The article that I’ve chosen for this assignment from The American Journal of Nursing titled “Understanding the Complications of Sickle Cell Disease.” The article was very informative of the description of sickle cell disease which is an autosomal recessive genetic condition that alters the shape and function of the hemoglobin molecule in the red blood cells. The information that was presented in this article in reference to nursing implications on the major complications that associated with SCD provided evidence-based practice nursing process (assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation). Nursing process is something that’s used daily on each patient throughout my shift along with collaboration with the health care providers and staff to enhance adequate information for the patient and their families and efficient care upon admission through discharge. Knowing the major complications associated with any disease process or diagnoses of each patient, staying update on all information and new discoveries will greatly benefit the patients outcome and more their hospital stay shorter and decrease the rate of readmission by educating and provided them with information as soon as their admitted.
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This can be a fairly sensitive topic in the sense that it is by inheritance. There is no definite cure for this disease. As nurses, it is our responsibility to learn and understand ways to care for and treat patients with Sickle Cell Disease by following nursing processes that assess the patient, plan a course of treatment that is diagnosed, implement a course of action, and analyze the journey.
That is absolutely the same conclusion I’ve been able to obtain as well, as well as management of patients pain which is essential to patients that have Sickle cell disease.
Hi “tsholloman”
Since you addressed the psychosocial issues of sickle cell disease on your fishbone diagram, one thing that might be worth adding is the stigmatization these patients could experience when they come in for treatment during sickle cell crisis. My first job as a new grad nurse was on a telemetry unit that was the designated sickle cell floor. My patients told me many times that when they came into the ER in terrible pain, they were treated as drug seekers and their pain was not taken seriously.
I found an article in a nursing journal that states that healthcare providers have a negative attitude towards sickle cell patients. According to the author, this negative attitude causes treatment of pain to be slower (Lentz & Kautz, 2017). Patients state that they feel “less than human” when seeking care. I think it is important that as nurses, we remember that the patients pain level is whatever the patient says it is, and not treat these patients as drug seekers.
Lentz, M. B., & Kautz, D. (2017). Acute vaso-occlusive crisis in patients with sickle cell disease. Nursing, 47(1), 67–68. doi: 10.1097/01.nurse.0000510745.32219.dd
Stigmatization is a real issue with sickle cell disease. Sickle cell pain is real. Patients react to pain in different ways. I have only seen one sickle cell crisis in a patient before and the patient was in so much pain. I was a new nurse and didn’t know a lot about sickle cell and didn’t know that pain was very real with this disease. In an article I found in a nursing journal it said, “This chronic pain with acute exacerbations is the most common reason for hospital visits, admissions, and readmissions, particularly in young adults (aged 18–39 years). People who present to the hospital for pain crises often report that nurses lack knowledge of SCD and, consequently, they do not provide appropriate, timely care (Matthie & Jenerette, 2015). Nurses need to be educated about SCD and learn to deal with sufferers correctly. In addition, educated nurses can advocate on patients’ behalf, particularly when patients cannot advocate for themselves.
Matthie, N., & Jenerette, C. (2015). Sickle cell disease in adults: developing an appropriate care plan. Clinical journal of oncology nursing, 19(5), 562–567. https://doi.org/10.1188/15.CJON.562-567