Patient Education and the Elderly Population
Negotiation as Applied in Patient Education.
Negotiation in patient education is the process whereby the care providers and the patient attempt to reach an agreement and understand a certain issue. Negotiation gives the patient a chance to ask the care provider questions and clarifications the issues that are not clear, thus helping solve misconceptions of the patient and improve healthcare provision. The care provider can also understand the patient better, including their needs, and therefore develop care plans that best suit the patient needs, thus improving health outcomes.
Effects of Change in Patient Education
According to Simonsmeier et al. (2021), patient education has evolved through the years, following changes in patient status and the advancement of modes of delivering patient education. For instance, patients are now in a better status since they can access patient education lessons on the internet.
The major aim of patient education is to create awareness and promote health; patients can access information from the internet has made patient education a lot easier, unlike in the past when patient education could only be delivered through face-to-face sessions and print media. Also, the change of patient status, from inpatient to outpatient, may require more health information, thus a higher need for patient education.
Pros and Cons of Negotiation.
The advantages of negotiation include the agreement of the final decision by the two parties. Negotiation is also face-to-face, giving the patient and the care providers a chance to ask questions and make clarifications. Also, negotiation can minimize risks due to clarification. Some disadvantages of using negotiation are that it is time-consuming, and it is hard for the care provider to tell whether the patient is telling the truth.
Patient Contract
Contracts are agreements between the patients and the care providers, whereby the two parties commit to a set of behaviors regarding patient care. The general conditions that should be included in a patient contract include confidentiality, behavior, and attendance. Patient confidentiality is one of the ethical considerations that should also be maintained in a patient contract. Patient attendance for all appointments should also be met as agreed in the contract. Both parties should also maintain a certain behavior such as treating each other with respect.
Old Age and the Baby Boomer.
The baby boomers refer to the demographic population born in the 1960s or after World War II (Cangelosi, Damron & Kim, 2022). This population has begun to turn to old age since 2011, a heavy burden on the health sector since old age comes with several healthcare needs. There are more elderly patients in healthcare institutions, especially in inpatient departments. The issue calls for planning on resources to cater for the increasing need for healthcare services for the elderly. There is a need for more staff to cater for the high workload that is presented by this issue.
Generational, Religious, and Cultural Differences
Generational, religious, and cultural differences may occur between younger healthcare professionals while dealing with elderly patients. These differences may sometimes lead to the elderly patients preferring older healthcare providers to attend to them as opposed to the young. Generational differences include having a worldview dictated by modernization and globalization, which the elderly patient may not consider important.
Religious and cultural differences include differences in religion, which may be attached to perspectives on illnesses and treatment. However, healthcare professionals should be culturally competent and able to deal with patients from all life stages while minimizing the differences.
Barriers to Patient Education of the Elderly
Delivering patient education to the elderly population has several barriers. The barriers include the fact that the population is aging and may not easily understand and comprehend what is being taught. Also, the elderly population may not be conversant with the emerging technology, so care providers cannot rely on technology alone to deliver patient education to the elderly population.
Among the special needs of the elderly population include the needs that come with old age (Sinatti et al., 2022). The special needs include impaired vision, problems with hearing, mobility issues, and physical weaknesses. Patient education in this population should consider these special needs.
Approaches to Elderly Patient Education.
Some of the best ways to approach patient education when dealing with the elderly population are by using simple language that the elderly will understand, being patient with them given that they can take time to understand, and it is easier for them to forget the lessons.
Also, healthcare professionals should be keen to use educational material that is accommodating for elderly patients, such as the use of large and legible fonts. They should also include infographics such as pictures and teach with examples that the patients can easily relate with.
Cultural and Religious beliefs about Death
Some of the cultural and religious beliefs about death that I have encountered include the belief in life after death. People with Christian religious backgrounds believe that they will live with their maker after death, depending on whether they lived a life pleasing the maker. One major cultural belief I have come across about death is that it reunites the person with their ancestors. Also, some cultural beliefs are that death caused by the disease may be a result of preceding curses.
The essence of Discussing Death and Dying with Elderly Patients.
It is crucial for a healthcare provider to discuss the issue of death and dying with an elderly patient since death becomes predictable with the development of an illness, especially a chronic illness. The patient being elderly, they might be knowledgeable about death.
The impact of talking about death and dying with an elderly patient is that the patient can decide on the best actions to take to control their care, especially when the care provider is not actively involved. It also helps the patient to manage time more effectively and stay close to the family members.
Teaching a Patient with a Life-Threatening Illness.
A patient with a life-threatening illness requires to be taught on the basis of hope, moral support, and honesty with the facts about the stage of the illness. The patient mostly lives with the fear that a life-threatening illness may lead to death. Therefore, the major focus of the care provider is to make the patient emotionally stable and ready as well as give them hope for positive healthcare outcomes. Thus, the teachings will help prevent thoughts of death and give the patient reasons to hold on and maintain a positive attitude.
References
Cangelosi, J., Damron, T. S., & Kim, D. (2022). Preventive health care information and social media: a comparison of Baby Boomer and Generation X health care consumers. International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPHM-04-2021-0042
Simonsmeier, B. A., Flaig, M., Simacek, T., & Schneider, M. (2021). What sixty years of research says about the effectiveness of patient education on health: a second order meta-analysis. Health Psychology Review, 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1080/17437199.2021.1967184
Sinatti, P., Sánchez Romero, E. A., Martínez-Pozas, O., & Villafañe, J. H. (2022). Effects of Patient Education on Pain and Function and Its Impact on Conservative Treatment in Elderly Patients with Pain Related to Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(10), 6194. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19106194