Nursing Diagnoses for Children
NANDA diagnosis: Imbalanced nutrition more than body requirement related to excessive intake in relation to metabolic needs as evidenced by reported dysfunctional eating patterns and excessive body weight.
OMAHA System diagnosis: Children with excessive body weight and preventable health conditions like coronary heart disease and diabetes, and minimal knowledge of their health condition but with potential for improving their knowledge and management of the disease; this potential is related to the ability to acquire and process new knowledge and the presence of medical and public health services providing relevant health information.
Long-term goal: By January 1, 2012, members of the Gahanna community will develop better knowledge and awareness of obesity, its effects on health, and resources available for reducing excessive weight and the scope of obesity complications. Awareness of health resources in the Gahanna community will increase by fifteen percent.
Short-term goal: The Gahanna health care center will develop and implement a school-based counseling session led by health professionals and community residents (key informants) to educate community residents about resources available for reducing and preventing excessive body weight and related health complications. The session will begin on June 1, 2011. Health professionals will engage parents with obese children in physical exercise programs.
Interventions. PRIMARY PREVENTION: health professionals and community residents will present and share information about resources available for reducing excessive weight and related complications. Information about the risks and symptoms of obesity and its effects on children’s health will be presented. Health professionals will hand out information to the audience with recommendations for diet and lifestyle improvements. SECONDARY PREVENTION: Parents with obese children will be invited to participate in physical activity classes.
Rationale: (1) school-based programs have proved to be a critical driver of positive behavioral changes, because of “near-universal enrollment and the potential to affect behaviors of children that track into adolescence and adulthood” (Dietz & Gortmaker, 2001, p.346); (2) “parental involvement in obesity prevention and treatment programs is key to the development of a psychosocial environment that promotes healthy eating and physical activity among young people” (Story, 1999, p.S49).
Nursing Diagnoses for Elderly at Risk
NANDA Diagnosis: Chronic confusion related to neuronal degeneration as evidenced by short-term memory loss, depression, and impaired socialization.
OMAHA System Diagnosis: Senior citizens with clinical signs of neuronal degeneration further accompanied by memory loss, depression, and impaired socialization, with impaired ability to develop relevant knowledge of their health condition but the presence of numerous agencies and health care centers providing mental health care.
Long-term goal: By January 1, 2012, members of the Gahanna community will develop better knowledge and awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and resources available for preventing and caring for elderly residents with Alzheimer’s. Community awareness will increase by twenty percent.
Short-term goal: The Woods at Parkside and Gahanna Counseling LLC will develop a counseling intervention program to educate community members about resources available for preventing Alzheimer’s in elderly people and caring for elderly community members with neurological degeneration. Health professionals and community residents will distribute handouts to the audience, with recommendations to monitor blood pressure, heart failure, and anemia in elderly people. Elderly community members with Alzheimer’s will be encouraged to participate in physical exercise programs. The session will begin on June 1, 2011.
Interventions. PRIMARY INTERVENTION: health professionals and community residents will present and share knowledge about resources available for preventing Alzheimer’s in elderly residents, including blood pressure monitoring. SECONDARY PREVENTION: elderly community members with Alzheimer’s will be encouraged to participate in physical exercise programs.
Rationale: (1) Monitoring and managing blood pressure, anemia, and the risks of heart failure leading to chronic hypoxia in the brain can successfully reduce the risks of neurological degeneration in elderly people (Fratiglioni, Winblad & Strauss, 2007, p.102); (2) Research findings suggest that behavioral approaches like physical training play an important role in treating depression and dysphoric mood in elderly residents with Alzheimer’s (Williams & Tappen, 2008, p.78).
References
Dietz, W.H. & Gortmaker, S.L. (2001). Preventing obesity in children and adolescents. Annual Review of Public Health, 22, 337-53.
Fratiglioni, L., Winblad, B. & Strauss, E. (2008). Prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Major findings from the Kungsholmen Project. Physiology & Behavior, 92, 98-104.
Story, M. (1999). School-based approaches for preventing and treating obesity. International Journal of Obesity, 23(2), S43-S51.
Williams, C.L. & Tappen, R.M. (2008). Exercise training for depressed older adults with Alzheimer’s disease. Aging & Mental Health, 12(1), 72-80.