The aim of this essay is to explore and demonstrate understanding of how Patient with chronic illness adapts to change

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Adjusting and adapting to change

The aim of this essay is to explore and demonstrate understanding of how Patients with chronic illness adapts to change. Chronic illnesses are defined as illness that are permanent or last a long time or frequently recurring health problems (Smith 1997).Chronic illness commonly applies to conditions that can be treated but not necessarily cured. It may get slowly worse over time. It may cause permanent changes to the body. It can increase stress and certainly affect the person’s quality of life.

 Living with chronic illness has a profound impact on one’s life and creates a lot of grief in responses to the loss. Patients are likely to endure multiple losses. There are many types of chronic diseases such as diabetes, stroke, and cancer and end stage of renal failure and so on.

In this essay I will discuss how patients with renal failure adjust to the change and the effect of chronic illness. It includes psychosocial perspective of chronic illness. It also contains theoretical models of loss and adjustment. I used a patient case and library resources such as journals, books and web sites to get the relevant information.

 

People are living longer and advances of modern medicine may prolong life. It is important to maintain life quality. Patients may have difficulties when they are faced with life threatening diseases or trauma. They may experience fear and loss of confidence, often making rehabilitation slow.

I worked in a rehabilitation (rehab) ward for eight weeks. I followed a patient case to understand chronic illness and adjustment.  Anne is in her forties and she has been married for fourteen years. She has two children age 20 and 19 years. They moved recently in to new house with a big mortgage commitment. Anne felt generally unwell for several weeks. Then she began to feel weak and breathless and very itchy. Over one weekend she developed a great sense of weakness. Then by Monday she felt very ill and was admitted to hospital. After a few tests the doctor informed Anne that she developed a chronic renal illness. After her initial treatment she transferred to rehab ward. Anne’s chronic illness affected her physically and psychologically as well as socially.

Anne was admitted to the hospital in January 1999 with one week of history of increasing severe pain in right thigh and slightly less pain in left thigh. She had a long history of hypertension. Her reduced kidney function was due to Atheroembolic disease. Atheroemboilic disease (AERD) refers to an inflammatory reaction in the small blood vessels of the kidney.

It occurs when cholesterol crystal lipid plaques in the walls of blood vessels (Brundage 1992). Anne’s temperature on admission was 38%. Blood pressure 170/80mmHg, pulse 110.  Blood cultures were negative on several occasions, but she was receiving vancomcin (antibiotic to treat infection). Her physical examination revealed, and she been found acutely distress.  

According to Smith and Speck (1982) P .7. “chronic renal failure is a result of a number of pathology processes causing irreversible damage to kidney tissue”. Chronic renal failure is caused by a slow progressive kidney disease over a course of 10-20 years (Smith and Speck 1982).  At this stage there is mass destruction of nephrons, so that the kidneys are unable to maintain fluid and electrolyte balance and excrete waste products from the kidney.

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In end stage of renal failure the maintenance of life can only be ensured by haemodialysis or renal transplantation (Schmid et al 1998) Haemodialysis is a term that is used to describe the removal of waste product and water from the blood through a filter dialyser (Paul and John 1998). Anne needs a dialysis treatment three times a week. Living with a dialysis has a profound impact on Anne’s life. It is difficult to come to terms with the feelings of devastation and total loss.

From the earliest days of haemodialysis, it was noted that patients go ...

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