NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 1 Discussion
DQ1 Describe the effect of extremely low birth weight babies on the family and community. Consider short-term and long-term impacts, socioeconomic implications, the need for ongoing care, and comorbidities associated with prematurity. Explain how disparities relative to ethnic and cultural groups may contribute to low birth weight babies. Identify one support service within your community to assist with preterm infants and their families and explain how the service adequately addresses the needs of the community, or a population in your community. Provide the link to the resource in your post.
DQ2 Consider the following patient scenario:
A mother comes in with 9-month-old girl. The infant is 68.5cm in length (25th percentile per CDC growth chart), weighs 6.75kg (5th percentile per CDC growth chart), and has a head circumference of 43cm (25th percentile per CDC growth chart).
Describe the developmental markers a nurse should assess for a 9-month-old female infant. Discuss the recommendations you would give the mother. Explain why these recommendations are based on evidence-based practice.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 2 Discussion
DQ1 Child abuse and maltreatment is not limited to a particular age—it can occur in the infant, toddler, preschool, and school-age years. Choose one of the four age groups and outline the types of abuse most commonly seen among children of that age. Describe warning signs and physical and emotional assessment findings the nurse may see that could indicate child abuse. Discuss cultural variations of health practices that can be misidentified as child abuse. Describe the reporting mechanism in your state and nurse responsibilities related to the reporting of suspected child abuse.
DQ2 Compare the physical assessment of a child to that of an adult. In addition to describing the similar/different aspects of the physical assessment, explain how the nurse would offer instruction during the assessment, how communication would be adapted to offer explanations, and what strategies the nurse would use to encourage engagement.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 3 Discussion
DQ1 Adolescent pregnancy is viewed as a high-risk situation because it poses serious health risks for the mother and the baby. Describe various risk factors or precursors to adolescent pregnancy. Research community and state resources devoted in adolescent pregnancy and describe at least two of these resources. Research the teen pregnancy rates for the last 10 years for your state and community. Has this rate increased or decreased? Discuss possible reasons for an increase or decrease.
DQ2 Describe two external stressors that are unique to adolescents. Discuss what risk-taking behaviors may result from the external stressors and what support or coping mechanism can be introduced.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 4 Discussion
DQ1 You are admitting a 19-year old female college student to the hospital for fevers.  Using the patient information provided, choose a culture unfamiliar to you and describe what would be important to remember while you interview this patient. Discuss the health care support systems available in your community for someone of this culture. If no support systems are available in your community, identify a national resource.
DQ2 For the middle-aged adult, exercise can reduce the risk of various health problems. Choose two at-risk health issues that regular physical exercise and activity can help prevent and manage. Discuss the prevalence of each of these health problems in society today. Describe measures that you would take as a nurse to assist clients with health promotion measures to incorporate exercise and physical activity into their lives. Include the kind of activities you would recommend, the amount of exercise, and the approach you would use to gain cooperation from the client. Support your response with evidence-based literature.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 5 Discussion
DQ1 Describe the characteristics of the aging process. Explain how some of the characteristics may lead to elder abuse (memory issues, vulnerability, etc.). Discuss the types of consideration a nurse must be mindful of while performing a health assessment on a geriatric patient as compared to a middle-aged adult.
DQ2 End-of-life care becomes an issue at some point for elderly clients. Even with the emergence of palliative care programs and hospice programs, most elderly people do not die in their own home as is their preference. What are the reasons for this trend? Discuss what you can do as a nurse to support your clients regarding end-of-life care in accordance with their wishes. Support your response with evidence-based literature.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 1 Assignment
Environmental Factors and Health Promotion: Accident Prevention and Safety Promotion for Parents and Caregivers of Infants
The growth, development, and learned behaviors that occur during the first year of infancy have a direct effect on the individual throughout a lifetime. For this assignment, research an environmental factor that poses a threat to the health or safety of infants and develop a health promotion that can be presented to caregivers.
Create a 10-12 slide PowerPoint health promotion, with speaker notes, that outlines a teaching plan. For the presentation of your PowerPoint, use Loom to create a voice over or a video. Include an additional slide for the Loom link at the beginning, and an additional slide for references at the end.
Include the following in your presentation:
Describe the selected environmental factor. Explain how the environmental factor you selected can potentially affect the health or safety of infants.
Create a health promotion plan that can be presented to caregivers to address the environmental factor and improve the overall health and well-being of infants.
Offer recommendations on accident prevention and safety promotion as they relate to the selected environmental factor and the health or safety of infants.
Offer examples, interventions, and suggestions from evidence-based research. At least three scholarly resources are required. Two of the three resources must be peer-reviewed and no more than 6 years old.
Provide readers with two community resources, a national resource, and a Web-based resource. Include a brief description and contact information for each resource.
In developing your PowerPoint, take into consideration the health care literacy level of your target audience, as well as the demographic of the caregiver/patient (socioeconomic level, language, culture, and any other relevant characteristic of the caregiver) for which the presentation is tailored
Refer to the resource, “Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations,” located in the Student Success Center, for additional guidance on completing this assignment in the appropriate style.
Refer to the resource, “Loom,” located in the Student Success Center, for additional guidance on recording your presentation.
While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 2 Assignment
Developmental Assessment and the School-Aged Child
The needs of the pediatric patient differ depending on age, as do the stages of development and the expected assessment findings for each stage. In a 500-750-word paper, examine the needs of a school-aged child between the ages of 5 and 12 years old and discuss the following:
Compare the physical assessments among school-aged children. Describe how you would modify assessment techniques to match the age and developmental stage of the child.
Choose a child between the ages of 5 and 12 years old. Identify the age of the child and describe the typical developmental stages of children that age.
Applying developmental theory based on Erickson, Piaget, or Kohlberg, explain how you would developmentally assess the child. Include how you would offer explanations during the assessment, strategies you would use to gain cooperation, and potential findings from the assessment.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 3 Assignment
Adolescence: Contemporary Issues and Resources
Research the range of contemporary issues teenagers face today. In a 500-750-word paper, choose one issue (besides teen pregnancy) and discuss its effect on adolescent behavior and overall well-being. Include the following in your submission:
Describe the contemporary issue and explain what external stressors are associated with this issue.
Outline assessment strategies to screen for this issue and external stressors during an assessment for an adolescent patient. Describe what additional assessment questions you would need to ask and define the ethical parameters regarding what you can and cannot share with the parent or guardian.
Discuss support options for adolescents encountering external stressors. Include specific support options for the contemporary issue you presented.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.
 
NRS434 Health Assessment
Week 5 Assignment
Benchmark – Human Experience Across the Health-Illness Continuum
The benchmark assesses the following competency:
Benchmark: 5.1. Understand the human experience across the health-illness continuum.
Research the health-illness continuum and its relevance to patient care. In a 750-1,000 word paper, discuss the relevance of the continuum to patient care and present a perspective of your current state of health in relation to the wellness spectrum. Include the following:
Examine the health-illness continuum and discuss why this perspective is important to consider in relation to health and the human experience when caring for patients.
Reflect on your overall state of health. Discuss what behaviors support or detract from your health and well-being. Explain where you currently fall on the health-illness continuum.
Discuss the options and resources available to you to help you move toward wellness on the health-illness spectrum. Describe how these would assist in moving you toward wellness (managing a chronic disease, recovering from an illness, self-actualization, etc.).
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Refer to the LopesWrite Technical Support articles for assistance.