Valvular heart disease in the older adult: a case study presentation

Mr. C's case was interesting from both a medical and nursing point of view. He presented both medical and nursing challenges. For medicine, the major challenge was the decision of whether or not to do open heart surgery on a patient with an ejection fraction of 20-30%. For nursing, the major challenge was increasing Mr. C's motivation to participate in his care and to learn essential new behaviors to practice at home. Mr. C was able to be discharged to his home in stable condition with information he needed to achieve his new self-care behaviors. Mr. C's case offers many possibilities for future research. To be more specific, the study could focus on the open heart surgery patient. A study could also be done in this same area looking at how patient education impacts motivation and increasing readiness to learn. This case demonstrates how important collaboration and consistency are in following a plan of care to positively effect the patient's progress. Often times there is more than one health care professional involved in the teaching of the patient. To be most effective, the teaching plan must be consistent with all involved. This is achieved through good communication among health team members regarding what the patient has been taught, what he understands, and additional teaching needs of the patient (13). Keeping these points in mind will help guide the nurse in her quest to provide the patient with the best possible care.