Physical Health Flashcards
What are some reasons given for the poorer health outcomes for people with mental illness?
- Psychotropic medications prescribed to people with a serious mental illness are associated with adverse effects on physical health, including weight gain and endocrine changes
- Negative symptoms of schizophrenia can contribute to withdrawal, isolation and increased likelihood of living a sedentary lifestyle
- People with schizophrenia have greater susceptibility of risk factors such as smoking, alcohol and drug use, dental disease, sexually transmitted diseases, unemployment
Define diagnostic overshadowing and discuss how this contributes to poor health outcomes for people with mental illness.
Diagnostic overshadowing is defined as the clinicians focusing on the symptoms of the mental illness often to the detriment of other health issues, as physical health symptoms are regularly unnoticed or unaddressed and just focus on mental health symptoms creating poor physical health outcomes for people with mental illness.
Describe metabolic syndrome. Discuss what metabolic screening involves.
- Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of abnormal clinical and metabolic findings that result in an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular disease mortality.
- Metabolic screening involves taking a person’s waist circumference, blood pressure, height and weight and calculating body mass index.
Describe lifestyle interventions nurses may implement to assist with the management of cardiometabolic health.
- Encourage and implement lifestyle interventions around tobacco cessation, physical activity and health nutrition.
Outline some reasons given for people with mental illness having poorer diets. Discuss interventions nurses may implement to address this.
- People with SMI commonly have diets lower in fruit and fibre and high in saturated fat compared to the general population
- Low mood and depression can also lead to overeating and comfort eating. Furthermore, people with SMI have a lower basal metabolic rate then the general population contributing to rapid weight gain
- Nutritional advice and support should be integrated into routine nursing care. When providing nutrition interventions, it is crucial to not only provide both educational and practical components to ensure adequate knowledge, but to also improve shopping, label reading and food safety.
Consider the social and economic factors that influence an individual’s oral health. What nursing strategies could you develop to change these factors?
Promoting oral health care as a part of general health, including dental hygiene, promoting the cessation of smoking, diet alcohol, limiting sugary drinks
