Posted: September 2nd, 2022

Advanced Health Assessment

Advanced Health Assessment
The health condition of an elderly patient is critical since it is complicated by the advanced age of a patient. The clinicians who handle the patients will require patience and skills to gather the information (Marcusson et al., 2019). One of the ways is probing questions that are used to help the patient share more details. There is also a need to be sensitive about the language to use. The precautions are necessary for addressing the elderly patient diagnosed with cancer.
Patient History
The information about the condition of a patient is critical since it will determine the medication to prescribe, the precautions to take, and the depth of further diagnosis. The information required about the patient includes a family history of cancer. It is important to gain information about the health condition of a patient based on who else has suffered a similar condition in the family (Ries et al., 2018). The information helps understand the heredity and the possibility of other related conditions that may require treatment. During the communication, it is important to use an interpreter in case the patient is not fluent in English.
The patient should also provide information about the period within which they have been battling with the condition. For example, the period can be in terms of the month, days or weeks. The period within which the symptoms were manifested will depict the severity of the condition. It is also necessary to assist the patient in identifying the cues that could help determine the period when the symptoms manifested (Ries et al., 2018). On the other hand, the patient should reveal whether they have suffered from similar conditions in the past. The health history should be in terms of also the other conditions they have suffered from in the past. The information will help know the best strategies to apply during treatment.
Information about the various factors that could have contributed to cancer should also be gathered. For example, it is important to wisely ask if the patient has been exposed to smoking, radiation or chemicals (Ries et al., 2018). Other contributing factors that the patient should confirm is about their weight, alcohol consumption, lack of physical exercise and poor diet. The factors will be used to build the history of a patient adequately.
How to Gather Sensitive Information
Gathering sensitive information requires a clinician to be prepared with the medical background of the patient. The first step is to ask for past medical records. The information will help make a crucial decision while dealing with elderly patients. It is important to ask the patient to give their side of the story while applying active listening to gather sensitive information (Marcusson et al., 2019). Brief comments such as ‘okay’ or ‘I see’ will motivate the patient to keep sharing. Additionally, it is crucial to prompt the patient with questions to ensure they are responding following a specific path. The questions are used to guide the discussion to the desired end. If the elderly patient has a problem explaining, simple questions that require yes or no answers could be designed. The purpose is to make the patient comfortable to ensure they provide relevant information.
The patient also needs extra time to answer questions. At times they may seem slow in remembering events or completing sentences. However, with time they will provide the information. Patience is critical and it helps the patient to be more open in the conversation. Additionally, the probing questions will be necessary for generating all the needed information (Petit-Monéger, Rainfray, Soubeyran, Bellera & Mathoulin-Pélissier, 2016). One of the ways of probing is to ask questions such as ‘is there anything else?’ The questions will prompt their memory to remember any other critical information. On the other hand, it is important to ask about the pain they may be experiencing currently or discomfort. The information will be gathered by asking if there is any discomfort they have in carrying out daily chores at home.
Proactive Care
The first step is to encourage the patient to be proactive about their health by taking the instructions of the healthcare providers. The proactive approach is also expressed by taking further diagnostic tests to reveal the extent of cancer especially in terms of the stages. Another approach is to ensure they begin the treatment immediately (Petit-Monéger, Rainfray, Soubeyran, Bellera & Mathoulin-Pélissier, 2016). The treatment could include chemotherapy and other relevant medications. A clinician should brief the patient about the necessity of the proactive approach to ensure they understand why it is important. On the other hand, caregivers should be encouraged to take a proactive approach due to the advanced age of the patient.
Conclusion
Gathering information from elderly patients requires skill and patience. The patients should find the clinician trustworthy to be open with them and provide all the information they have. Additionally, elderly patients who have cancer may have other health complications. Therefore, it is crucial to take a proactive approach to the treatment to enhance recovery. The caregivers should also consider the age of the patient and thus determine the process of beginning the treatment immediately to avoid further complications.

References
Marcusson, J., Nord, M., Johansson, M. M., Alwin, J., Levin, L. Å., Dannapfel, P., … & Cedersund, E. (2019). Proactive healthcare for frail elderly persons: study protocol for a prospective controlled primary care intervention in Sweden. BMJ Open, 9(5), e027847.
Petit-Monéger, A., Rainfray, M., Soubeyran, P., Bellera, C. A., & Mathoulin-Pélissier, S. (2016). Detection of frailty in elderly cancer patients: Improvement of the G8 screening test. Journal of Geriatric Oncology, 7(2), 99-107.
Ries, Z., Frank, F., Bermejo, I., Kalaitsidou, C., Zill, J., Dirmaier, J., … & Hoelzel, L. (2018). On the Way to Culture-Sensitive Patient Information Materials: Results of a Focus Group Study. Psychotherapie, Psychosomatik, Medizinische Psychologie, 68(6), 242-249.