Nurisng For Normal Behaviours Flashcards
What is fear a response to?
- response to a stimulus which is potentially harmful
What is anxiety a response to?
-response to a situation in which the animal anticipates a negative outcome
When may patients experience stress?
- where there is a perceived lack of control
- novel environment/challenge
- requirements to change/adjust
- unpredictable situations
What are senses?
- smell and pheromones
- sensitive hearing
- sensitivity to vibration
- mechanism of sight
Why should we reduce stress at the vets?
- makes treatment difficult
- dangerous for patient, owner and vet staff
- owner will get upset which can stress out the patient more
- puppy parties can reduce fear at the vets
What are signs of stress?
- hiding, shaking or restlessness
- not eating
- dilated pupils
- lethargy
- social withdrawal
- stereotypic or destructive behaviours
- vocalisation
- aggression
- diarrhoea or urine spraying
- panting, lip smacking or salivation
- escape attempts
How should patients be assessed?
- observe patient at admission, admittance to the hospital environment and throughout their treatment
- normal parameters help us identify the abnormal for each species
- normal behaviours
- normal interactions with people or animals
- normal routines
What problems can stress create?
- likely to affect most abilities
- unwilling to eat/drink at risk of anorexia/dehydration
- unwilling to urinate/defecate making the patient uncomfortable
- fight/flight response affects their normal movement and body language
- anxiety may affect the ability to sleep or rest
- inhibits healing and recovery
What nursing interventions can be carried out to reduce stress?
- consider using familiar routines, smells, food or litter
- manage sensory stimuli (reduction of noise, background music or dimmed lighting)
- sensitive handling and restraint (fear free)
- tlc and contact time without interventions or monitoring
- provide hides or visual barriers for species
- familiarisation with the veterinary practice
How should stress be evaluated?
- monitoring respiratory rate, pulse rate, periods of sleep or rest, normal behaviours and response to the environment
- constantly reassess and alter the approach or nursing plan
What is pain?
- a sensory emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, the sensation is caused by a noxious stimulus
How is pain classified?
- duration
- location and anatomy affected
- disease causing the pain
- intensity
What are the effects of pain?
- increased heart rate, breath rate, and respiratory rate
- increased intestinal secretions
- urine retention
- increased metabolism and oxygen
- increased sensitivity to pain
How can pain be assessed?
- behaviour
- facial expressions
- physiological indicators
- pain scoring harts
- owner questionnaires
What can be indications of pain?
- vocalisation
- aggression
- avoiding eye contact
- dilated pupils
- licking or chewing
- restlessness or unwilling to move
- anorexia
- loss of coat condition
- abnormal posture or gait
What should nurses response to animals in pain be?
- refer to vs
- continue monitoring
- evaluate and review nursing interventions
How can pain be managed?
- patient advocate, ensure analgesics are prescribed and administered in a good time time manner
- provide a comfortable, stress free environment
- take care when handling and restraining
- preventing self mutilation
- physiotherapy, hydrotherapy or acupuncture
- weight management
What is consciousness?
- the level from the patients awareness of their surroundings
What are the 4 levels of consciousness?
- alert
- obtunded
- stuporous
- coma
What are potential causes of a collapse?
- alert collapsed
- depressed collapsed
- obtunded collapsed
- unconscious collapsed with fast or slow HR
- unconscious collapsed with normal HR
What can cause an alert collapse?
- due to orthopaedic disease or peripheral neurological disease
What can cause a depressed collapse?
- due to mild to moderate shock or pain
What can cause an obtunded collapse?
- due to moderate to severe shock, neurological disease or metabolic disease
What can cause an unconscious collapse with a fast or slow HR?
- due to sever shock or cardiopulmonary arrest
What can cause an unconscious collapse with a normal HR?
- due to new urological disease or metabolic disease
What are signs of a conscious collapse?
- normal or increased heartbeat
- normal or increased respiratory pattern
- limited movement
- constant temperature
- normal pupil size
What are signs of unconsciousness?
- regular or slightly slowed heartbeat
- respiratory pattern varies
- movement may be roused
- constant temperature
- pupil size varies
Nursing response to a conscious collapse?
- protect the airway
- put the patient into recovery position or provide oxygen
Nursing response to unconsciousness?
- check abc’s
- resuscitate if required or incubate
- or provide circulatory support
