assessment 20 5. Nursing diagnosis 15 6. Strategic plan 15 7. Recommendation 10 8. Conclusion 10 9. References 05 ----- Total 100 ----- Remember, the attention you give to your assignment will increase the clarity of it. Give attention to grammar, spellings, punctuations, commas and organization of correct sentences which gives meaning. Good Luck! Consultant Nursing, Department of Health Science The Open University of Sri Lanka 22 nd December 2015 8