NURS6540 Week 8 Assignment 1: Application – Diagnosing and Treating Skin Wounds

Skin wounds are sometimes challenging for health care providers to diagnose and treat as many have similar presentations. For advanced practice nurses, being able to identify various types of skin wounds, including whether a wound is a colonization or an infection, is critical because it impacts recommended patient care. In your role, you must be able to evaluate skin wounds, determine the diagnosis, and develop an appropriate treatment and management plan according to current evidence-based guidelines.

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To prepare:

Review Chapter 46 of the Resnick text, as well as the Burr article in this week’s Learning Resources.

Consider how to properly diagnose skin wounds in frail elders, including how to distinguish between a colonization and infection.

Select a type of skin wound, such as bumps, bruises, shingles, herpes, bullous pemphigoid, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, etc. Research the guidelines for treatment of the skin wound you selected. Reflect on how you would treat and/or dress this wound.

Think about factors that might contribute to the development of the skin wound you selected. Consider strategies for the prevention and improvement of this type of wound.

To complete:

Write a 2- to 3-page paper that addresses the following:

Explain how to properly diagnose skin wounds in frail elders, including how to distinguish between a colonization and infection.

Describe the type of skin wound you selected.

Explain how you would treat and/or dress this wound based on guidelines for treatment.

Explain factors that might contribute to the development of the skin wound you selected. Include strategies for the prevention and improvement of this type of wound.

By Day 7

This Assignment is due.

Note: The School of Nursing requires that all papers submitted include a title page, introduction, summary, and references. The Sample Paper provided at the Walden Writing Center provides an example of those required elements (available at http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/templates). All papers submitted must use this formatting.

Submission and Grading Information

To submit your completed Assignment for review and grading, do the following:

Please save your Assignment using the following naming convention: “WK8Assgn1+lastname+first initial”.

Click the Week 8 Assignment 1 link.

Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK8Assgn1+last name+first initial.(extension)” and click Open. If you are submitting multiple files, repeat until all files are attached.

Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.

Caring for Frail Elders – Ulcius

This week, as you begin exploring the care of frail elders, you examine the impact of changes in sites of care on geriatric patients. You also consider the impact of finances on site placement and treatment decisions. Then, in preparation for your Practicum Experience, you examine aging theories and geriatric competencies to guide the development of your practicum goals and objectives.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this week, students will:

Evaluate the impact of changes in sites of care on elderly patients
Analyze the impact of financial issues on site placement and treatment decisions
Analyze aging theories in nursing practice*

*This Learning Objective supports assignments that are assigned this week, but due in Week 4.

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Resnick, B. (Ed.). (2016). Geriatric nursing review syllabus: A core curriculum in advanced practice geriatric nursing (5th ed.). New York, NY: American Geriatrics Society.

Chapter 2, “Biology” (pp. 5-14)

This chapter covers various theories of aging, including evolutionary and physiologic theories. It also examines the biology of aging, focusing on changes within specific body systems and the consequences of those changes.

Chapter 3 “Ethics and Law” (pp. 15-21)

This chapter explores decisional capacity in older adult patients, as well as legal and ethical issues surrounding care for older adults. It also examines decisions near the end of life, particularly with dementia patients.

Chapter 4, “Financing, Coverage, and Costs of Health Care” (pp. 23-35)

This chapter explores financial components of health care for older adults and describes financial aspects of health care at different sites of care.

Chapter 8, “Cultural Aspects of Care” (pp. 51-57)

This chapter describes cultural issues related to health care for older adults, such as language, communication, attitudes toward health care and health services, and behavior. It also defines ETHNICS, a mnemonic device for providing culturally competent care.

Houde, S., & Melillo, K. (2009). Caring for an aging population. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 35(12), 8–13.

This article proposes policy initiatives for addressing the shortage of health professionals caring for older adults. It also presents policy initiatives for improving the gerontological nursing workforce.

Watkins, L., Hall, C., & Kring, D. (2012). Hospital to home: A transition program for frail older adults. Professional Case Management, 17(3), 117–125.

This article presents a transitional care model for older adults moving from the hospital care setting to a home setting. It examines practices for maximizing health outcomes and preventing re-hospitalization.

American Federation for Aging Research. (2011). Infoaging guides: Theories of aging. Retrieved from http://www.afar.org/docs/migrated/111121_INFOAGING_GUIDE_THEORIES_OF_AGINGFR.pdf

This guide examines theories of aging, comparing theories that are more widely accepted and those that have become less accepted. It also presents several hypotheses of aging that are currently being researched.

Document: NURS 6540 Due Date Calendar (PDF)

Document: Practicum Journal Template (Word document)

This template is provided by the School of Nursing and is designed to document practicum activities. You are required to use this template for all journal entry submissions.

Clinical Resources

Document: Nurse Practitioner (NP) Student Clinical Orientation (PowerPoint file)

Document: Practicum Manual (PDF file) :
http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/ld.php?content_id=7356923

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2013c). Introduction to primary care of frail elders [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 13:35 minutes.

In this video program, Dr. Kristen Mauk and Dr. Barbara Resnick discuss the importance of primary care for the geriatric population, as well as aging theories and other special considerations when caring for frail elders.