Theme 1: Devolpment Acress The Lifespan

Question 1

What are the domains of development?

Answer 1

Physical

Cognitive

Language

Socio-emotional

Question 2

What are factors that influence development

Answer 2

Nutrition
Health, chronic illness and/ or disability
Attachment to significant adult
Prevention of accidents/ non accidental injury
Early detection of development delay
Health behaviours
Health inequalities
Parental mental health
Stable and family relationships

Question 3

What are the stages of development?

Answer 3

**Pre - natal ** : embryonic and feral stages

** Infancy ** : 0-2

** Early childhood ** : 2-6

** Middle childhood **: 6-12

** Adolescence ** : 12-18

Question 4

What are milestones?

Answer 4

Knowing expected sequence in developmental allow nurses and other health professionals to

• help families understand what their child is currently doing and anticipate what comes next
• suggest parenting state gives demonstrated to be effective
• understand common developmental patters with early detection of deviation or delay

Question 5

What is embryonic development

Answer 5

Embryonic neuro - Embryonic stage – initial cells are already specialising by the time pregnancy is being confirmed
• Neurons are formed from stem cells and form the neural tube - by week 4 the end of the neural tube swells to form the primitive brain
• By week 6 there are patterns of electrical activity and embryo moves in response to stimuli and by week 7 movements are spontaneous and electrical activity is becoming increasingly organised

Question 6

What is foetal development?

Answer 6

Teratogens

Critical sensitive periods during embryonic and fetal development in which the development of the fetus is susceptible to teratogens (agents which cause abnormality as a result of fetal exposure)

Teratogens may include some prescribed medicines and/ or social drugs ( alcohol, smoking, recreational drugs)

Question 7

What is health assessment at birth?

Answer 7

Predictor of infant health - APGAR score taken at 1 and 5 mins after birth, measures infancy conditions at birth

Question 8

What are the infant - newborn - milestones and development?

Answer 8

Primitive reflexes: Moro, rooting and sucking, cough and gag, reflex standing and walking, palmar grasp reflex

Long periods of sleep

Limbs in semi flexed position, muscle tone weak
but greater in limbs

Visual acuity : focus up to about 30cm

Question 9

What is infant growth and development?

Answer 9

Cephalocaudal
Development starting at the top of the body and works from head to foot – head and brain development is more advanced

Proximodistal pattern:
Growth starts at the centre of the body and work its way outward, toward the extremities – spine develops first .

Question 10

What are the cognitive milestones of infant development?

Answer 10

Question 11

What are the cognitive and social development of pre school child

Answer 11

Question 12

What is the healthy child programme?

Answer 12

Health

Emotional and Social Development § Behavioural
development

Identity

Family and social relationships

Self –care skills and independence § Learning

Question 13

What should all parents be offered?

Answer 13

Five mandated contacts

women more than 28 weeks pregnant
a child aged 1 day to 2 weeks (10days)
a child aged 6 to 8 weeks
a child aged 9 to 15 months
a child aged 24 to 30 months

Question 14

What are high impact areas in infant development?

Answer 14

transition to parenthood, § maternal mental health,
breastfeeding,
healthy weight,
minor illnesses and accident reduction, development of the child

Question 15

What is the older child brain development?

Answer 15

Increasing myelinisation of frontal lobes (linking sensory, motor and intellectual areas)

Selective attention : the ability to focus on the important elements of a problem

Increasing spatial perception : e.g ball games, map reading

Relative right to left orientation ( other peoples right and left)

Spatial cognition : infer rules from about and make judgements about movements of objects in space

Question 16

What is the older child adolescent thinking and memory?

Answer 16

Systematic problem solving
Adolescent ego-centricism ( thoughts, beliefs and feelings are unique)
Information processing faster and more sophisticated

Question 17

What are the periods of adulthood?

Answer 17

Early adulthood (18-40)

Middle adulthood ( 40 – 60)

Late adulthood (60 onwards)

Question 18

What is primary and secondary ageing?

Answer 18

Primary ageing ( senescence) : e.g grey hairs and wrinkles

Secondary ageing: the product of environmental influences, health habits or disease.

Healthy ageing:

Question 19

What is primary ageing?

Answer 19

Biological, psychological, and social changes as a result of the passage of chronological time. This includes wear and tear on organs as a result of their use over time.

decreased production of neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers of the brain, as well as a decreased sensitivity of neural receptors in the brain to receive messages

Question 20

What is secondary ageing?

Answer 20

This is ageing change in the human body as a result of disease - and is reversible.

chronic disease and other conditions such as arthritis, high blood pressure and obesity
adverse events such as increased risk of falls, increased use of healthcare services,
multimorbidity

Question 21

What are the cognitive changes in adulthood?

Answer 21

Brain becomes smaller due to the shrinking volume of brain cells

Changes to areas such as the hippocampus and cortex affect memory

Changes to frontal lobes can effect planning, emotional regulation, and goal directed activity