Teaching project

Teaching project

Diabetes is a metabolic condition where the level of blood glucose is abnormally high. Glucose is the primary fuel of our bodies. Foods that affect sugars are referred to as carbohydrates.  Diabetes incidences are rising every day in the United States.  The United States is one of the most developed countries in the world. The USA has shown significant advancement in improving the health care sector. Diabetes, however, has continued to burden these efforts. The most common diabetes is diabetes mellitus. The estimated population of the American people who have diabetes are up to 16 Million, which represents 5% of the total population.

According to statistics from the Centers for Diseases control CDC’S (2020), diabetes cases have increased up to an estimated population of about 34.2 million. These statistics showed that new diabetes cases estimated at 1.5 million was adults above 18 years. Out of those affected, 10 million are the only ones diagnosed, and the rest 7 million are not. As far as age groups are concerned 150,000 people who have not attained the age of 20 years.  6 million of those having diabetes are above 20 years. This statistic suggests that the older a person is, the more susceptible h/she is. However, this teaching plan will focus on both the young and older generations but emphasize will be on the older generation.

However, nursing educators health providers have played a vital role in curbing the epidemic. They apply knowledge and information to help diabetes students manage their conditions, through counselling, pedagogy and effective communication. They are integral in providing special education and influencing behavior change. Promoting behavior change requires an iterative process which includes assessing, setting goals, planning, implementation and evaluation. Accessing diabetes information is crucial as it improves  clinical and quality life outcomes for diabetic patients

Diagnosis

People with diabetes, their bodies either do not generate enough insulin or it consumes the insulin it makes, this leads to high blood sugar content.  There exist two types of diseases that are; diabetes type 1 and diabetes type 2. In diabetes type 1, the body of the patient makes insulin; usually, this type develops before the attainment of 30 years. Research says that most people diagnosed with diabetes type 1 have diabetes type 2. For diabetes 2, the body manufactures insulin, but the cell is not in a position to use it. Diabetes cause is yet to be known, but there is evidence that if a person of your family has it, then you are likely to contract.

Diabetes is associated with several symptoms, which includes the urge to urinate regularly, blurry visions, endless hunger, fatigues, and unhealing sores. Health care providers perform tests which include; Urinalysis which test sugar traces in urine, Fasting plasma glucose test, which examines the levels of sugar in the blood. Non-fasting plasma glucose tests the amount of sugar in the blood and oral glucose tolerance test. Positive test results must be repeatedly confirmed tests of and or oral glucose tolerance and fasting plasma glucose.

During your first diagnosis with diabetes medical practitioner uses a Zink transporter autoantibody, the test result will help determine the availability type of diabetes and not type 1. The main goal of Zink transporter is to provide an accurate diagnosis for timely treatment.

Identified Learning Need

Patients diagnosed with Diabetes have compressing learning need. The focus of the learning needs is to manage glucose levels and averting any diabetes complications. Needs of learning Diabetes are intricate and entails, menu or food planning, monitoring levels of blood glucose, medications, exercise, skincare, knowledge of drugs, management of hypo/hyperglycemic episodes and technical know-how of disease process. New cases of Diabetes are registered every day; many patients are not aware that lifestyle changes are necessary, especially in nutrition improvement and physical activity.

Choice of changing lifestyle is one of the hardest challenges they will face in Diabetes management. This teaching plan aims to provide diabetes patients with information and knowledge to help them make behavioural changes to manage diabetes.

Teaching Plan

1. Behavioural Objective

The broad objectives of this teaching plan are to help patients utilize the knowledge and information given to make a decision on their lifestyles; decisions that may improve their health as well as promoting blood sugar stability. Other objectives include;

1. The patient is expected to describe their current medications and how to take medications properly
2. The patient is expected to establish proper foot and skincare
3. After the teaching sessions, the patient is expected to monitor blood glucose by the help of glucose meter, as demonstrated by a nurse practitioner.
4. The patient will be able to define the welfares of exercising regularly and how blood glucose level control can be improved through regular exercise

Diabetes Teaching Plan Schedule

The schedule of the teaching plan will consist of 5 days. That is both day and evening with each session scheduled to take 3- 4 hours. Below represents the topic covered.

Table 1.1 Teaching Plan Schedule

Different approaches to treatment are needed for every patient. Methods such as food plans, that are different for each patient, educating patients regarding nutrition therapy. This teaching shall address the needs of patients, their abilities and stages of development. The strategy stress on the importance of complying with treatment programs prescribed. Teaching plan that targets people with diabetes needs to include certain aspects such as hygiene, diet, and extreme effects, hypoglycemia its detection and treatment.

This teaching plan aims at helping new patients who have been diagnosed lately as well as those intends to review diabetes management concept. Frequent education is vital for diabetes management. However, this teaching plan will be for those patients who will attend classes. This teaching plan fits the abilities of patients, their styles of learning and their stages of development. It comprises a permutation of lecture notes, demonstrations and PowerPoint slides presentations

Overview of Diabetes

Diabetes patients should fully understand diabetes and what it entails. Research has it that those who understand diabetes submit to their prescriptions. Diabetes mellitus is caused by insulin level deficiency. May either be as a result of the production of less insulin or insulin resistance Lifestyle changes, especially in nutrition and physical activity, influences diabetes. Nutritional therapists aid patients in adjusting their behaviours to improve their health. Diabetes patients are required to be reminded now and then on their medications to manage their conditions. Stress and depression may ensue at a time when patients start taking their medication, especially insulin and oral hyperglycemic medications.

Educating patients allows the involvement of a patient in their care and increases compliance in understanding what to do. A teaching plan accommodates general knowledge of the patient diagnosis, medication, treatment and disease process. The cognitive theory will provide me with guidelines on how to handle patients during their treatment, train them on how to perform tasks to access the progress of medications as it sharpens my critical thinking.

The training and educational session should include profundity analysis regarding the types of diabetes agents. It is vital to consider the types of insulin and how they should be diversified. Discussions on this can be held in groups or individually. Groups’ discussions are, however, recommended as patients listen to experiences of others, thus fostering a better understanding. During this period, patients can be educated on insulin self- administration dynamics as prescribed. Moreover, patients should learn the importance of following specified instructions given by a physician. Indicators of hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia and relevant actions should be taken when this condition presents itself.

Incase patients become angry or upset during an intimate interview, and I intend to use an empty treatment room or office. The teaching methodology I can use is the one on one conversation with my patient as it is based on patients self-management plan and needs. It is useful for the patient to inject insulin through one-to-one guideline. It facilitates effective communication of knowledge, feelings and ideas. During teaching time factor is very crucial. I intend to use 3o minutes for each patient to demonstrate the functionality of the machine, guide the patient on how to apply blood on a test strip. Planning is vital in diabetes management; I plan to guide patients to come up with a plan which involves developing strategies to achieve the established goals.

Diabetes Complications

This topic is majored to teach patients how to manage diabetic conditions in case other forms of illness present themselves. Also, patients should be informed about how to watch diabetic effects that are related to the cardiovascular system, which may include vascular diseases, disease of the coronary artery and stroke. Also, to be considered is how the patients can become more alert on the signs of their urinary tract. The neuropathy diabetic signs assessment are also to be found in the teaching plan. Studies show that one of the significant causes of death in the United States, it also contribute to stroke. Even on the teaching plan is the cessation of smoking, management of lipid and cholesterol, blood level monitoring, and controlling other processes of diabetes.

Education on foot and skincare is also to be significant as it helps patients understand how to take care of their feet, by ensuring that they wash them regularly and by drying them properly. Patients should also be taught how to check some features of the foot such as swelling, redness or even calluses. Advice on the importance of wearing non restricting shoes to prevent them from footwear as well as the dangers associated with walking barefoot. Another vital aspect patients are to learn is to ensure that they treat injuries and blisters. Sometimes patients tend to panic and therefore need to be advised that this occurrence is regular in diabetes, they should, however, be educated on how to manage this situation, through observation, assessment and progress monitoring.

Regular exercise is also vital in diabetes management. Exercise improves hyperglycemia and hypertension. Patients are, therefore, to be to teach to set goals around the health of their body weight. Bodyweight experts assert that bodyweight that exceeds 40 inches and 35 inches in men and women respectively is an indication of metabolic diseases. Reducing the abdominal fats improves the lipid profiles and sensitivity of insulin. Warm-up sessions are significant in preventing the pooling of blood and enhances the removal of metabolic by-products.

American Diabetes Association recommends several nutritional guidelines. This should guide patients on how to maintain the recommended balanced diet. A food plan should also be included in the teaching plan, depending on the patient’s preference and culture.  Awareness on the risk that may accrue from sharp objects such as syringes, pen needles to diabetic persons can minimize chances of infection to others. I intend to teach them means of disposing them in public and private places and how to keep needles far away from the reach of children and pets.

The teaching plan will help patients understand how devastating it can be when one unexpectedly learns of the diabetic condition. Patients react through grieving. Some variables associated with grief include education, religious elements, economic factors as well as geographic location. Teaching plan sessions involved should target patients, their friends and family members. The teaching plan should encourage the patients that it is not the end of their lives and ways of living with diabetic people, simply because some commitments are to b4e made to better their situations.

Diabetes management is a continuous process, and therefore evaluation is necessary. I intend to monitor several aspects such as the level of glucose, logs of exercise and food diaries. Through cognitive assessment and health belief model I mean to follow the feelings and standards of concern of patients and predisposing environmental factors

Conclusion

With more than 1 million cases reported, diabetes has affected the way of life of people. Access to health taxes, and causing financial strain among families hence proactive measures to educate people on diabetes is a paramount righto assist families to manage this condition. I would say that teaching plan is a crucial component of the process of nursing. To promote the learning of the patients is valuable to develop a good teaching plan in mind. It is essential to understand that diabetes educator plays a vital role in periodic review of the proper techniques of injection to diabetes patients receiving a dose of insulin. Learning proper tools on how to control diabetes, the disease will not control you, which translate to lower health complications and healthy living.

References

Allen, N. A. (2003). The history of diabetes nursing, 1914-1936. The diabetes educator, 29(6), 976-989.

American Diabetes Association. (2017). 4. Lifestyle management. Diabetes Care, 40(Supplement 1), S33-S43.

Bowles, K. H., & Dansky, K. H. (2002). Teaching self-management of diabetes via telehomecare. Home Healthcare Now, 20(1), 36-42.

Bullard, K. M., Cowie, C. C., Lessem, S. E., Saydah, S. H., Menke, A., Geiss, L. S., … & Imperatore, G. (2018). Prevalence of diagnosed diabetes in adults by diabetes type—the United States, 2016. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 67(12), 359.

Gregg, E. W., Cheng, Y. J., Srinivasan, M., Lin, J., Geiss, L. S., Albright, A. L., & Imperatore, G. (2018). Trends in cause-specific mortality among adults with and without diagnosed diabetes in the USA: an epidemiological analysis of linked national survey and vital statistics data. The Lancet, 391(10138), 2430-2440.

Gregg, E. W., Cheng, Y. J., Srinivasan, M., Lin, J., Geiss, L. S., Albright, A. L., & Imperatore, G. (2018). Trends in cause-specific mortality among adults with and without diagnosed diabetes in the USA: an epidemiological analysis of linked national survey and vital statistics data. The Lancet, 391(10138), 2430-2440.

Pérez-Escamilla, R., Damio, G., Chhabra, J., Fernandez, M. L., Segura-Pérez, S., Vega-López, S., … & D’Agostino, D. (2015). Impact of a community health workers–led structured program on blood glucose control among Latinos with type 2 diabetes: the DIALBEST trial. Diabetes Care, 38(2), 197-205.