Verified Document

Geriatric Diabetes Education Term Paper

Implementing Diabetes Education in Geriatric unit The diabetes prevalence in the USA is placed at 9.4% which accounts for 30.3 million Americans as of 2015. This statistics goes even higher with increase in the age bracket where 12.2% of Americans above 18 years old are diabetic. The numbers are even grimmer as the age increases among the aged where 25.2% of Americans above 65 years are said to be diabetic according to CDC (2017). The geriatric unit mostly hosts patients of the age of 65 years. These are patients who are predisposed to various life limiting conditions, immobility, psychiatric problems and other illnesses. Apparently diabetes has emerged as one of the main challenges that the aged have to deal with all the way into the geriatric unit. It is apparent that diabetes presents significant challenges in managing them for the elderly patients. The aged diabetes patients often complain of challenges of the cost of managing diabetes, access to medication, competing priorities and challenges of adherence to their medication.

From the above statistics, it is apparent that most of the elderly persons hosted in the elderly homes will be diabetic. That will be the most common medical condition within the geriatric unit. Bearing the medical challenges and the physical challenges that the elderly face within the geriatric unit, it is important that their lives are made bearable within these facilities. One of the most significant changes that the facilities can undertake is to ensure the staff members are properly trained in how to handle the diabetic old patients and how they can facilitate the quick access and efficient access to their mediation. This is the single most important aspect of change that if properly implemented in the geriatric unit of focus then it can significantly impact on the lives of the ole people who are housed in these units.

There are various reasons for undertaking the training for the nurses and employees working within the geriatric units with the elderly. One very obvious reason is the issue of compliance with the regulations of the responsible agencies as stated in each state within its own regulations. It is not everyone who wants to work within the units of the elderly is allowed to work but those who are specifically trained for the job and are evaluated by the concerned bodies to ensure strict compliance with the regulations guiding the running of the institutions.

The second reason as to why the training is essential is to ensure the full satisfaction of the clients who are the sole reason why the institutions are established. The nurses and the other employees within these units have the sole mandate to ensure the welfare of the elderly, who may be facing physical and psychiatric challenges are well taken care of. The ratings that the unit will get...

If these two are offered or see to be getting substandard services, there is high likelihood that they will transfer to other facilities. This may mean the closure of the affected unit or significant regulatory repercussions from the agencies in charge. The standard and satisfactory services can only be offered by well trained staff members.
Such a significant change is often not easy to implement since it will be met with resistance from most of the people who are supposed to implement that change. This means there is need to have leadership that will employ a leadership approach which will sail the change through the resistance. The top priority for any leader in the process of change is the followers’ positive reaction to change. According to the research conducted among 351 participants from two Danish organizations, the data analysis found out that the leadership style that resounded best with employees during change process was transformational leadership (Emerald Publishing Limited, 2018).

From the above findings, it follows that the leadership style that fits best this change process in the elderly homes is the transformational leadership in order to ensure the requisite training is done and effectively undertaken. This style of leadership is one where the leader works with the junior staff members of the subordinate staff to first make out or identify the change that is needed, then he creates a vision that will guide them towards the needed and identified change, then he will guide the change through inspiration and he will then implement the change hand in hand with the subordinate staff members who are committed to the change (McCloskey M.W., 2018). This is the best approach that I can use in change implementation within the geriatric unit I am base at to ensure that all the members of staff therein are well trained in handling diabetic old people. I will involve the members of staff from the very start of the change process so that they can feel they own the idea and the process of implementing the idea. Since the knowledge on managing diabetic old people is very essential for all the employees, I will sue all possible avenues to inspire commitment in all employees and we collectively formulate a vision that will be for out unit and commit to it to the very end.

Role of professional nurse as a change agent

Within an institution like the homes for the elderly, the professional nurses are often looked up to as change agents by most of the employees. They represent the highest point of reference and the ideal that should be emulated by the other employees. Hence, the nurse will have to play key roles in the motivation,…

Sources used in this document:

References

CDC, (2017). National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2017 Estimates of Diabetes and Its Burden in the United States. Retrieved May11, 2018 from https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pdfs/data/statistics/national-diabetes-statistics-report.pdf

Cardensa H., (2018). Strategies to Motivate Staff Nurses. Retrieved May11, 2018 from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/strategies-motivate-staff-nurses-15427.html

Emerald Publishing Limited, (2018). Leadership style and the process of organizational change. Retrieved May11, 2018 from https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/LODJ-11-2012-0155

Leadership-Central, (2016). Two factor Theory. Retrieved May11, 2018 from http://www.leadership-central.com/two-factor-theory.html#axzz5FKZlmMWo

McCloskey M.W., (2018). What is Transformational Leadership. Retrieved May11, 2018 from http://people.bethel.edu/~pferris/otcommon/TransformationalLeadership.pdf

Kotter International, (2017). 8 Steps to Accelerating Change. Retrieved May11, 2018 from https://www.kotterinc.com/wp-content/uploads/background-photos/8-Steps-for-Accelerating-Change-eBook.pdf

Stapleton et.al., (2007). Boosting Morale and Improving Performance in the nursing setting. Retrieved May11, 2018 from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ac0e/09a176a0345f3cadc5df30a2ce4144d40d46.pdf

Wadsworth B., (2015). A Study of the Nurse Manager’s Impact on Staff Engagement & Quality. Retrieved May11, 2018 from https://ponl.net/resources/Documents/A%20Study%20of%20the%20Nurse%20Manager's%20Impact%20on%20Staff%20Engagement%20and%20Quality.pdf

Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Diabetes Care in the Elderly Curriculum Development
Words: 1267 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Diabetes Care in the Elderly Curriculum Development Project Curriculum Development Project: Diabetes in the Skilled Nursing Home Residents Curriculum Development Project: Diabetes in the Skilled Nursing Home Residents The increased prevalence of diabetes in developed nations has been blamed in part on the obesity epidemic, but a portion of that increase is also due to longer life-spans (reviewed by Vischer et al., 2009). While this may be a mixed blessing from the perspective of

Diabetes Mellitus Type II
Words: 2902 Length: 10 Document Type: Case Study

NR 601 Week 5 Case StudyNR 601 Week 5 Case StudyThe World Health Organization (WHO) defines diabetes as a disease that affects the body�s ability to prepare or produce the hormone insulin, resulting in abnormal metabolism of blood glucose and elevated levels of the same in the blood (WHO, 2021). When an individual has diabetes, their body either does not make sufficient insulin or fails to make use of insulin

Blood Pressure and Diabetes
Words: 493 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Geriatric Patient Assessment Temperature Pulse Respiration Blood Pressure: 110/70 Pulse Oximetry: 97% on room air General Appearance: Fairly good, decently nourished. Non-toxic, Ambulatory female Mental Status: Patient is alert and fully oriented times 3 . . . .Glasgow coma scale is Abdomen: Benign Heart: Mild tachycardia Lungs: Clear, no noticed issues Extremities: Pulses are symmetric and seem to be intact Known Issues/Comorbidities: Type II (Adult Onset) Diabetes, family history of heart disease and arthritis 2A) MMSE will be attached Pulled from: http://www.dementiatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MiniMentalStateExamination.pdf 2B) KATZ Index

Future of Healthcare As It Relates to the Geriatric Population
Words: 3240 Length: 12 Document Type: Essay

Future of Healthcare as it Relates to the Geriatric Population Description and Problem Statement The geriatric population in the United States is growing and compared to the population of health care providers the geriatric population growth is advancing much more rapidly. This presents a problem in making provision of health care to the future geriatric population. While there is a growth in the demand for geriatric health care services, there is not

Managing Diabetes in Older Adults
Words: 2191 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

The management of diabetes in older adults is a complex and critical aspect of geriatric care that requires an understanding of the unique challenges and considerations posed by aging. Age has a significant impact on diabetes management, wherein older adults often face various obstacles that can affect their ability to manage their disease effectively (Sinclair et al., 2012). As the global population ages, the prevalence of diabetes in older individuals is

Health Maintenance Organization Impact on
Words: 13949 Length: 50 Document Type: Thesis

" (AAFP, nd) The Health Maintenance Organization further should "…negotiate with both public and private payers for adequate reimbursement or direct payment to cover the expenses of interpreter services so that they can establish services without burdening physicians…" and the private industry should be "…engaged by medical organizations, including the AAFP, and patient advocacy groups to consider innovative ways to provide interpreter services to both employees and the medically underserved." (AAFP,

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now