Discuss: Health Promotion During Pregnancy
Discuss: Health Promotion During Pregnancy
Week 8 discussion
Discussion: Health Promotion During Pregnancy
When caring for pregnant women, it is important to care for the whole person. This means you not only manage the pregnancy and treat conditions, but you also promote healthy behaviors and good lifestyle choices. Through health promotion, you can help to ensure the safety of both the mother and the baby. Your role in health promotion is to identify health risks that might result in pregnancy complications, educate patients on these risks, and provide the necessary support to help patients mitigate these risks. In this Discussion, you examine implications of drug use, alcohol consumption, dietary habits, and environmental exposures during pregnancy, and you consider ways to educate pregnant women about such risks.
To prepare:
Review Chapter 2 of the Tharpe et al. text and the article from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in this week’s Learning Resources.
Consider lifestyle changes that pregnant women must make in relation to smoking, drinking, taking drugs (legal and illegal), eating habits, and caring for pets. Select one of these topics to be the focus of an educational media piece you would create for health promotion during pregnancy.
Think about the patient population that you treat within your practicum setting. Consider ways to educate these patients on health promotion as it relates to the topic you selected. Then, consider the types of educational pieces, such as flyers, posters, public service announcements, or other media, that might be most effective with your patient population.
Week 9 discussion
Discussion: Nonadherence to Lifestyle Changes During Pregnancy
After identifying potential health risks for pregnant patients, providers often recommend behavior changes in lifestyle choices such as drug use, alcohol consumption, dietary habits, and environmental exposures. Even with provider recommendations and patient education programs, some patients still struggle to adhere to recommended lifestyle changes during pregnancy, posing health risks for both the mother and child. In your role as the provider, you must be able to recognize signs of nonadherence to recommended lifestyle changes because not all patients will be forthcoming with the struggles they may be experiencing. Management plans are only successful if patients’ individual needs are recognized and met, so provider-patient collaboration is essential for mitigating nonadherence issues. For this Discussion, consider implications of nonadherence to recommended lifestyle changes and potential management strategies for pregnant patients.
To prepare:
Review the “During Pregnancy” article in this week’s Learning Resources.
Think about the health promotion topic that you selected for the Week 8 Discussion (i.e., smoking, drinking, taking drugs, eating habits, and caring for pets).
With the topic you selected in mind, consider early signs and symptoms that might indicate a patient’s nonadherence to recommended lifestyle changes during pregnancy. Think about the impact of nonadherence on the fetus and the patient.
Reflect on treatment and management strategies for patients presenting with signs and symptoms of nonadherence to recommended lifestyle changes.
Week 10 discussion
Discussion: Diagnosing and Managing Common Cardiovascular and Neurologic Conditions
Cardiovascular and neurologic conditions are among the leading causes of death and hospitalization of women in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2008a). As an advanced practice nurse, you must routinely monitor patients at risk of these conditions and recommend the appropriate health screenings and preventive services. When assessing patients for these conditions, it is important to keep in mind that while some female patients might present with typical signs and symptoms, others might present with atypical signs and symptoms that are unique to women. For this Discussion, consider signs and symptoms presented by the women in the following case studies and develop differential diagnoses:
Case Study 1
A 48-year-old overweight African American female is in the clinic for a wellness visit. A routine fasting lipid panel returned with the following results:
Total cholesterol: 305 mmol/L
Low-density lipoprotein (LDL): 180 mg/dl
High-density lipoprotein (HDL): 30 mg/dl
Triglycerides: 165 mg/dl
Case Study 2
You are seeing a 63-year-old African American female for a two-week history of intermittent chest pain. The pain varies in intensity and resolves with rest. She does not believe it has increased over time. She is a nonsmoker with a history of hypertension treated with Lisinopril 10 mg once daily. She had an exercise stress test one year ago that was within normal limits. Her physical exam findings are as follows: HR–90, BP–150/92, R–22, O2Sat 98% RA; lungs: clear to auscultation bilaterally; cardiovascular: apical pulse of 90 RRR, no rubs, murmurs, or gallops. Chest wall mildly tender to palpation that reproduces her complaint of pain. Extremities include no clubbing, cyanosis, or edema. The remainder of the exam is within normal limits.
Case Study 3
A 32-year-old Asian American female is in the clinic for a history of recurrent headaches for the past year, occurring monthly, lasting up to 12–18 hours. The headaches are sometimes associated with photophobia, nausea, and vomiting. She takes either acetaminophen or ibuprofen for relief that is not always successful. She uses Ortho Tricyclin for birth control. Her physical exam is within normal limits.
To prepare:
Review Chapter 8 of the Tharpe et al. text and the McSweeney et al. article in this week’s Learning Resources.
Review and select one of the three provided case studies. Analyze the patient information.
Consider a differential diagnosis for the patient in the case study you selected. Think about the most likely diagnosis for the patient.
Reflect on the appropriate clinical guidelines. Think about a treatment and management plan for the patient. Be sure to consider appropriate dosages for any recommended pharmacologic and/or nonpharmacologic treatments.
Consider strategies for educating patients on the treatment and management of the disorder you identified as your primary diagnosis.
