WEEK 2:PSYCHOLOCAL REACTIONS TO CHRONIC ILLNESS Flashcards
What is a chronic illness?
It is a long lasting and cannot be cured
Outline characteristics of a chronic illness
*long term and has no cure
*Masked chronic pain
*Chronic , worsening fatigue
*requires multiple specialists
*Unchanging symptoms
*high risk of depression
*May progress to functional impairment or disability
*Dizziness, Insomnia, headache
Outline examples of chronic illnesses
*HIV and AIDS
*Cancer
*Hypertension
*Diabetes mellitus
*multiple sclerosis
*Arthritic
*COPD
*Asthma
*Osteoporosis
*Depression
*Chronic kidney failure
*Heart disease
*Stroke
*Cystic fibrosis
*Crown’s disease
Why is chronic illness a crisis?
It disrupts and change patterns of personal and social functioning and produces a state of social, physical and psychological disequilibrium.
Outline ways in which a chronic illness bacts as a crisis
- Disruption and change on identity, location, role, social support and future goals
- There is increased demands due to the ongoing response to illness
- No cure, requires ongoing treatment
- uncertain outcomes
Outline initial ways to react to a chronic illness
- shock
- denial
- loss and grief
- anxiety and depression
- Fear
- Guilt
8.Anger
9.Avoidance
9.Avoidance
What is the crisis theory?
It is a model describing the factors that influence people’s adjustment to having serious illness
State the 3 steps of coping process
- cognitive appraisal
2.adaptive tasks: formulation of tasks to help cope with illness, illness related and general psychological functioning
3.coping skills: denial, information seeking, goal setting, recruiting support
Outline the 3 components that make up the biopsychosocial model of health
- biological
- psychological
3.sociological
Why consider biopsychosocial model?
- It explains influences of health
- Aligns with WHO definition of health
- Social, environmental and psychological factors
- Provides a comprehensive framework to understanding health
Outline the social and environmental factors affecting health
- Privacy
2.social support
3.depedence
4.multiple carers - Alcohol and drug abuse
- employment issues
Outline the psychological factors affecting health
- prior experience , personality trait and childhood issues
2.Patient relationship with health professionals or workers - Personal relationships
Outline biological factors relating to health
- acute or chronic
- Severity, life threatening, terminal
3,.stigma
Outline illness related impact that people with chronic illness must adjust to
- symptoms of disease
- Stress of treatment
- feeling of vulnerability
- loss of control
- threat to self esteem
6.changes in family structure
Outline psychological impact of chronic illness to the family adjustments
- increased stress.
- change in nature of the relationship
- change in family structure
- loss of income
List common coping strategies
- seek information
- seeek practical solutions
- seek social support
4.Aquisation of new skills - develop new interests
6.Helping others
State ABNORMAL REACTIONS to illness
- Generalized anxiety disorders
*panic attacks
*phobia
*OCD
2.PTSD : MOOD disorders, seasonal attention disorder
- Behavioral disorders:
*substance abuse, eating disorder and poor adherence to treatment - persistence of initial reactions
- somatization
- common functional symptoms and syndromes
* fibromyalgia
*chronic fatigue
*chronic low back pain
*non cardiac chest pain
*irritable bowel syndrome
*indigestion (dyspepsia)
*dizziness, insomnia, headache and palpitation
Outline adjustments to HIV AND AIDS
- Stigma
- concerned about who in their social network they can tell
- Increased anxiety, depression and coping problems
Outline adjustments to diabetes
- Social support: can result in increased adherence
- Self efficacy: can result in increased self management
- Self image : may be a problem especially in adolescents
- Stress: results in less insulin and more glucose consumption
outline the role of psychology in helping people with HIV AND AIDS
- Psychology impact on HIV
2.Adherence of medical regimes
3.increased family support
PREVENTION
*behavioral measure
*personality / coping
Outline psychological challenges due to illness
- stigma
- morbidity and mortality issues
* death and dying
*loss of independence
*impact on family and friends
*treatment side effects
State the role of health worker in helping patients with chronic illness
- Research
- intervention
*illness conceptualization
*adherence counselling
*family dynamics
*treatment and side effects management
*increases adherence
*stress management
*support work
State the role of doctors in helping chronically ill patients
Resource person / facilitator
1. Assessment of needs
* history
*physical examination
*emergency contact
*shoulder to cry on
- Arranges medical investigations
- interpretes them to the patients
ALSO PROVIDE NON SPECIALIST TREATMENT
* drugs
*counselling
SPECIALIST TREATMENT
*Cognitive brain therapy
*psychriatic referral
State 3 contributing factors to the coping process and outcome of illness
1.Background and personal factors
*Degree of illness acceptance
*Degree of lifestyle and functional impairment
2.Illness related factors
*Demographic: Age, Gender, SES
*Personality: Negative affectivity vs hardiness
3.Physical, social and environmental factors
*Social support: instrumental and emotional
