social & spiritual needs

[tinkerbell23]

just writing a peice on a patients social and spiritual needs whilst in my care and how to manage them,....patient is 53 yr old female with breast cancer. admitted with sepsis.

im saying, social she will have to be barrier nursed, but constantly reassured and also allowed visitors but who will have to glove up etc aswell. family will be informed and kept reassured. she will be reassured that this isnt the cancer getting worse but simply a side effect of her chemo, spiritually offer a preist or religous leader, offer councelling and involve other team members like the said councellors and possibly cancer nurse specialists?? anyone else any idea sxxxxx

[bednobs]

counsellors are spelt counsellors

[anneasquith]

all good points tinker, but if she has an infection , initially she may well feel unwell, so wont want too much information initially.education for visitors vital re cross infection, which could make the patient feel a bit isolated, as she will only " see " staff and visitors in gowns ect, she will have no interaction with other patients.has she anything available in her isolated room for entertainment. ie tv, radio, books , newspapers. thr discussion re spiritual visits eg priest, this info should be in her notes,

[tinkerbell23]

yes thanks bednobs just in a rush and typo

thanks anne! i have that down so hopefully i am good to go now...phew!!!! xx

[boxtops]

Would your nursing notes indicate this patient's religion? (coincidentally, I'm on a piece of work about cultural and religious aspects of healthcare at the moment) - if so then you can prepare yourself for any particular religious needs she might have, and offer it (lots of patients don't realise that they can ask to see someone of their own faith, and really appreciate being nursed by someone who knows this). Ask the patient what she might like in that respect. Make sure the rest of the nursing and medical team know that, if she is religious, certain aspects may be important to her, or if from a cultural background which promotes this, she might appreciate same-gender nursing or medical staff, particularly given the nature of her cancer.

[tinkerbell23]

good point re gender nursing- thank you....

if the notes are completed correctly (not always!!) it would say religion yes,

thankfully this is a ficticional scenario, but its food for thought and i have to get up and present! xx

[boxtops]

Good luck tink - the religious aspect is one worth considering, because people who know that their needs are understood (even if they can't always be met) tend to feel more comfortable in the healthcare system. They don't have to fret that the nursing staff might not understand.

[Hettster]

you say "she will be reassured that this isnt the cancer getting worse" I am wondering what "this" is or refers to?

[tinkerbell23]

by this i mean that she is suffering from chemo induced neutropenic sepsis, and what i mean is that reassuring her that she has ths and not worsening of cancer xx

[Hettster]

How do you know the cancer isnt getting worse? What idicators are you examining ?

[anneasquith]

tinker. are you presenting this tomorrow ?

[woofgang]

I would say that it's important to be led by the patient on what she wants, maybe talk to family members to get a feel for how you should proceed...also important not to make assumptions based on ethnic stereotype (remember Anita and her Mum in Dinnerladies)
Spiritual needs may not be religious needs, again don't assume, ask the patient.....

[tinkerbell23]

the symptom she is showing is sepsis, i personally feel tht a patient suffering from cancer would automatically assume the worst, and my job would to reassure her that the symptoms she would be experiencing would be due to the sepsis and not because her cancer is spread etc.

yes anne, it isnt assesed, purley thought provoking and although i hope to have it all correct, a lecturer will be present and will let me know if there was anything incorrect or missing.

xx

[tinkerbell23]

thanks woof, i also commented under spiritual about state of mind and rest etc, and not just priests, and god etc....good point thank you x

[woofgang]

"automatically assume the worst" not necessarily, maybe you should also emphasise the importance of exploring the patient's understanding of the situation before offering reassurance.

[tinkerbell23]

its probobly not as in depth as that, we are given the scenario and X amount of questions. there are 3 of us with 2 q' each - so im just focusing on medical and nursing care for mine. which as a nurse would be to reassure- doctors would most likely deal with and investagate spread- however for this presentation, it hasnt spread, and she has been diagnosed with the sepsis. but i absolutley think that the majority of patients do assume the worst when they are so unwell.

thanks for the input guys i appreciate other viewpoints xx

[Hettster]

you state

"i personally feel tht a patient suffering from cancer would automatically assume the worst"

I would suggest it is not for you to assume anything and highly unprofessional of you to do so

you go on to say

"and my job would to reassure her that the symptoms she would be experiencing would be due to the sepsis and not because her cancer is spread"

But you have provided no evidence to demonstate that the cancer hasnt or isnt spreading

Surely a professional response to the patient should be based upon scientifically proven reseach and not just speculation and conjecture.

[tinkerbell23]

hettster- as said, this is ficticional for uni...

for the purposes of this presentation,,the cancer has not spread. i am focusing on sepsis only.

part of a nurses job would be to reassure the patient and family.

[anneasquith]

hettster. with all due respect where i can see your point, tinker has only 2 questions to address. and we maybe in fact be giving her info she did not ask for, or indeed require for this piece of work

[boxtops]

Tinkerbell, I understand your viewpoint but the role of the nurse is also to be factual yet empathetic - not for this presentation perhaps, but the nurse must assess the patient's understanding of their illness and capability to understand what you are telling them. Reassurance isn't always the case, sometimes you can't if you don't know, some like to know exactly what's going on, and many people with cancers are fiercely resistant to their illness, which helps them get through, rather than "assuming the worst".
Let us know how you get on - this sort of experience is always a good learning curve!

[tinkerbell23]

yeah boxtops absolutley, i qualify in 6months and im well aware facts are parmount, but as you say for the questions im answering thats not what i need to focus on.

but thanks for the input. in this ficticious scenario- patients understanding dosent come up, however in real life, id definately be assesing patients awareness as you say.

im not unprofessional as said in posts and i actually resent that comment! x