Introduction
The first healthcare issue that I will address is medication. Mr. Trosack has been put under strict medication following diagnosis of hypertension, non-insulin-dependent diabetes, and overweight disorders. Considering the patient’s condition, the medical prescriptions given by the doctor are very important to facilitate the recovery process. Since the patient’s attitude towards medication is negative, he needs someone to assist him to adhere to the prescriptions given.
I need to address this issue so that the patient can continue with appropriate medication after discharge. The second issue that I will address is home nursing. This involves care and concern that the patient will require after discharge. The patient will need assistance in terms of movement, food preparation, house cleaning, and many other things. Care, concern and assistance have to be provided to enable the patient to lead a meaningful, comfortable, and stress-free life (Kavanagh, 2008).
The third issue is the provision of guiding and counseling. The interdisciplinary team needs to subject the patient to counseling facilities to relieve him from stress following sudden diagnosis of various disorders. The counseling will also change the patient’s attitude towards medication. It will also prevent the development of depression and other stress-related complications. Lastly, I will address the issue of work. The patient should be relieved from work till further recommendations from the doctor to facilitate quick recovery. In general, all these issues are important when planning for the discharge of the patient because they enable quick recovery, a proper lifestyle, and a stress-free lifestyle (Kavanagh, 2008).
Interdisciplinary team members
The most important member is the doctor (medical professional). The doctor’s role is to provide a full medical report and results of the tests carried out on the patient (hypertension and non-insulin-dependent test results). He will also give a report indicating the medical care (medical prescriptions) for the patient before discharge. He is the one to give a full medication program for the patient throughout the healing period. The second member is Peter. Together with his wife (Rita), they are expected to give financial, moral, and social support to the patient. Peter should frequently visit his father (patient) and ensure that he is leading a good and comfortable life. Since he is the patient’s son, he is supposed to give guidance to the rest of the team members on how to handle his father (Hudson, 1999).
The third member is the patient’s brother. He is the one working with the patent in the bakery. Due to the medical condition of the patient, he should relieve himself from work and ensure that he receives appropriate financial support. He can also give emotional care and social support to the patient. The last member is the caregiver. Together with the personal assistance, the caregiver needs to be well conversant with conditions of hypertension, overweight, and non-insulin-dependent diabetes.
The member will guide and counsel the patient and help him accept his present health status. In collaboration with the doctor and other professionals, the member will ensure that the patient leads a comfortable and stress-free life while at home. He is the one to implement the medication program and attend to the patient while at home (Hudson, 1999).
The small size of the patient’s apartment is likely to hinder the patient from moving around using a walker. The small size of the bathroom with no safety features will also make it difficult for the patient to bathe. Since the apartment has no elevator, it will be very difficult for the patient to access the house following two sets of stairs. The condition of the apartment in terms of food/grocery unavailability, lengthy trash removal process and expired medicine cabinet in the bathroom also affects the discharge placement determination.
Discharge plan for care
The safety assessment outcomes and interview data show that Mr. Trosack needs a lot of help. He needs someone to help him move around due to his injured hip. Since he does not accept his present health status and medical prescriptions, he needs to be helped to accept his medical condition and adhere to the medical prescriptions given by the doctor. A therapist or a professional caregiver will be the best for offering this assistance. Following the safety assessment, it is also clear that Mr. Trosack requires a more spacious and comfortable apartment to facilitate movement and accessibility. The patient also needs social, psychological, and emotional support to facilitate healing (Crilly, 2006).
There is less ability of the family of Mr. Trosack to take care of him once discharged home from the hospital. The family allies of Mr. Trosack seem to be committed to work. His son Peter works for almost sixty hours a week and this leaves him with no time to take care of his father (patient). The same applies to Peter’s wife who is also committed to work just like her husband. It will be difficult for her to spare some time to take care of her father-in-law (patient).
On the other hand, the patient’s brother who happens to work in the bakery will be much overburdened following his brother’s health status. The patient will not be able to assist fully in the bakery like before. This means that his brother will be having more work and less time to take care of him. This means that the family members are too committed to taking care of the patient once discharged from the hospital.
Social isolation is a factor that negatively affects the process of healing and recovery of an adult patient once discharged. Stress is one of the factors that derail the recovery process. Social isolation seems to be one of the main causes of stress in adult patients. They feel abandoned and hopeless once subjected to social isolation. They feel like they are of no importance to their social allies and families. Following this, they lose confidence, desire to live and fight for their life. Once they lose hope, they become even more stressed and this greatly affects the healing/recovery process (Rieger, 2005).
Psychological factors play a role in the recovery process since they act as resources for coping. They affect the way patients deal with their medical conditions and the acceptance process. The factors also affect events that are geared towards the achievement of recovery. Such factors include psychological empowerment, oneself views, and personal orientations in life. Psychological factors that support the coping process also facilitate the recovery process (Rieger, 2005).
Discharge placement for Mr. Trosack
I recommend that the patient should be discharged to a new apartment probably with no stairs for easy movement and accessibility. The patient should then be provided with the required attention including a medical caregiver to assist in the medication process. The family members should spare some time to visit or be with the patient for social, emotional, and psychological support (Savana, 2009). More emphasis should be on the patient’s needs, planning for a multidisciplinary approach, financial/ material resources available, and other services like counseling and home adjustments required.
Resource mobilization like drugs, keeping appropriate records, service provision, patient assessment, care adjustment, and adherence to medical prescriptions should be given priority. Finally, the patient should be monitored and evaluated on regular basis to determine the effectiveness of the medical prescriptions. Evaluation and monitoring can be done by use of checklists, record reviews, and re-adjustments (Savana, 2009).
References
Crilly, J. (2006). Continuity of Care for Sickly Adults from Nursing Homes. Australian Journal of Caring Sciences, 2(3), 121-135.
Hudson, K. (1999). Health assessment interdisciplinary teams. Journal of social Science, 2(85), 359-361.
Kavanagh, M. (2008). Continuity of Care: Discharge Planning and Community Nurses. Contemporary Nurse, 4(4), 148-155.
Rieger, P. (2005). Supportive and referral groups. Seminars in Nursing, 15(2), 104-115.
Savana, C. (2009). Continuity of Care: Discharge Care Plan and Community Nurses. Australia: HarperCollins Publishers.