Write a 500-750-word essay on the influence patient education has in health care using the experiences of a patient. Interview a friend or family member about that person’s experiences with the health care system
Write a 500-750-word essay on the influence patient education has in health care using the experiences of a patient. Interview a friend or family member about that person’s experiences with the health care system. You may develop your own list of questions.
Suggested interview questions:
- Did a patient education representative give you instructions on how to care for yourself after your illness or operation?
- Did a health care professional, pharmacist, nurse, doctor, or elder counselor advise you on your medication, diet, or exercise?
- Who assisted you at home after your illness or operation?
- Do you know of any assistance services, i.e., food, transportation, medication, that would help you stay in your home as you get older?
Expert Answer and Explanation
Older Adults Patient Education Issues Essay and Interview
Patient education is the idea of imparting relevant health knowledge to patients so that they have a better understanding of their conditions as well as some of the suitable management techniques. Chronic disease patients are often under continuous drug therapy, most of which they take with the absence of their doctors (Chumbler et al., 2016).
Educating them about the action of these drugs as well as the actions to take if certain symptoms present could therefore increase their levels of compliance (Gordon & Hornbrook, 2018). A close interview with a friend, ZP, who is a 75 y.o. male patient helps to understand various issues that surround patient education.
Instructions from a Patient Education Representative
ZP explained that he was given numerous instructions from the patient education representative who was in charge of their unit at the time of discharge. He had been admitted at the facility for three weeks following a road accident that left his leg fractured. Other parties that were involved in giving me instructions on how to manage the process of recovery included different hospital staff that ZP interacted with before the discharge happened. The cleaners, for instance, cautioned him several about walking on slippery floors as his clutches could easily slide and cause more damage to the present injury.
Advice on Medication
The nurse in charge during the time of discharge gave ZP a program which he would follow in undergoing physiotherapy. Also, together with other professionals such as the doctor, elder counselor, and the pharmacist, the nurse gave special instruction to the patient about some of the drugs that they would be consuming at home. This included things such as information about foods that would interact with the drugs, and some of the dangerous diets or drugs that the patient should refrain from (Litchman, Rothwell, & Edelman, 2018).
Assistance at Home during Illness and Operation
ZP explained that he has a supportive wife, who ensured that he did not encounter any difficulties after the illness. Also, his children, most who live in different States visit them regularly and give him the moral support for his recovery. Some of his family members often volunteer to pay for the out-of-pocket expenses that ZP encounters in the entire therapy plan.
Knowledge of Assistance Services
Like any other ageing individual in the 21st century, ZP has learned about several assistance services such as Uber for transport and Uber Eats for food (Guerriero et al., 2016; Weitzel, 2017). However, he believes that he does not need any of the assistance services as most of the time, there is someone who can order for food, medication, or transport on his behalf. Nevertheless, ZP has knowledge of the different telemedicine solutions in which he constantly communicates with his primary care physician to manage the symptoms of his disease.
Upon getting older, ZP believes that he will be in a better position to maintain his health using the telemedicine options as well as the Uber services. He also wishes to explore more assistance services such as cleaning companies and gardeners who can help him put things in more control in his homestead. Meeting up with old friends is also part of his recovery plan.
References
Chumbler, N. R., Otani, K., Desai, S. P., Herrmann, P. A., & Kurz, R. S. (2016). Hospitalized Older Adults’ Patient Satisfaction: Inpatient Care Experiences. Sage Open, 6(2), 2158244016645639. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016645639
Gordon, N. P., & Hornbrook, M. C. (2018). Older Adults’ Readiness to Engage With Ehealth Patient Education and Self-Care Resources: A Cross-Sectional Survey. BMC health services research, 18(1), 220. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-018-2986-0
Guerriero, F., Bolier, R., Van Cleave, J. H., & Reid, M. C. (2016). Pharmacological Approaches For The Management Of Persistent Pain In Older Adults: What Nurses Need To Know? Journal of gerontological nursing, 42(12), 49-57. https://doi.org/10.3928/00989134-20161110-09
Litchman, M. L., Rothwell, E., & Edelman, L. S. (2018). The Diabetes Online Community: Older Adults Supporting Self-Care through Peer Health. Patient education and counseling, 101(3), 518-523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2017.08.023
Weitzel, K. (2017). Making a Difference for Older Adults. Pharmacy Today, 23(9), 4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptdy.2017.08.002
Alternative Answer
Older Adults Patient Education Issues
Patient education is one of the most essential attributes in the healthcare sector, mainly for outpatient individuals. The need for proper and effective care delivery needs the patient to be aware of the issues affecting their health and how to resolve various aspects that can undermine the effectiveness of medical care (Elsous et al., 2017).
In order to better understand the impact of patient education mainly among older adults, the interview will focus on an elderly family friend who was recently diagnosed with stage 2 diabetes and is undergoing medication. The patient is a male, overweight and mainly eats take outs from various fast-food joints.
Interview Overview
The first question focused on identifying whether the patient was given proper education by any patient education representative while at the hospital. From the response provided by the patient, he had to undergo various treatments and training sessions that focused on different elements (Elsous et al., 2017).
The first training was focused on when and how to take the medications assigned to him by the physicians. The nurse responsible to him provided information concerning the importance of the medication and how they will help the body improve from the illness (Kirimlioğlu, 2018). The second education and training that was issued addressed how to identify other signs and symptoms that would need urgent medical attention.
The education entailed a day-to-day self-diagnosis sequence to assess the intensity of pain, other discomfort, and whether there are any severe side effects from the current medication that would prompt changes. The third mode of education used was on dieting (Kirimlioğlu, 2018). These instructions were focused on improving the health of the patient after the illness was identified and interventions presented.
The second questions focused on the details that the patient received from various health care professional concerning medication, dieting or the need to exercise. Concerning the medication, the main advice was to ensure all the prescriptions are followed without fail. Other instructions such as prohibition from sharing medication or using any other medicine before consultation was provided to the patient (Elsous et al., 2017).
Concerning the diet, the patient was informed to avoid junk food and focus on a low fat and carbohydrate diet. This would help the body acquire energy from stored fats and help with weight loss. As an additional remedy, the patient was advised to engage in activities or any exercises such as morning runs or walking around in the evening considering his age.
The third question was about the importance of family and whether they offered any assistance. The patient responded by attributing the importance of his family in ensuring he fulfills the instruction given to him by the medical professionals. Family members are the immediate care providers after being discharged or recovering from home (Pamungkas et al., 2017).
The role of family is to offer emotional, physical and psychological support to continue with the recovery process. In this case, the patient says that his children were helpful in different ways and even hired professional to offer daily exercise routines and diets to help with weight loss (Sami et al., 2017). This information has ben beneficial to the patient has he began to not various improvements in his body mass index. The importance of education can be evident at all stages of the patient recovery process.
The final question focused on the issue of whether the patient knew on how to take care of themselves in terms of food, transport of medication that would help theory stay at home. The aim of patient education is to minimize the rate at which patients frequent the healthcare facilities (Kirwan et al., 2017). The patient first didn’t seem to understand the question but upon further clarification, he said that one of the strategies is to first follow through with the instructions provided by the doctors.
The other attributes are maintaining a low sugar and carbohydrates diet while continuing with daily exercises to help reduce is overall body weight (Sami et al., 2017). Based on the overview of the patient, it is evident that patient education is one of the most important elements when it comes to the delivery of care. while doctors can have all the expertise to delivery quality care, patient education can help prevent the need for recurrent hospital visits due to patient ignorance or negligence (Sami et al., 2017). Healthcare professionals need to ensure proper patient education on how to deal with diagnosis outcome or after being discharged.
References
Elsous, A., Radwan, M., Al-Sharif, H., & Abu Mustafa, A. (2017). Medication adherence and associated factors among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. Frontiers in endocrinology, 8, 100.
Kirimlioğlu, N. (2018). Patient Education And Its Importance In Terms Of Patient Safety. International Journal of Research-GRANTHAALAYAH, 6(12), 109-120.
Kirwan, J. P., Sacks, J., & Nieuwoudt, S. (2017). The essential role of exercise in the management of type 2 diabetes. Cleveland Clinic journal of medicine, 84(7 Suppl 1), S15.
Pamungkas, R. A., Chamroonsawasdi, K., & Vatanasomboon, P. (2017). A systematic review: family support integrated with diabetes self-management among uncontrolled type II diabetes mellitus patients. Behavioral Sciences, 7(3), 62.
Sami, W., Ansari, T., Butt, N. S., & Ab Hamid, M. R. (2017). Effect of diet on type 2 diabetes mellitus: A review. International journal of health sciences, 11(2), 65.
