Annotated Bibliography on Pain Assessment Tools for Patients With Limited Communication Health Assessment Tammy F. Surrency Dr. Constance Morrison March 12, 2013 Introduction Pain assessment tools for patients with limited communication is the topic of this annotated bibliography. This is a topic of interest to me because for nurses, it is very important to perform a pain assessment on patients who have limitations in their ability to communicate as a result of cognitive impairment, learning disabilities, or language impairment. To identify, assess, and treat patients with complaints of pain are vital because the experience of pain may affect the perception and expression of other symptoms resulting in inappropriate treatments and management. In order to properly treat the symptoms of pain, a good pain assessment tools are used. The use of the pain assessment tool will assist in developing the plan of care for the patients.
The information obtained in these diagnostic tests would indicate whether Karen is experiencing severe pain due to post surgery or RA. As a result focused nursing management strategies are discussed to identify the underlying cause/s of Karen’s complaints of severe pain post-surgery and immediate actions and rationales associated with mobilisation and major complications have been discussed to improve her condition. The differences between RA and osteoarthritis (OA) are compared and the clinical manifestations and pathophysiology behind each are addressed. Her discharge planning is also recognised to prevent further injury. The overall purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a clear link between theory and practice when required to assess, identify possible complications, manage and evaluate nursing care for a clinical patient.
High levels of work place stress and professional burnout continually affects nurses and other health care workers globally. This paper will explore this nursing issue by articulating the concepts of stress and professional burnout relative to the nursing profession. The term stress is defined as “a particular relationship between the person and the environment that is appraised by the person as taxing or as exceeding his or her resources and is endangering his or her well-being” (Wlodarczyk, & Lazarewicz, 2011 p.848). This definition focuses on how stress is connected to an individual’s awareness of their resources and environment. The term professional burnout is described as “physical, emotional and mental exhaustion that results from long-term involvement in work situations that are emotionally demanding” (Wlodarczyk, & Lazarewicz, 2011 p.848), highlighting how the work place environment is directly affecting an individual’s health and well-being.
1.3 Before using any of these methods to manage pain, the individual needs to be assessed, as every kind of pain relief can be harmful, care plan and policies and procedures always have to be followed and necessary precautions have to be taken. Be able to assist in minimising individuals pain or discomfort 2.1 Pain can cause many problems, such as sensory
(Burkhardt, Nathaniel 2008). Patients in pain can be difficult at times. They may be angry, suspicious, scared, anxious, and depressed. Nurses may react to them with negative feelings by frustration, resentment, or even dislikes and those attitudes undermine therapeutic discussion. Patients in pain also at times disagree with a physician’s assessment or manifest characteristic unexplainable adverse events.
Counseling is just as essential as the detox. Even after detox, when the physical dependence is treated, the recovering addict is still at a high risk of relapse. Social and psychological factors are a powerful stimuli in regards to relapse. Stress, environmental cues, social interactions are all factors that can create ongoing urges that can lead to relapse. Coping with stressful situations and getting the mindset to make necessary changes to his or her environment or social outlets is key in recovery.
Compassion Fatigue Compassion is the ability to feel sympathy of another being’s distress with the desire to alleviate (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2014). Compassion fatigue is a type of work burnout specific to caregivers, which is a multifaceted phenomenon that emanates from unresolved accumulated stress from ineffective coping of the caregiver’s needs built over time as well as one’s ineffective coping response to the patient’s distress (Bush, 2009). Due to the constant changing and increasing demands of healthcare, as well as the close nature of patient to caregiver relationship, nurses are at high risk for compassion fatigue. This essay will identify warning signs of compassion fatigue; explain the problems and their causes; explain the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of the caregiver; lastly, identify coping strategies and useful resources for the caregiver. Warning Signs for Compassion Fatigue Compassion fatigue can exhibit a wide range of symptoms, affecting areas, such as cognitive, emotional, behavioral, social relations, physical manifestations, work performance, and one’s spirituality (Bush, 2009).
To understand the link between health and illness, the physiological,psychological and social aspects of an individual's life must be taken into account. This project will be based on specific issued relating to nursing practice which I identified during placement. While (2002) states that effective communication is fundamental to effective consultation and appropriate environment which support privacy and confidentiality. Bate (1999) observing patients, allowed me to notice the distressing situation that the patients was which make them feel uncomfortable which have effects on their social, physical and psychological among older adult with mental health illness. During my observation in placement I found it to be more applicable to older adult complaining to the nurses how constipated the feel.
“Burnout is a psychological experience that manifests itself in individual, particularly those involved in difficult person-to-person relationships as part of their work, such as nursing professionals (Hamaideh 1). Nurses in general are considered by some at a high risk for burnout because of they experience frequent interpersonal contact with their patients. Additional, there is a multitude of factors that can contribute to a nurse experiencing burnout. For example, a nurse with a large caseload, lower wages, and a weak support system is more likely to experience burnout and dissatisfaction with his or her job. Burnout can result in physical and psychological strain.
The model of psycho education is very flexible, which incorporates both illness-specific information and tools for managing related circumstances; psycho education has broad potential for many forms of illnesses and varied life challenges (Lukens & McFarlane, 2004. )Psycho education is a professionally delivered treatment modality that integrates and synergizes psychotherapeutic and educational interventions (Lukens & McFarlane, 2004.) Cognitive restructuring is another treatment used for those with social anxiety disorder and social phobia. Cognitive restructuring is a tool used to reverse negative thinking in a patient, and is used when a patient becomes sad, angry, anxious, or upset ("Cognitive Restructuring", n.d.). In vivo exposure is a therapy technique in which feared situations are experienced in order to decrease anxiety.