Delirium Essay

Delirium is a mental state in which an individual is having a rapid disturbance in their cognition, attention, and awareness over a brief period of time. Delirium for an individual typically lasts for about one week, and hardly longer than one month. A treatment method for delirium would be to initially decide the underlying cause. Fluid and electrolyte balances are important components to monitor when an individual has delirium. Signs of hypoxia and anoxia are typical symptoms that may cause a patient to have delirium. Another way to help patients with delirium is to always stay with him or her to provide reassurance for them and reorientation. Since a patient with delirium may exhibit abnormal behaviors and have hallucinations or illusions,

Nurses must identify interventions that will help the patient in their abnormal mental state. There are several types of interventions that pertain to a patient with delirium. One intervention includes ensuring the client’s safety by putting the patient’s room near the nurse’s station, assisting the client with moving around, and placing restraints on the client if he or she is very restless and excitable. Another intervention for the client would be to reorient the client continuously and to keep explanations simple enough to help the patient understand reality, to help with orientation and memory, and to allow the patient to better comprehend the scenario. A nurse should not disregard a patient’s description of hallucinations that are occurring. If a patient is having hallucinations, a nurse should understand what the hallucination is about and report it to prevent any hostile behaviors that may arise from the delusional thinking. Providing a low-stimuli environment is an intervention for a patient experiencing delirium because it promotes limited confusion for the patient. Another intervention includes implementing a constant assessment of the patient’s safety and nutritional needs. This will help determine the basic needs of the patient that he or she is unable to do himself or herself, provide safety and care, and allow the nurse to determine the seriousness or level of delirium the patient is in. One