Living Old, Part 6: A Case Study

596 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Impact of the aging population on healthcare

Currently there are over 461 million elderly adults, aged 65 years old, and this figure is expected to rise to over two billion by year 2050 (Clegg, Young, Iliffe, Rikkert, & Rockwood, 2013). However, as seniors are living longer lives, chronic, debilitating illnesses are putting a strain on the healthcare system and families taking care of their parents. The purpose of this discussion board post is to talk about one thing that I was surprised to learn and did not know until after viewing an assigned video. I will also tell how this one thing that I learned will affect my nursing practice in the years to come.
While watching the Living Old, Part Six, two elderly people present opposite thoughts on the joy and sorrow of being old (Navasky & O’Connor, 2006). While some do not want to burden their family with having to care for them, others want to live as long as they can. This made me question how many elderly people actually have a do-not-resuscitate (DNR) or full resuscitation orders drawn up prior to becoming chronically ill. Bailey et al. (2012) found that a large percentage of …show more content…

I am presented with questions, from both family and patients, regarding when it is appropriate to die peacefully and not prolong living with a terminal disease. I see how hard it is on the family and the patient when they do not agree about an end of life decision. During a start of care, I always ask if the patient has a DNR. Although it is a simple yes or no question, I believe after viewing these videos, I will discuss the importance of making their wishes known, to both the family and healthcare staff, prior to experiencing a condition that could prevent them from expressing their wishes. It is very important to discuss this information with their family and physician and take appropriate action when they are still fairly healthy and in sound

Show More
Related

  • Using Communication and Caring in The Development of a Therapeutic Nurse-Patient Relationship

    1941 Words  | 4 Pages

    older adults. Journal of Nursing Education, 47(6), 269-271. Retrieved from CINAHL Plus with Full Text database.

    Read More

  • A Tender Hand In The Presence Of Death

    796 Words  | 2 Pages

    The decision to end a life is a difficult one no matter the situation presented. It stirs a great deal of emotions when thinking about a loved one choosing to die in situations where they are terminally ill. Death is a scary thought for most people, but we need to remember that it is just a fact of life, no matter how morbid it sounds. There is some dignity in ending a life for a patient is who terminally ill and suffering, although it may be a tough decision, it can sometimes be the right one.

    Read More

  • America's Nursing Shortage Analysis

    1181 Words  | 3 Pages

    Houde, S., & Melillo, K. (2009). Caring for an aging population. Journal Of Gerontological Nursing, 35(12), 9-13. doi:10.3928/00989134-20091103-04

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Assisted Suicide

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    Terminally ill patients deserve the right to have a dignified death. These patients should not be forced to suffer and be in agony their lasting days. The terminally ill should have this choice, because it is the only way to end their excruciating pain. These patients don’t have

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Euthanasia

    1281 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American Nurses Association (ANA) thinks that nurses should stay away from doing euthanasia, or assisting in doing euthanasia because it is against the Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements (ANA, 2001; herein referred to as The Code). Overall, nurses are also advised to deliver a quality of care what include respect compassion and dignity to all their patients. For people in end-of-life, nursing care should also focus on the patient’s comfort, when possible the dying patient should be pain free. Nurses have also the obligation to support the patient but also the patient’s family members during these difficult moments. We must work to make sure that patients and family members are well informed about every option that is

    Read More

  • Long-Term Care System Analysis

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    The long-term care system consists of an integrated continuum of many institutional and non-institutional providers who deliver extended care when needed. Long-term care providers deliver a variety of care to individuals with chronic, mobility and/or cognitive impairments/limitations. These providers include: nursing facilities, sub acute care, assisted living, residential care, elderly housing options and community based adult services (Pratt, 2010). A great majority of these providers are already taking care of the many baby boomers that are present today and will be present in the future. “Baby boomers” are individuals who were born between the years 1946-1964. Since 2011, every day 10,000 baby boomers turn 65 years old (Pratt, 2010). This

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Physician Assisted Suicide

    1888 Words  | 4 Pages

    The patients will have the understanding that if they cannot keep fighting the option is available. ¨ There is not more profoundly personal decision, nor one which is closer to the heart of personal liberty, than the choice which a terminally ill person makes to end his or her suffering and hasten an inevitable death¨ ( Sarah Henry, 1996, p. 10). If they are ready to end it, the option is available. They know the choice they make will affect them, but it also helps to know if they cannot go on they can tell the doctor and they will end it. ¨ Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations is the first religious group to pass in favor of Euthanasia for the terminally ill¨ ( Leading Issue Timelines, 2017, p. 8¨. The terminally ill should have the right to know if they are going to be allowed to end their lives if the fighting gets hard and to unbearable. They do not want to give up just to be on the road of a slow and possibly painful death. ¨ Between physician and patient concerning a request for assisted suicide be witnessed by two adults¨ ( Yale Kamisar, 1998, p. 6). The doctor´s are not going to just inject the patient with the killing drug. The patient has to be able to say for themselves and someone else has to be present when said, when gone over and when they are injected. The family can know their family member really wants to follow through with it and they have

    Read More

  • Patient Assisted Suicide

    1881 Words  | 4 Pages

    One of the greatest dangers facing chronic and terminally ill patients is the grey area regarding PAS. In the Netherlands, there are strict criteria for the practice of PAS. Despite such stringencies, the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (1992) found 28% of the PAS cases in the Netherlands did not meet the criteria. The evidence suggests some of the patient’s lives may have ended prematurely or involuntarily. This problem can be addressed via advance directives. These directives would be written by competent individuals explaining their decision to be aided in dying when they are no longer capable of making medical decisions. These interpretations are largely defined by ones morals, understanding of ethics, individual attitudes, religious and cultural values.

    Read More

  • Mid-Range Theory Of Patient Advocacy

    1174 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is found that nurses report that their most uncomfortable situations come with prolonging the dying process and some struggle with ethical issues by doing so (Seal, 2007). Studies have shown that implementation of the RPC program and educating nurses have increased the nurses’ confidence in discussing end-of-life plans (Austin, 2006). With confidence, the nurse is able to ask the right questions of the patient and make sure that the patient’s wishes are upheld in the manner that they had wanted, such as to not resuscitate or to make sure their spiritual leader is present when passing (Austin,

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay Euthanasia

    1299 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, to preserve the individual 's self respect they would not want their family to see them fall apart and wither away. Nevertheless, the end of a family member 's life is hard on all loved ones and the last memories they have should be ones of joy and care. A patient should be able to pass away peacefully knowing that they did so with their respect and dignity intact. In the article “Is physician-assisted death in anyone 's best interest?”, James downar explains that many people try and delay death, even when faced with a hopeless situation. However, although they remain cognitively intact, other patients have limited life prolonging options and their quality of life and function deteriorate below the threshold that they consider acceptable. This portrays the idea that regardless of whether or not a person is in favour of, or opposed to euthanasia, all people would agree that they would want a dignified death for themselves and their loved ones. The problem starts when people cannot agree as to the definition of 'dignity. ' According to a new survey commissioned by ‘Dying With Dignity Canada’, approximately 84 per cent of Canadians support assisted dying. These results clarify that terminally ill patients need their rights recognized. That being said, those who are continually opposed to voluntary euthanasia must not deny people the right to die with

    Read More

  • Essay On End Of Life Care Plan

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    The care of patients at the end of their live should be as humane and respectful to help them cope with the accompanying prognosis of the end of their lives. The reality of this situation is that all too often, the care a patient receives at the end of their life is quite different and generally not performed well. The healthcare system of the United States does not perform well within the scope of providing the patient with by all means a distress and pain free palliative or hospice care plan. To often patients do not have a specific plan implemented on how they wish to have their end of life care carried out for them. End of life decisions are frequently left to the decision of family member's or physicians who may not know what the patient needs are beforehand or is not acting in the patient's best wishes. This places the unenviable task of choosing care for the patient instead of the patient having a carefully written out plan on how to carry out their final days. A strategy that can improve the rate of care that patients receive and improve the healthcare system in general would be to have the patient create a end of life care plan with their primary care physician one to two years prior to when the physician feels that the patient is near the end of their life. This would put the decision making power on the patient and it would improve the quality of care the patient receives when they are at the end of their life. By developing a specific care plan, the patient would be in control of their wishes on how they would like their care to be handled when the time of death nears. We can identify strengths and weakness with this strategy and implement changes to the strategy to improve the overall system of care with...

    Read More

  • Ethics of Euthanasia

    1466 Words  | 3 Pages

    As patients come closer to the end of their lives, certain organs stop performing as well as they use to. People are unable to do simple tasks like putting on clothes, going to the restroom without assistance, eat on our own, and sometimes even breathe without the help of a machine. Needing to depend on someone for everything suddenly brings feelings of helplessness much like an infant feels. It is easy to see why some patients with terminal illnesses would seek any type of relief from this hardship, even if that relief is suicide. Euthanasia or assisted suicide is where a physician would give a patient an aid in dying. “Assisted suicide is a controversial medical and ethical issue based on the question of whether, in certain situations, Medical practioners should be allowed to help patients actively determine the time and circumstances of their death” (Lee). “Arguments for and against assisted suicide (sometimes called the “right to die” debate) are complicated by the fact that they come from very many different points of view: medical issues, ethical issues, legal issues, religious issues, and social issues all play a part in shaping people’s opinions on the subject” (Lee). Euthanasia should not be legalized because it is considered murder, it goes against physicians’ Hippocratic Oath, violates the Controlled

    Read More

  • Challenges of Health Care and the Aging Population

    1317 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kick, Ella. "Overview: Health Care and the Aging Population: What Are Today's Challenges?" The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. N.p., n.d. Web.

    Read More

  • Long Term Care Insurance

    832 Words  | 2 Pages

    Today, the world’s population is aging at a very fast pace and the United States is no exception to this demographic change. According to the U.S Census Bureau, senior citizens will account for 21% of the American population in 2050 (Older Americans, 2012). Although living longer lives may not seem like a negative sign, living longer does not necessarily mean living healthier. Older adults of today are in need of long-term health care services more than any generation before them (Older Americans, 2012). Because of the growing need for senior care, millions of families are facing critical decisions on how to provide care for their parents.

    Read More

  • Do-Not-Resuscitate Order

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    With the establishment of the DNR order, withholding CPR from an individual has reformed into standing as “ethically appropriate if the anticipated benefit outweighs the harm. However, since then, the literal meaning of DNR has not been clear, thus causing confusion that remains problematic in clinical practice” (Yen-Yuan 4).  With the renovation of the DNR order, people and health care providers have worked to progress defining what the DNR order stands for along with people gaining autonomy in their choice of death.  Additionally, associations and activists keep pushing forward in the refinement of the DNR order: “there has been increasing focus on promoting quality of care for the dying [. . .] However, the persistent problems with DNR orders suggest that physician behaviors toward communication with patients about goals of care and resuscitation decisions have not measurably changed in the past 20 years” (Yuen 7).  Through the efforts of benefactors such as the American Heart Association and others, the DNR order will continue to increase in quality over time as improvements are made.  The DNR order sprouted from the first incentives that people deserve a say in how they shall die and today has transformed into a necessity that functions to entitle people to their own choice of death or

    Read More

More about Living Old, Part 6: A Case Study

Open Document