Case 2: Introduction and Instructions
Care of an Older Adult with Infection and Impaired Cognition in an Acute Medical Setting
Scenario Introduction
The goal of this virtual case-based scenario is to promote participants’ clinical reasoning and decision-making when providing nursing care for an older adult with dementia and infection in an acute medical setting. Participants will use a virtual case-based scenario to assess a client, identify priority problems, formulate and implement a nursing plan, and evaluate the plan. The virtual scenario provides entry-level BSN students with an experience of working with a client in a community setting.
Concepts
- Chronic Disease Management
- Clinical Judgement
- Cognition
- Communication
- Gas Exchange
- Infection
- Pharmacology
- Safety
Context
Acute medical unit of a hospital.
Level of Participant
Entry-level (year 1 or 2)
Completion Time
Varied, up to 3.5 hours.
- Pre-Learning: Varied depending on the knowledge students have prior to engaging in the scenario. Completing all activities in their entirety may take up to 2.5 hours.
- Scenario: Allow for about 30 minutes to complete the activity.
- Reflection: Allow for about 30 minutes to complete the activity.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this scenario, participants will be able to do the following in a virtual case-based scenario:
- Identify and differentiate between the signs and symptoms of delirium, dementia, and depression to provide prioritized nursing care.
- Implement a client-specific nursing plan of care in an acute care setting to safely manage altered cognition and infection-related diagnoses.
- Communicate effectively with an older adult with dementia in an acute care setting to enhance a therapeutic relationship and provide culturally sensitive care.
Instructions
- Complete each section in the order it is presented.
- After completing the pre-brief and pre-learning, you will find a short scenario to work through with decision-making questions. You can go through the scenario as many times as you would like.
- After you complete the scenario, work through the post-scenario activities.
- Your role is to assume all aspects of a practicing nurse’s professional behavior as if caring for a client in the clinical setting. However, work within your scope of practice as a student nurse.
- Several aspects of the scenario may be limited in realism and when a gap occurs between simulated reality and actual reality, act according to the goals of the learning session.
- These scenarios follow what is known as the Basic Assumption™ of simulation, meaning that it is believed that you are intelligent, capable, and want to do your best to improve your skills.[1]
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