...EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE and ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE Introduction As defined in 2012 by the American Nurses Association, “nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations. “To deliver the best optimal treatment when performing their duties, nurses are taught to follow evidence-based practices (EBP). Following EBP when dealing with clients especially those affected by Alzheimer’s disease facilitates the nurse in performing his/her main responsibilities that include maintaining health promotion, risk reduction and disease management. Maintaining health promotion From Florence Nightingale era in the 19th century to today’s world, nursing has become a new field where it is just not described “as the action of putting the patient in the best condition for nature to act “(“Healing Environment,”2011). Nursing turned to an immense expertise where maintaining health promotion is a master key. Health promotion favors the enhancement of health and the setting up of plan for a healthy lifestyle and well-being (Potter and Perry, 2011). Examples of health promotion consist of encouraging immunizations and regular checkups. Risk reduction Many complications can be avoided by promoting risk...
Words: 1321 - Pages: 6
...Institution Pathopharmacological Foundations for Advanced Nursing Practice A. Investigated Disease Process: The paper investigates the processes of Alzheimer’s and pharmacological implication. A1. Pathophysiology: The theory based on monoamine-deficiency determines that the recognizable pathophysiological source of Alzheimer’s Disease is the occurrence of dementia and dementia like symptoms (Unützer, & Park, 2012). Donepezil is applicable in the pathophysiology and is commendable by the therapeutic efficacy of its control. There are various conventional discussions based on the categorization and basis of dementia. The concept made by Emil Kraepelin'sdetermines that is a formulation of a Sigmund and disease. On the other hand, Freud perceives Alzheimer’s disease is an expression of internalized loss and weakness (Unützer, & Park, 2012). Alzheimer’s disease may not be categorized as a homogeneous disease, but it is a sophisticated phenomenon that has various subtypes and at least one etiology. It also has various predispositions in symptomatology that range from mild to severe symptoms. A2. Standard of Practice: The American Psychiatric Association presents the best practices to be followed while addressing Alzheimer’s disease disorder. The practices aim to assist healthcare providers in making informed decisions by providing systematic strategies. Most Alzheimer’s disease disorders are curable based on evidence- based approaches. Many dementia disorders increase the...
Words: 1284 - Pages: 6
...disease that I chose to write about is Alzheimer’s disease. This disease is described as an economic and a social burden because the financial cost of caring for someone with Alzheimer’s can be overwhelming. Alzheimer’s disease is the fifth leading cause of death in people 65 and older. It is estimated that 35 million people worldwide have Alzheimer’s disease and 5.3 million people in the U.S. have Alzheimer’s disease. (Fisher center for Alzheimer’s research foundation, 2002) Alzheimer’s disease is a neurological brain disorder discovered by a physician in 1906. (Fisher center for Alzheimer’s research foundation, 2002) Alzheimer’s is a most common form of dementia which is described as a group of disorders that impairs mental functioning. Alzheimer’s is unfortunately irreversible and progressive at the moment. Over time, abnormal changes worsen in the brain interfering with any aspects of the brain functioning. Memory loss is the earliest sign of Alzheimer’s, along with changes in personality or behavior and gradual decline of intellectual and thinking abilities called cognitive functions. (Fisher center for Alzheimer’s research foundation, 2002) Alzheimer’s is greatly known for advancing in stages, progressing from mild forgetfulness and cognitive impairment to widespread loss of mental abilities. When Alzheimer’s reaches the more advanced stages people become more dependent on others for every aspect of care. The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is not yet fully understood, but...
Words: 1176 - Pages: 5
...degenerative disorder known more commonly as the Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD was first discovered by Alois Alzheimer, German neuropathologist, back in 1906 when he was performing an autopsy in the brain of a 56 year old patient (Chiappelli et al., 2006). Since that time, researchers have been trying to come up with new techniques and new information of how the disease works, as well as, how do AD patients and caregivers of AD patients cope and adjust the disease in their everyday life. Although, the disease was not examined fully when it was first discovered, scientists since then have made quite a few hallmarks...
Words: 2134 - Pages: 9
...Research Proposal Psych/610 Kristina England University of Phoenix Janice McMurray August 30, 2013 Research Proposal I. Introduction “Alzheimer’s disease causes 50% to 60% of all dementias and is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and is the fifth leading cause among persons age 65 and older” (Heron, 2009). II. Seniors with dementia A. “Dementia is the progressive deterioration in cognitive function - the ability to process thought (intelligence)” (Nordqvist, 2013, pp. 1). “Dementia is a non-specific syndrome in which affected areas of brain function may be affected, such as memory, language, problem solving and attention” (Nordqvist, 2013, pp. 3). Dementia is most commonly seen in the elderly. B. Symptoms include; memory loss, moodiness, and communication difficulty. C. Causes of dementia include; Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, dementia with Lewy bodies, Fronto-temporal dementia, Huntington’s disease, and many other diseases. D. Two main categories 1. Cortical Dementia-“The cerebral cortex is affected. This is the outer layer of the brain. The cerebral cortex is vital for cognitive processes, such as language and memory. Alzheimer's disease is a form of cortical dementia, as is CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease)” (Nordqvist, 2013, pp. 9). 2. Subcortical Dementia-“A part of the brain beneath the cortex (deeper inside) becomes affected or damaged. Language and memory...
Words: 603 - Pages: 3
...confused and may have Alzheimer’s disease. Research shows that the occurrence of violent behaviors in families caring for a member with Alzheimer’s disease is well in excess of prevalence figures for elder abuse in general (Paveza et al., 1992). A person with Alzheimer’s’ disease is 2.25 times at greater risk to be physically abused than an older person living in the community without the disease. Caring for individuals who are cognitively incapacitated adds to the stress placed on the caregiver. Specific behaviors of confused elderly persons may out them at greater risk for abuse. A confused person’s functioning may be viewed from the perspective of cognitive and social inaccessibility (Wolanin & Phillips, 1981). Cognitive inaccessibility refers to impairment in receptive functions in the form of memory, learning, and cognition. Social inaccessibility refers to behaviors that interfere with interpersonal communication and relationships in general. Such behaviors are hostility, belligerence, suspiciousness, restlessness, wandering, agitation, and the inability to control bowel...
Words: 739 - Pages: 3
...Malnutrition related to physiological causes increasing nutrient needs due to acute injury as evidenced by +2 edema, slightly protruding acromion process, and slightly dark circles surrounding the eye. What would be an appropriate Nutrition Prescription for this patient? Energy: 2944-3364kcals/day Protein: 84-126g/day Fluid: 84.1*30= 2523mL/day Possible need for zinc, arginine, and glutamine supplementation Based on the PES statement and the Nutrition Prescription, develop at least two nutrition interventions for this patient. Maintain adequate nutritional status by providing optimum dietary and fluid intake Micronutrient supplementation Facilitate wound healing Decrease risk of infection Maintain nutrient stores Identify and treat causes of poor nutritional status Provide foods that patient is capable of eating Write a goal for each of the nutrition interventions. Educate son on food and nutrition for wound healing and risk factors associated with pressure ulcer development. Educate son on dangers of...
Words: 1804 - Pages: 8
...Music Therapy: The New Approach for Psychiatric Patient Introduction Music therapy is the use of music interventions to achieve individualized goals of healing the body, mind, and spirit. It involves skilled music therapists, who act as mediators to interact with patients, assesses their physical, emotional, and mental needs, and offer them with the necessary healing through music. Music therapy integrates various musical elements and certain therapeutic protocols to achieve certain objectives (Bruscia, 2000). Many people obtain some kind of healing whenever they have emotional, cognitive, or social issues through music. People living with disabilities or certain illnesses have often found music to offer a soothing environment that facilitates the healing process. Music uses creative, emotional and a non-verbal language to enable users to gain self-awareness and self-expression. In many cases, people have found music to be more powerful than plain words, as it offers a unique channel of communication and expression. Essentially, people suffering from autism and Alzheimer’s disease, and those having developmental disabilities can always become beneficiaries of music therapy. This paper will give a brief history of music therapy, and its role as an alternative treatment for autism and Alzheimer’s disease. Thereafter, the paper will give a brief discussion on the politic of making music therapy a real treatment. History of music therapy Music therapy traces...
Words: 2174 - Pages: 9
...Caregiving to Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease Megan Zann April 27, 2012 Health Psychology Dr. Ackerman Introduction It is normal to periodically forget your keys or a homework assignment, because you generally remember these things later. However, individuals who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease may forget things more often, but they do not remember them again. The incidence of Alzheimer’s disease has dramatically increased because people are living longer. This is a result of advancements in medical technology that are increasing the human life span. That being said, now there is more responsibility placed on the individual and their caregivers to provide a supportive environment to combat this disease. Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder that causes a gradual, irreversible cognitive deterioration. The individual experiences a significant decline in their memory, language skills, perception of space and eventually, their ability to be self-sufficient and independent. Alzheimer’s disease takes a toll on the patients as well as their caregivers. “Being a caregiver for an ill or disabled loved one is widely recognized as a threat to caregiver’s quality of life” (Poulin et al 2010). The diagnosis of this disease affects the caregivers on physical, psychological, and social levels. Family, friends, and caregivers suffer from pain and stress as they witness their loved one experiencing the progression of the disease. Background “Alzheimer’s disease is the most...
Words: 3180 - Pages: 13
...4/30/2013 Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible, progressive brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and eventually even the ability to carry out the simplest tasks. In most people with Alzheimer’s, symptoms first appear after age 60. Estimates vary, but experts suggest that as many as 5.1 million Americans may have Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia among older people. Dementia is the loss of cognitive functioning—thinking, remembering, and reasoning—and behavioral abilities, to such an extent that it interferes with a person’s daily life and activities. Dementia ranges in severity from the mildest stage, when it is just beginning to affect a person’s functioning, to the most severe stage, when the person must depend completely on others for basic activities of daily living. Alzheimer’s disease is named after Dr. Aloes Alzheimer. In 1906, Dr. Alzheimer noticed changes in the brain tissue of a woman who had died of an unusual mental illness. Her symptoms included memory loss, language problems, and unpredictable behavior. After she died, he examined her brain and found many abnormal clumps (now called amyloidal plaques) and tangled bundles of fibers (now called neurofibrillary tangles). Plaques and tangles in the brain are two of the main features of Alzheimer’s disease. The third is the loss of connections between nerve cells (neurons) in the brain. Although we still don’t know how the Alzheimer’s disease process...
Words: 1411 - Pages: 6
...Dementia Supporting people with dementia and their carers in health and social care Issued: November 2006 NICE clinical guideline 42 guidance.nice.org.uk/cg42 NICE has accredited the process used by the Centre for Clinical Practice at NICE to produce guidelines. Accreditation is valid for 5 years from September 2009 and applies to guidelines produced since April 2007 using the processes described in NICE's 'The guidelines manual' (2007, updated 2009). More information on accreditation can be viewed at www.nice.org.uk/accreditation © NICE 2006 Dementia NICE clinical guideline 42 Contents Introduction................................................................................................................................... 4 Person-centred care ..................................................................................................................... 6 Key priorities for implementation .................................................................................................. 8 1 Guidance ................................................................................................................................... 11 1.1 Principles of care for people with dementia ...................................................................................... 11 1.2 Integrated health and social care ..................................................................................................... 17 1.3 Risk factors, prevention and early identification...
Words: 14252 - Pages: 58
...| | Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks. The basics Symptoms Changes in the brain | | Plaques & tangles Research | | Alzheimer's and dementia basics * Alzheimer's is the most common form of dementia, a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer's disease accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases. Bottom of Form * Alzheimer's is not a normal part of aging, although the greatest known risk factor is increasing age, and the majority of people with Alzheimer's are 65 and older. But Alzheimer's is not just a disease of old age. Up to 5 percent of people with the disease have early onset Alzheimer's (also known as younger-onset), which often appears when someone is in their 40s or 50s. Learn more: Early Onset Alzheimer's and Risk Factors * Alzheimer's worsens over time. Alzheimer's is a progressive disease, where dementia symptoms gradually worsen over a number of years. In its early stages, memory loss is mild, but with late-stage Alzheimer's, individuals lose the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to their environment. Alzheimer's is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. Those with Alzheimer's live an average of eight years after their symptoms become noticeable to others, but survival can range...
Words: 1086 - Pages: 5
...Alzheimer’s disease is a wholesale loss of synapses, contact points via which nerve cells relay signals to one another and a parallel deterioration in brain function, notably in the ability to remember. Amyloid beta (Aβ) denotes peptides of 36–43 amino acids that are crucially involved in Alzheimer's disease as the main component of the amyloid plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer patients. The peptides result from the amyloid precursor protein (APP), which is being cut by certain enzymes to yield Aβ. Study has shown that Beta amyloid begins life as a solitary molecule but tends to bunch up , initially into small clusters that are still soluble and can travel freely in the brain, and finally into the plaques that are hallmarks of Alzheimer’s. The study showed for the first time that in this clustered form, beta-amyloid can bind strongly to a receptor on nerve cells, setting in motion an intercellular process that erodes their synapses with other nerve cells. Further looking into this protein and the information regarding it in various databases, the following was sequence was found out for the Beta amyloid A4 protein in Homo sapien in SWISSPROT. >sp|P05067|A4_HUMAN Amyloid beta A4 protein OS=Homo sapiens GN=APP PE=1 SV=3 MLPGLALLLLAAWTARALEVPTDGNAGLLAEPQIAMFCGRLNMHMNVQNGKWDSDPSGTK TCIDTKEGILQYCQEVYPELQITNVVEANQPVTIQNWCKRGRKQCKTHPHFVIPYRCLVG EFVSDALLVPDKCKFLHQERMDVCETHLHWHTVAKETCSEKSTNLHDYGMLLPCGIDKFR GVEFVCCPLAEESDNVDSADAEEDDSDVWWGGADTDYADGSEDKVVEVAEEEEVAEVEEE E...
Words: 966 - Pages: 4
...potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.” (Perry, Presley-Cantrell, and Dhingra 2010). Mental illness, “refers collectively to all diagnosable mental disorders that are characterized by alteration in thinking, mood or behavior (or some combination thereof) associated with distress and/or impaired functioning” (Perry, Presley-Cantrell, and Dhingra 2010). Mental health is an increasing concern with the vulnerable population of the elderly across America. Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are the two leading psychiatric diseases effecting the elderly, causing deterioration of intellectual functioning. Scientists cannot completely comprehend the etiology and progress of these two diseases. Scientists have learned that both diseases have signs and symptoms parallel to one another (Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation, 2011). It is important to get a better perception of the development of these diseases, so the importance of understanding epidemiology is relevant. The author’s paper contains the meaning and description of epidemiology, the stages and approaches that will assist in determining cause and effect of the illness. Also the writer will examine how the epidemiologic benefits of the triangle, a preferred population and disease of interest, and the correlation of the different levels of prevention with the disease. According to...
Words: 2045 - Pages: 9
...Research Critique, Part 1 XXX Grand Canyon University: NRS 433V XXX Research Critique: A Qualitative Study Researchers completed a study seeking out barriers to the implementation of non pharmacological interventions for patients with dementia by nursing home staff. To better recognize and understand these barriers and to in hopes of providing a stronger evidence base for cultural change, researchers elicited nursing staff, recreational therapists, activity personnel and medical directors in a study titled “Its About Time: Use of Nonpharmacological Interventions in the Nursing Home.” Problem Statement Dementia is one of the most common diagnoses on the rise amongst the geriatric population. Alzheimer’s The most common form of dementia is Alzheimers, affecting well over 5 million people nationally. Institutionalization is common amongst this population as the disease begins to progress, typically bringing on behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) including agitation, aggression and depression. This population is recognized as vulnerable and fragile, both mentally and physically. Many frequently have physical comorbidities along with dementia. This issue of suffering from comorbidities brings on the prescribing of multiple medications, which over time interact and accelerate their functional decline (Kolanowski, Fick, Frazer, Penrod, 2009). Due to the lack of beneficial effects when weighted against both short and long term adverse effects of various...
Words: 1187 - Pages: 5
