Question 1: Healthy issues with the family
From the given case study, Alice is morbidly obese a condition which makes her to appear very old although she is only aged 30 years. Her son is rather plump himself and this condition is not considered healthy for children. Alice is also overweight. Alice and her son do not exercise and spend most of their time watching TV and playing video games. Alice has been to see a doctor concerning her pregnancy but she explains that she did not like the doctor at all. Alice says the doctor was really mean to her and would like to find a different doctor.
Alice says that her son may have a little baby fat but he is a good boy. She says that she has always been big but seems to have become bigger after Travis was born. Alice wants to do things right but she does not think that she needs a lot of changes in her life. Alice’s mother insists that everything will be okay and the doctor is only trying to get Alice to get back to the clinic because she has good insurance through her husband’s military service. Besides, Alice says that she seems to have grown bigger since her husband Kenny left and he does not like how bigger her wife has gotten. She complains that everyone says that she is supposed to cook healthier foods for Travis but he does even know how to cook anything healthy.
Question 2: Strategies for managing overweight and obesity
Several lifestyle management strategies can be used reverse overweight and obesity. These strategies include dietary management, physical activity, behavioral interventions, and organization for lifestyle interventions.
Dietary management
Dietary management involves consumption of a very low-calorie diet (VLCD) to manage body weight in overweight and obese people. VLCD are complete diet routines usually liquid drinks. They may include a daily meal based on solid food. The US Task Force on the Treatment and Prevention recommends VLCD for individuals with basic metabolic index (BMI) (Jafari-Adli et al. 2014). VLCDs schedules have been used in short-term weight-reducing programs. However, maintenance of weight loss after a very low-calorie diet is a major concern among overweight and obese individuals.
Physical activity interventions
Physical activity has significant health benefits. These benefits include decreased risk of developing cardiovascular disease mortality, lowered all-cause mortality, reduced blood pressure in individuals with hypertension, relief from symptoms of anxiety and depressions, and prevention of hypertension. Physical activity helps to reduce overweight and obesity. There is an inverse relationship between obesity and physical. However, the relationship is less clear. Prospective research indicates that an increase in physical activity can help to prevent the increased prevalence of obesity (Lean, 2015).
Behavioral management
Behavioral management of overweight and obesity employs strategies in addition to physical exercise and the provision of diet information to facilitate change. Healthcare programs are used to encourage individuals to become aware of their physical activity and eating behavior and focus on changing the environmental factors which control behavior (Apovian et al. 2015). These factors include the cues that lead to the behavior and leads to the stressors that come after the behavior and result in its occurrence.
Pharmacotherapy
Pharmacotherapy involves adjunct behavioral counseling in patients with a BMI of 30 or higher. It also involves individuals with a BMI of 28 or higher with any obesity-associated condition such as type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension. Patients who respond to this treatment which is usually 5% weight loss of weight should continue the medication with an aim of progressive weight loss (Lean, 2015). Also, short-term medications such as orlistat and lorcaserin are useful in some cases.
Question 3: Primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies to assist the family in the case study
The primary strategies for assisting this family include interventions that help in preventing the condition before it happens. These include focusing on practicing good nutrition, healthy lifestyle behaviors, and regular physical exercises. The secondary strategies involve interventions that lower the rate of the established cases in the community. These strategies include embracing very low-calorie diets and the use of medications to reduce body weight. Tertiary strategies for preventing overweight and obesity involve approaches that decrease the progression of the condition and help to stabilize the health of the individual (Apovian et al. 2015). These strategies include pharmacotherapy and the use of weight-reducing medications such as lorcaserin and orlistat. These strategies can be used to assist the family in the given scenario.
Question 4: Nola Pender Health Promotion Model
Nola Pender’s model notes that every person has unique and personal characteristics and experiences that influence consequent actions (McCutcheon Schaar & Parker, 2016). The variable for specific knowledge and distress has critical motivational importance. These sets of variables can be improved through nursing actions. For instance, in the given case study, Alice’s condition can be modified through nursing interventions with the aim of restoring her normal life. The healthcare providers should encourage behaviors that promote the desired outcome at the end of the health-promoting model. The health-promoting behaviors should lead to improved health and better quality of life at all stages of life.
References
Apovian, C. M., et al. (2015). Pharmacological management of obesity: an Endocrine Society clinical practice guideline. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 100(2), 342-362.
Jafari-Adli, S., et al. (2014). Prevalence of obesity and overweight in adults and children in Iran; a systematic review. Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders, 13(1), 121.
Lean, M. E. (2015). Management of obesity and overweight. Medicine, 43(2), 94-100.
McCutcheon, T., Schaar, G., & Parker, K. L. (2016). Pender’s Health Promotion Model and HPV Health-Promoting Behaviors among College-Aged Males: Concept Integration. Journal of Theory Construction & Testing, 20(1), 12.
