Geriatric Populations are Prone to Developing Comorbid Chronic Health Conditions

Geriatric Populations are Prone to Developing Comorbid Chronic Health Conditions

Responding to Chase

This is an exciting post, Chase. I agree with you. Notably, older patients have a higher potential for multiple comorbidities as compared to younger patients. Healthcare professionals managing older patients inherently deal with uncertain outcomes than other patient populations (Gijzel et al., 2019). This makes managing elderly patients more complicated and challenging. However, managing this patient population can present a learning opportunity that prepares nurses and other healthcare professionals to manage any other population group or health condition efficiently. The basic thing to be able to easily manage older patients and deliver care that meets their health needs and improves their quality of life is understanding and appreciating the physical, physiological, and emotional functionality changes that come along with aging. Therefore, as a geriatrician, one should focus on exploring various approaches that support the development of physical and mental resilience among the older for better physical and mental health outcomes over time.

References

Gijzel, S. M. W., Whitson, H. E., van de Leemput, I. A., Scheffer, M., van Asselt, D., Rector, J. L., Olde Rikkert, M. G. M., & Melis, R. J. F. (2019). Resilience in Clinical Care: Getting a Grip on the Recovery Potential of Older Adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 67(12), 2650–2657. https://doi.org/10.1111/JGS.16149

Responding to Natalia

This is a good post, Natalia. Various factors pose multiple challenges in caring for geriatric populations and patients. For instance, as you have noted, geriatric populations are prone to developing comorbid chronic health conditions with an impact on mental, metabolic, cardiac, and all-body function. In addition, the elderly population are also at an increased risk of falls, which might result in fractures and chronic pain. The risk of comorbid diseases falls, and chronic pain creates the need for consideration of multiple approaches to care when responding to the health issues of geriatric patient populations. The demanding and challenging nature of providing care to geriatric patients and populations is associated with graduate nurses’ unwillingness to work in a geriatric setting (Serafin et al., 2022). Therefore, one’s anticipation of learning about caring for patients with regards to geriatric patients should focus on developing a positive attitude toward this population group.

References

Serafin, L., Wesołowska-Górniak, K., Kędziora-Kornatowska, K., Muszalik, M., Puto, G., & Czarkowska-Pączek, B. (2022). Education and attitudes toward geriatric care: Impact for nursing graduates and their career decisions – study protocol. Gerontology & Geriatrics Education, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1080/02701960.2022.2121280

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1Chase
I have had experience with patients 65 years and older. However, most are from acute care, as I am in the emergency department. Sometimes, we hold patients waiting for admission, allowing me to follow through with the care plan. Managing chronic conditions is important to have an interdisciplinary team. I have had experience in the clinical rotation of managing chronic illness in patients. I have realized that family practice/primary care is the hub of a larger patient care circle. In this course, I anticipate learning how to manage these clients further. The rising ageing population will impact the healthcare delivery system as these older populations have the potential for multiple comorbidities. Research estimates that 9 out of 10 Americans will have at least one chronic condition by age 80 (Ghimire & Dahal, 2022).

Geriatric Populations are Prone to Developing Comorbid Chronic Health Conditions

Geriatric populations are at risk for their functional status, physical health, polypharmacy, and cognitive assessment. As part of the ageing process, a well-functional patient can rapidly decrease any of the four decreases in health. As things age, it is important to implement preventative health. Early identification of new disease processes will help avoid malignancy. The American Geriatric Society recommended that such screenings be based on patient’s preferences, life expectancy, and comorbid conditions rather than solely on age-based criteria (Ghimire & Dahal, 2022). There are multiple benefits to preventative care. If screened positive, further evaluation and invasive procedures should be considered before the screening. They are allowing immediate benefit to the client and their quality of life.
2. Natalia
Working as a home health and hospice nurse, I have had more experience with the geriatric population than any other age group. Patients 65 and older represent a significant portion, if not the majority, of home health and hospice patients (Mattison, 2022). Many geriatric patients admitted to home health suffer from chronic wounds, frequent falls, medication noncompliance, memory or cognitive changes, and many other health conditions. The safety of elderly patients’ homes is often concerning. For example, some patients have sliding rugs, stairs, no proper DME, or showers with big steps. In addition, many falls at home are not reported, negatively affecting mobility, longevity, and independence. Polypharmacy is common among elderly patients and is associated with frequent falls and potential harm (Rieckert et al., 2018). Many patients live alone without assistance and struggle to perform their daily activities. I am glad to have a background in home health. I believe I can utilize my experience by carefully assessing elderly patients for noncompliance or possible decline; I will try to investigate the cause of the sudden or gradual change to help improve the situation. Besides medication compliance, I will always check if patients or caregivers understand the disease process, diet, and medication management. I will provide instructions on s/s to monitor and when to call the clinic or 911.

What do you anticipate learning in the course regarding geriatric patients? Citation and reference are required.

In this course, I hope to learn more about the management of chronic health conditions such as Alzheimer’s, dementia, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, endocrine system, and management of osteoporosis. Treatment of older adults with chronic health conditions may differ from those of younger adults due to the natural aging process, including decreased kidney function and metabolic, cardiac, and all-body function. My goal is to reduce exacerbations of a chronic condition and minimize hospitalization of elderly patients by utilizing health promotion and preventative care, following evidence-based practice and current guidelines. In summary, my expanded role as a future FNP means taking higher responsibility for patients with chronic conditions and increasing health promotion and disease prevention (Maier et al., 2018).
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