NRS 429 Describe the nurse's role and responsibility as health educator

NRS 429 Describe the nurse’s role and responsibility as health educator

Nurses should not assume that when patients are literate meaning they can read and write, they will easily understand health education from the nurses. Being literate does not mean you are health-literate to understand all the medical terminologies or health information the nurse may try to give to you. Also, patients who may lack formal schooling can be taught complex health education (Whitney,2018). One prime moment nurses should take advantage of when trying to provide our patients with the most up to date and appropriate education is when they show that they have the desire to do the right thing for themselves and their loved ones. Nurses can also take advantage to provide up to date and appropriate education when patients exhibit behaviors or express sentiments with the belief that they can meet their own health-related goals and which in turn plays a vital role in meeting desired educational outcomes (Whitney, 2018).

Reference:

Whitney, S. (2018). Teaching and learning styles. In Health promotion: Health & wellness across the continuum. (Chapter 1). Grand Canyon University. https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs429vn/health-promotion-health-and-wellness-across-the-continuum/v1.1/#/chapter/1.

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The priority focus is ensuring the patient is knowledgeable about the information and its role in their health. This knowledge encourages continuous self-management in their care that carries into other healthcare-related visits and appointments. Heath (2017) mentions, “Clinicians must follow a series to steps before issuing patient education materials, ensuring that the strategies employed are useful for the individual patient.” Patients must be ready to learn and make beneficial changes before undergoing strategies. Clients should have their current knowledge level assessed before addressing new information when learning. This provides a stepping stone into the first steps of health education. It is essential to take advantage of any health literacy one knows. Understanding health literacy aids a patient in improving their health with the use of accessible resources. Research online shows that if health literacy is low, so is the patient’s desire to utilize health resources compared to others. (Heath, 2017). If health literacy is minimal to none, introduce definitions of key terms and concepts concerning their health. This can stimulate the process. Another prime moment is encouraging the patient to explain the information to nurses to verbalize understanding. A topic or concept is explained or demonstrated; then, the patient has to demonstrate or explain this information in their own words. Some materials utilized are one-on-one teaching, demonstrations, analogies, graphics, printed materials, podcasts, videos, PowerPoints, or group discussions. Implement these based on patient preference. Teaching patients about health-related technology is essential to access information at home. “Using an online interface, patient portals allow patients to access their lab results, medical histories, and a plethora of other health information. Clinicians who use OpenNotes, a practice philosophy where clinicians digitally share their appointment notes with patients, can offer their patients in-depth and specific health advice each office visit.” (Heath, 2017). Online strategies let clients access their records anytime and anywhere. With constant access to their records, patients can find ways to improve their health without seeing a doctor. Healthcare providers should take advantage of patients’ health literacy, readiness to learn, understanding of teaching, available resources, and awareness of teaching strategies for beneficial education.

Reference

Heath, S. (2017 April 27). 4 Patient Education Strategies That Drive Patient Activation. Patient Engagement Hit. https://patientengagementhit.com/news/4-patient-education-strategies-that-drive-patient-activation

During health education, the nurse will do patient need assessment. Sometimes patient will tell their fears about their health risk behaviors. The needs assessment allows programs to identify opportunities for health promotion and disease prevention efforts, potential barriers and appropriate strategies to address them (Rural Information Hub, 2018). The nurse then plans health education that targets the identified need. Using clear and simple words, the nurse then will educate the patient on the consequences and health issues that are associated with identified risk behavior, providing patient with the recommended preventative actions from evidence-based practice. The nurse will use the different health promotion theories and models based on the patients learning styles.

Reference:

Rural Health Information Hub, (2018). Rural Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Toolkit: The Health Belief Model.https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/toolkits/health-promotion/2/theories-and-models/health-belief

In the current value-based healthcare system, patient education is essential for enhancing patient compliance and outcomes. The key to patient education and ensuring they have a clear understanding of the care recommendations is to focus on patient outcomes. When patients are admitted to the hospital, effective patient education begins and lasts until their discharge. Throughout a patient’s stay, nurses should use every suitable chance to instruct the patient in self-care.

Many patients are uninformed about healthcare. Nurses must do assessments on their patients to decide how best to inform them about their health and how much they already know about their conditions. They must establish a relationship with patients by asking about their worries. The patient’s preferences may need nurses to modify their training methods. Though some might merely want a checklist, many patients need in-depth information. Resources must be offered in plain language to communicate in a way that is clear to all patients and has an impact. This will improve patient education and make it more effective. Additionally, writing should be done in a variety of languages and reading levels.

Reference

Wolters Kluwer: The Value of Education for Patients Outcomes

MedlinePlus: Choosing Effective Patient Education Materials PracticalNursing.org: Five Tips for Providing Effective Patient Education

Prime patient education moments arise any time a patient comes to you with their questions. This can look many different ways. Sometimes the patient will ask the question and seek clarification directly. Sometimes, this will look like multiple Emergency Room visits and Hospital Admissions. The professional Registered Nurse is tasked with looking at the “Big Picture” and not just educating in the moment.

Changes in patient’s conditions can be subtle. They require a thorough review of the electronic medical record, so that trends can be discovered. Tracking the trends is the next level of nursing care. This is how we gather evidence-based data and interpret that data in order to improve patient outcomes.

A real-world example of tracking data and utilizing the data is the case of a patient with CHF. The patient has been taught to weigh himself daily. He does this faithfully and without fail. He writes down the data and records it for the doctor. An issue arises when the patient gains 3 pounds in one day. He has shortness of breath and brushes it off. He continues to drink as much fluid as he wants, and he is beginning to third-space, or have bilateral lower extremity edema. He still does not call his Cardiologist or PCP. Later in the evening, he begins to worry that he has Covid-19 because he can barely breathe. He is in fluid volume overload the next morning, and he has gained a total of 7 lbs. this week. His BNP is elevated. Covid-19 is negative. He cannot understand how this could have happened, because he took all of his medications this week.

This is an opportunity to re-educate the patient. He is doing what he is supposed to do, but he does not understand the big picture. He does not fully understand FVO-Fluid Volume Overload. This is the time that the Registered Nurse can explain that is so good that he is obtaining his weight at the same time each day on the same scale. However, the teachable moment lies in aiding the patient in understand how to interpret the data. Teaching the patient what to do when he takes his weight and finds that it is greater than two pounds is critical. Having a protocol in place and someone to manage his care, such as the PCP or Cardiologist, is also a critical piece of this puzzle. The RN can also assist the patient in getting connected to follow-up care.

Promoting high-quality nurse education relies heavily on nurse educators. A nurse educator has so many roles which may include but not limited to advisors, collaborators, clinical tutors for nursing students or new grads, and advocates for patients. Nurse educators serve as role models of effective patient-centered care, and in sharing their expertise and offering support, they enable new nurses to become competent practitioners. They are a great source of information for nurses who conduct clinical research, answer questions, and ensure that patients receive the necessary care that they need. As they assist and direct nurses through times of transition, nurse educators set an example for others to follow. They serve with professionalism and ethical conviction, inspiring their team to do the same. Nurse educators are accountable for fostering a team that works well together and communicates effectively, thereby enhancing patient care.

Every patient is unique and so should their care plans be. In other to provide the best possible care for a patient, it’s important to know what care to provide and how. Hence, individualized care plans with measurable goals. Behavioral objectives are important in learning and teaching because it guides the educator on the type of instructions to provide, it causes careful thinking about what is to be accomplished through instruction and it strengthens relationship between the educator and the learner.

Reference

Global Health. (2020). Keypath education. The role of nurse educators. https://www.globalhealtheducation.com/article/role-of-nurse-educators

The nurses role in health promotion of their patients and making sure that the patient is learning and understanding the content being taught is immensely important and vital in our role. Different patient groups and communities like the elderly and families with chronic diseases have different health promotion needs or requirements and this is known as patient focused health promotion which nurses are seen as patient-focused health promoters (Virpi et al., 2013). Whenever I am doing health teaching for my patients some behavioral objectives I usually make sure to assess my patients understanding first before providing the teaching, for example if they understand English well or if it is there first language as that is a big factor in understanding , I also make sure to have my patient verbalize understanding once I provide teaching to make sure we are on the same page.

Reference

Virpi Kemppainen, Kerttu Tossavainen, Hannele Turunen, Nurses’ roles in health promotion practice: an integrative review, Health Promotion International, Volume 28, Issue 4, December 2013, Pages 490–501, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/das034

The Nurse is the primary educator in the clinical setting. Nurses must have a broad clinical knowledge base related to a patient’s clinical diagnosis and prognosis. They must also be able to “translate” what the physician is saying to the patient, in order to help the patient to understand fully. The nurse also needs to be able to anticipate needs and questions, in addition to being prepared to research or answer new questions that have not yet been encountered.

One important strategy for the nurse to implement is to have a good understanding of how to access evidence-based data. Providing patients with current and updated information is important when they receive a new diagnosis. It is also important to be able to provide explanations and guidance for self-care at home. (Winters and Echeverri, 2012.)

Using compassion and empathy is also a strategy that can assist the nurse in educating patients. Good questions to ask may include the following: “How would I feel if I was going through this at this moment?” or “How can I be the person they need most right now?” It is important to consider the patient’s experience and the emotions they may be experiencing, including their barriers to good self-care and compliance.

A Nurse Educator could consider the patient’s educational level, willingness and motivation to learn, and health literacy when designing individual care plans, or programs which promote health education. It is important to know your audience or specific demographic, before designing a particular plan. It is a priority to place emphasis on the most important aspects of the plan and not overwhelm the patients with too much information. The Nurse should remain focused and goal-directed.

Behavioral objectives should be utilized when patients are in need of behavioral modification or safety planning. For example, in the Emergency Department, patients receive specific education on the exact steps they need to complete in order to stay safe at home. They are given resources and contact information in order to access help in a crisis. They verbally contract for safety and participate in follow-up counseling and other programs. They also receive education on medication management.

The Nurse is responsible for designing a specific plan and educating the patient on coping skills and strategies to prevent a crisis.

Reference:

‘Teaching Strategies to Support Evidence-Based Practice,” by Winters and Echeverri, from Critical Care Nurse (2012).

NRS 429 Describe the nurse’s role and responsibility as health educator