The aim of this essay is to discuss the nature of illness and dependence in relation to the issues that the nurse should take into account when providing evidence-based care. The issues that will be analysed are the nursing process and nursing models, the implications of nursing technology on the nurse, the patient and their family, the psychological issues for the patient and their family, the consequences of disability and chronic illness and the importance of patient-centred nursing. These issues will be discussed, for the most part, in relation to the patient care received by patients admitted to a ‘high tech’ area. The ‘high tech’ area will be, on the whole, focused in a medical high dependency unit in a local general hospital.
The medical high dependency unit concerned is part of the medical assessment unit. Admissions to the medical assessment unit are taken from either the Accident and Emergency department or from General Practitioners (GPs) when patients need assessment and/or investigations before they are discharged home or transferred to other wards in the hospital. The medical high dependency unit is a four-bedded bay with two side rooms. Two of these beds are classed as high dependency beds and the other four are medical assessment beds. However, if three high dependency beds are required, one medical assessment bed could be left empty. Some high dependency patients come from the intensive care unit, not recovered enough to be transferred to a general ward but not requiring intensive care, some from accident and emergency and some are admitted to the medical assessment unit before requiring high dependency care (that is to say the patient has deteriorated).
Weller (1997) defines illness as a “condition marke...
... middle of paper ...
...uinn, C. (2000). Infusion Devices: risks, functions and management. Nursing Standard. 14(26), 35-41.
Turnock, C. (1994). Technology in Critical Care Nursing. In B. Millar, and P. Burnard. (Eds.) (1994). Critical Care Nursing. Caring for the Critically Ill Adult. London: Baillière Tindall.
Walsh, M. (1997). The Nature of Nursing. In M. Walsh (ed.) (1997). Watson’s Clinical Nursing and Related Sciences. 5th Edition. London: Baillière Tindall.
Weller, B.F. (1997). Baillière’s Nurses’ Dictionary. 22nd Edition. London: Baillière Tindall.
Wichowski, H.C. (1994). Professional uncertainty: nurses in the technologically intense arena. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 19, 1162-1167.
Williams, M. (1998). In C.M. Hudak, B.M. Gallo, and P. Gonce Morton. (Eds.) (1998). Critical Care Nursing. A Holistic Approach. 7th Edition. Philadelphia: Lippincott-Raven Publishers.
Click here to unlock this and over one million essays
Show MoreTaylor, C. (2011). Introduction to Nursing. Fundamentals of nursing: the art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Thirteen years of working as a nurse in the UK has provided the author a vast experience in her speciality. Included in this practice was eight years of working before in High dependency
According to the author, nursing practice needs to stay current with technological advances while keeping its identity as a patient focused profession. Nurses use technology to improve care from a patient?s perspective, both in quality of care and cost. At the same time, nurses must learn to balance technological knowledge with personal skills, thus providing optimum clinical care while maintaining a person-focused relationship with the patient.
Watson, J. (1985). Nursing: Human Science and Human. Norwalk; CT: Appleton – Century – Crofts.
Black, B. P., & Chitty, K. K. (2014). Professional nursing: Concepts & challenges(7th ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Saunders.
Taylor, C. R., Lillis, C., LeMone, P., & Lynn, P., (2011). Fundamentals of nursing: The art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Summary of the main points discussed and stating my an interpretation on its relevancy to contemporary professional nursing practice
Thorne, S. (2010). Theoretical Foundation of Nursing Practice. In P.A, Potter, A.G. Perry, J.C, Ross-Kerr, & M.J. Wood (Eds.). Canadian fundamentals of nursing (Revised 4th ed.). (pp.63-73). Toronto, ON: Elsevier.
The nursing discipline embodies a whole range of skills and abilities that are aimed at maximizing one’s wellness by minimizing harm. As one of the most trusted professions, we literally are some’s last hope and last chance to thrive in life; however, in some cases we may be the last person they see on earth. Many individuals dream of slipping away in a peaceful death, but many others leave this world abruptly at unexpected times. I feel that is a crucial part to pay attention to individuals during their most critical and even for some their last moments and that is why I have peaked an interest in the critical care field. It is hard to care for someone who many others have given up on and how critical care nurses go above and beyond the call
Nurses are an equally important part of each client’s life. Nurses provide stable care to each client, answers their questions, gives medications and treatments, and assists with medical procedures. They also have the responsibility to explain to clients and family members what they should and should not do as they go through treatment and recovery. Nurses must quickly respond to patients needs. Every individual nurse has his or her own unique way of caring. There are so many ways to show caring that the possibilities are never ending. Nurse’s support, comfort, and help allow the patients to recover to the best of their ability. Their experiences in dealing with different patients that have unique situations on a daily basis helps the nurses become better caregivers. Therefore, every nurse is capable of demonstrating care in their respective environments.
Taylor, C. R., Lillis, C., LeMone, P., & Lynn, P. (2011). Fundamentals of nursing: The art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Taylor, C. R., Lillis, C., LeMone, P., & Lynn, P. (2011). Fundamentals of nursing: The art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Roy L Simpson (2001, January). Mapping an IT career: The future of nursing. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 25(2), 80-85. Retrieved April 22, 2007, from Health Module database. (Document ID: 68783829).
Nursing has evolved through time and the care nurses provide must tailor itself to these changes. Today we live in a world where new technologies are used everywhere. Nurses must stay rooted in human caring while adapting to these advancements. Nursing must not move to be merely a technical practice. Locsin’s theory of Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing works to frame the relationship between nursing care and the use of technology.
With the introduction of the age of computers, the nursing profession has seen a transition from the manual to automated methods of record keeping and even patient management. With the introduction of new technology even in monitor systems within the hospitals, nurses are compelled to increase their scope of learning in order to cope with the changes. Intensive care unit equipment are highly sophisticated which only increases the pressure on the nurse as a learner (Urquhart, Currell, Grant & Hardiker). This explicitly shows that nursing is a