DQ: Why is the concept of family health important? NRS 429

DQ: Why is the concept of family health important? NRS 429

Understanding that an individual’s family situation and dynamic can have significant effects on the patient’s physical, mental, and emotional health, as well as their financial capabilities, resources, and overall well-being, is critical to providing appropriate healthcare to a patient. Healthcare goals will be much more difficult to achieve if we fail to recognize how the family supports or does not support a patient.

When attempting to enable and empower patients to improve their health, nurses should consider using family-centered care. Instead of focusing solely on the patient, family members and/or caregivers are involved in decision making, planning, and teaching (Green 2018). Understanding the support and influence mechanisms that a family brings to the healthcare team is advantageous to the nurse. When we involve the entire family in healthcare decision making, goal setting, and patient education, we see increased success in a variety of areas. This promotes the establishment of a patient-nurse trust relationship, the reinforcement of behavior-changing actions that promote health, and, most importantly, the longevity of those life-changing choices that affect a patient’s overall health. Patients are more likely to achieve their healthcare goals when they feel properly supported by their healthcare team and in their daily lives with their support system.

S. Green (2018). Understanding Families and Promoting Health Health and Wellness Across the Continuum, Grand Canyon University (Eds.). https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs429vn/health-promotion-health-and-wellness-across-the-continuum/v1.1/#/chapter/4

A registered nurse must understand health promotion and disease prevention (National State Boards of Nursing [NSBN], 2016). Knowledge competence is demonstrated by the identification of risk factors for disease or illness, health risks, immunization schedules, and health education to assist people in attaining optimal health (NSBN, 2016). Nursing assessments and health promotion interventions result in improved health education and understanding, emotional and behavioral healing, and other advantages for the well-being of each family (Wright & Leahey, 2013). The influence of family members on one another can be used to assist patients and family members in making health-related decisions and changes (Garcia-Huidobro & Mendenhall, 2015).

A combination of genetic and environmental factors passed down from our forefathers can cause a number of common, easily treatable diseases. Because of the diversity of our genes, we are the result of at least eight generations of relatives. As medicine advances, people are better able to understand the conditions that our relatives have or have had. By carefully assessing and documenting this information, we can gain a better understanding of our relative susceptibility to these conditions.

In this way, we may be able to prevent or detect conditions that would otherwise impair our quality of life. Small symptoms that would normally go unnoticed can paint a completely different picture when the health care provider already knows what to look for thanks to the mapping of family history provided during your initial consultation.

The importance of recording family history extends beyond individuals to communities. The knowledge gained can also be applied to a better understanding of hereditary disease, which can influence how medicine is developed and practiced in general.

A family health history is a record of the health information, conditions, and diseases of close family members. This could include.

cardiovascular disease
Stroke
Diabetes
Certain types of cancer
OsteoporosissDepression
Asthma
ArthritissDementia

A family history also provides information on the following;

Major inherited medical issues (i.e., injuries do not apply)
The age at which they were diagnosed
The age of the deceased and the cause of death
Environmental factors, habits, and behaviors, such as tobacco use, working in a factory with certain exposures, and so on.
Ethnic origins

History can aid healthcare providers in health promotion.

1.Changes in lifestyle and behavior in response to increased risks can postpone or, in some cases, prevent disease.

2.Screenings: If your family history indicates a higher risk for certain conditions, specific screenings such as mammograms, blood sugar tests, or colonoscopies may be recommended at a younger age or on a more frequent basis.

3.Information on genetic counseling may also be provided.

4.Preventive treatments, such as calcium and vitamin D supplements, may be recommended in some cases if you are at higher risk for osteoporosis.

FCC, also known as patient-family-centered care, is health care provided in collaboration with the family and health care experts. This is a type of public health promotion. Family and friends are welcomed and involved as sources of support for the patient and for one another, and they are included in decision making when appropriate. The nurse must consider not only care coordination and the physical comfort of one or more family members when caring for an entire family, but also emotional support for the family’s beliefs, needs, preferences, and values. To meet patient preferences, traditional care for laboring mothers was expanded in the 1970s to include fathers in the delivery room, which has since evolved into family-oriented care. End-of-life principles advise nurses to provide family-centered care (IOM,2014).

Families are better informed today, but when problems arise, they still require information, communication, and education. Compassion, collaboration, empathy, transparency, and responsiveness to needs should be demonstrated in nursing care. Valuing and respecting the knowledge, experiences, and support of family caregivers, as well as incorporating family ability into care, empowers the family and personalizes care (Baird, Davies, Hinds, Baggott, & Rehm, 2015; Richards, Starks, O’Connor, & Doorenbos, 2017; Smith, Swallow, & Coyne, 2015).