Question

1. As a community/public health nurse how would you address this legal and ethical dilemmas such as in a patient who is frail, alert and oriented but with h/o dementia, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, who prefers to live alone and with family who can't help her because she 's feisty to them?

Answer 1

Here both situation are very bad. The patient need adequate care and a good family support to live ahead. Because she is unhealthy. At the same time she is feisty to them and wants to live alone. There is confusions in decision making. But as a community / public health nurse, my opinion is that the patient need full support of her family. She should live along with her family. The family members need a counseling and health education regarding the disease aspect and behaviour change of the patient. The public health nurse should help the patient and family members to adjust along with family.