Question Answered step-by-step A home health nurse is making an initial home visit to evaluate… A home health nurse is making an initial home visit to evaluate 69-year-old Mrs.S, who has Alzheimer’s disease, and to assist his wife in developing effective caregiving plans. Mr.S was diagnosed approximately 1 year earlier as a result of an evaluation initiated by the university where he taught. University sources states that Mr.S was behaving inappropriately: entering other professor’s classrooms and beginning to lecture, forgetting to be present for classes and meetings, failing to bathe or change his clothes for days, addressing his class in an incoherent manner, and asking coworkers for assistance in operating office equipment that he had used for years without difficulty. After observing Mr.S’s condition progressively worsen over time,the dean of the university telephoned Mrs.S to discuss the situation. Mrs.S claims that she noticed that her husband was acting unusually (forgetting names and appointments, bouncing checks,arguing for no reason,making unkind comments to friends,and confusing days off with workdays) but thought this could be related to “getting older” and job stress. When the dean spoke with her, Mrs.S realized that a serious problem might exist and accompanied her husband for an evaluation, the result of which was the establishment of a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. Mr.S retired immediately from the university and has been with his wife for 24 hours each day since. Mrs.S offered no complaints until this past month,when she repeatedly called the physician to discuss the new problems of incontinence, eating difficulties,and wandering that Mr.S was exhibiting. These new problems have devastated Mrs S; she looks fatigued and claims to be eating and sleeping poorly. She firmly states that she “will never consider placing her husband in an institution” and that she’ll take care of him at home even “if it kills her.” What needs do both Mr. and Mrs. S have at this time? What resources could be helpful to Mrs. S to assist her in coping with the demands of caregiving? Health Science Science Nursing COLLEGE OF 24 Share QuestionEmailCopy link Comments (0)
