Introduction
Patient education has had a relatively new emphasis in recent years, due mostly to the offering of choice to those whose employee health plans made such offering. Patient education then became a way of offering a direct benefit to patients in an effort to keep them engaged in the healing process. Nursing schools, as a result, teach nurses about the ways, besides direct care, that care can be extended and enhanced by demonstrating what the patient can do on his or her own to facilitate healing and to subsequently avoid future health-related scenarios that would require the seriousness of hospital care and the expense associated with such care.
Patient Education
Ward (2013) discussed patient education in terms of nursing education and what is required of nurses in planning for patient teaching. Boswell (2007), whom she references, has shown that when patients are informed of their specific disease process and what is involved in treatment, the outcome of treatment is much more favorable. But in order for the nurse to carry out this very important task, teaching the patient, he or she must understand the process of patient education. The process has several parts, which will be enumerated below.
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"Patient Teaching".
In order to accurately inform the patient of what is needed, an accurate assessment of the patient’s needs must be made. This is in addition to, though not necessarily separate from, the clinical assessment that is routinely made. In a patient needs assessment, the needs and problems of the patient and his or her family is made. It should be as thorough as necessary to meet the ongoing needs of the patient and his family.
Having completed an accurate assessment, the nurse then would formulate a diagnosis and develop an appropriate treatment plan. The treatment plan should be as specific as possible with regard to the patient’s needs and educational level. The end product will be a sound plan that allows the patient and his or her family to continue treatment once they have left the acute setting. Some of that planning is discussed below in the Resources section.
Assuming that a patient is either a child or adolescent, and has come to the health center (emergency room) based on problems with safety issues (poisoning, bicycles (helmets), drowning, lead exposure, or any of a number of vehicle safety issues (texting, seatbelts, etc.), categorized as chemical toxins, including lead and other heavy metal exposure, water safety, bicycle safety, and motor vehicle safety, it is important to make certain that the patient and/or his or her family understands the seriousness of the issue and what can be done to prevent future problems. In the case of poisoning, for example, parents can be told about ordinary household items, including prescription medicines, that can be quite toxic when used inappropriately, as well as the need to have access to these items restricted or inaccessible to children. A checklist of potentially toxic items can be given to them so that no item will be overlooked, along with guidelines for safe use. Guidelines, approved by the governing safety authority, can also be given for bicycle and motor vehicle safety. Time should be allowed for all questions the patient or his family may have.
So, if I were to counsel the patient, I would do as described above, depending on the safety issue involved and the age of the patient. Counseling involves an accurate assessment of the issue that caused the patient to come here in the first place. Included in this assessment would be an understanding of the family and how it works, and whether there are some things the parent or parents can do to make the home environment safer. I would check to see if safety rules are discussed with all of the children who are old enough to understand them, and then carried out in practice. Safety should be a shared responsibility, and not the responsibility of one person. Having guidelines in place, along with having safety hazards removed or minimized, in a way that everyone understands is the surest way to be safe.
Resources
There are also, in every community, guidelines and resources for anyone interested in safe behavior. The local library is a good place to start. The local fire department also has occasional classes and visits to schools that can be accessed, and these have a lot of good information and are appropriate to the age. The police department can be helpful, too, particularly with gun safety and what to do if someone breaks into the patient’s home. The hospital, finally, is another resource. Safety classes are often available, especially with pediatric people, on subjects such as toxic chemicals in the home, bicycle safety, lead and other heavy metal exposure, water safety, and motor vehicle safety. Some other resources are listed below.
Resources are available for every safety issue that commonly occurs in childhood. The American Medical Association (2014) provides patient education materials through its website, and discusses these in terms of health literacy, defined by the AMA as “the ability to obtain, process and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions and follow instructions for treatment.” Additionally, bicycle and motor vehicle safety guidelines can be found at the Kids Health website at kidshealth.org. Chemical safety guidelines can be found at the American Association of Poison Control Centers website. For more local help, most states offer similar information, and the local health department may be able to supplement the other information.
- American Medical Association. (2014). Health literacy. Retrieved from http://www.ama-assn.org/
- Boswell, C. (2007). The nurse’s guide to teaching diabetes self-management. Resource Reviews, Vol 38, Iss. 5.
- Ward, J. (2013). A guide to patient teaching and education in nursing. NurseTogether. Retrieved from http://www.nursetogether.com/
