NRS 429 Family Health Assessment Part I

Sample Answer

A family refers to a primary group of people living in a household in consistent proximity and intimate relationship. Family health is determined by the interaction of factors in the family’s external and internal environment (Michaelson et al., 2021). Family health assessment entails identifying these internal and external factors, which are vital in assessing the health-illness factors that affect family health. The purpose of this paper is to analyze my findings from a family health assessment.

Family Structure

I interviewed family N, an African American nuclear family with six family members, two parents, and four children. Mr. N is 58, and Mrs. N is 55, and they have been married for close to 33 years. Mr. N has a diploma in education and is an elementary school teacher. Mrs. N studied up to the high school level and worked as a storekeeper in a high school. The firstborn (female) is 30 years and married with one child. She has a Bachelor’s in education and is a high-school teacher. The second-born (male) is 26 years, single, and works in the Military.

The third-born (male) is 23 years; he is a nursing student at a community college. The fourth-born (female) is 15 years and is in high school. Family N falls under the working social class with an average household income of $50,000. The family members are Catholics and attend mass at least twice a month. Mrs. N is a church choir member, and the family attends monthly fellowships in the neighborhood. The family lives in Greenville, KY, in a rural neighborhood. They report access to healthcare services but limited transport options.

Family Health and Health Behaviors

Family N is in relatively good health with no chronic illnesses among the family members. Healthy behaviors noted in the family include eating healthy meals and engaging in physical activity. Mrs. N mentioned that she prepares healthy meals for the family. The family has a kitchen garden where they have planted vegetables and rear chicken. The garden is a source of daily fresh vegetables and fruits for the family. Mr. and Mrs. N also reported that they often walk to work a distance that takes 10-15 minutes, which keeps them physically active.

They also attend to their garden on weekends, keeping them physically active. Mr. and Mrs. N have health insurance provided by their employers. However, they reported that they do not attend annual check-ups unless they are ill. Other unhealthy behaviors include smoking and alcohol consumption, particularly in Mr. N. He reports smoking 1PPD and taking 3-4 beers daily.

Functional Health Patterns Strengths, Health Problems or Barriers to Health

Functional health pattern strengths were identified in Nutrition and Activity/Exercise patterns. In the Nutrition pattern, the family takes healthy meals with high vegetable and fruit servings sourced from their garden. Junk foods, processed foods, and drinks with added sugars are hardly taken in the family. Mrs. N insists on healthy dietary habits in the family since she knows the health risks of high-fat and salty foods. Under the Activity/Exercise pattern, the family engages in regular physical activity like walking and gardening.

Mr. N coaches students in football, which has made him physically fit. Mrs. N mentions that daily walks and eating healthy foods have helped her to maintain a healthy weight. Problems and barriers to health were identified in the functional patterns of Values/Health Perception, Sleep/Rest, and Role-Relationship. Problems identified in the Values/Health Perception pattern include the family members failing to attend preventive screening activities and annual medical check-ups (Khatiban et al., 2019). Mrs. N has not adhered to the recommended breast and cervical cancer screenings, while Mr. N has never had a PSA test.

In the Sleep/Rest pattern, some family members reported having problems maintaining sleep and insomnia. Mr. N stated that he takes beer in the evening to help with sleep, and he often feels he is not adequately rested after waking up. Problems in the Role-Relationship pattern include impaired relationships among family members (Butcher & Jones, 2021). Mrs. N often gets into arguments with Mr. N due to his daily drinking habits and his spending habits. Besides, Mr. N has a poor connection with his first-born daughter due to his poor spending habits.

Application of Family Systems Theory

Family Systems Theory (FST) explains human behavior through a complex web of emotional processes in a person’s family, social systems, and work. The theory outlines how emotional interdependence among family members influences a person’s character and life decisions (Milberg et al., 2020). Any change in one family member will likely affect the whole family and foster behavior changes in other members. Thus, FST can promote behavior change among one family member (Calatrava et al., 2022). Since family members are strongly emotionally connected, behavior change in one member will influence others to change.

Conclusion

Family N is a nuclear, working-class, African American family comprising six members. The family is in relatively good health and has notable healthy behavior, like engaging in physical activities and healthy dietary habits. However, unhealthy behaviors were noted smoking, alcohol consumption, and non-adherence to annual medical check-ups and screenings. FST can be used to promote behavior change among family members by focusing on the interactions between the family members.

References

• Butcher, R. D. C. G., & Jones, D. A. (2021). An integrative review of comprehensive nursing assessment tools developed based on Gordon’s Eleven Functional Health Patterns. International Journal of Nursing Knowledge, 32, 294-307. https //doi.org/10.1111/2047-3095.12321
• Calatrava, M., Martins, M. V., Schweer-Collins, M., Duch-Ceballos, C., & Rodríguez-González, M. (2022). Differentiation of self A scoping review of Bowen Family Systems Theory’s core construct. Clinical psychology review, 91, 102101. https //doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2021.102101
• Khatiban, M., Tohidi, S., & Shahdoust, M. (2019). The effects of applying an assessment form based on the health functional patterns on nursing student’s attitudes and skills in developing the nursing process. International Journal of nursing sciences, 6(3), 329–333. https //doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnss.2019.06.004
• Michaelson, V., Pilato, K. A., & Davison, C. M. (2021). Family as a health promotion setting A scoping review of conceptual models of the health-promoting family. PloS one, 16(4), e0249707. https //doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0249707
• Milberg, A., Liljeroos, M., Wåhlberg, R., & Krevers, B. (2020). Sense of support within the family a cross-sectional study of family members in palliative home care. BMC palliative care, 19(1), 120. https //doi.org/10.1186/s12904-020-00623-z