The Causes and Effects of Stroke Condition on a Client Paper Example

Introduction

The primary purpose of this research is to examine and ascertain the causes and effects of stroke condition on a client using psychosocial assessment and client's genogram as the essential tool. Psychosocial assessment involves the process of testing different methods to arrive at a significant hypothesis about an individual and their personality, behaviors and different capabilities. The process involves psychosocial testing procedures which are being carried out by a certified professional psychologist.

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Agency Context

MedStar National Rehabilitation Network commonly abbreviated as (MedStar NRH) is an American based healthcare organization having its headquarters in Washington DC. The health system specializes in treating patients with physical disabilities, including stroke, arthritis, brain injury, amputation, and other neurological disorders. The hospital was founded in 1986 by Edward Eckenhoff. Moreover, MedStar NRH has developed from a single hospital into the formation of the hospital network, which assists in providing inpatients, day treatment programs and outpatient treatments. The mission of MedStar NRH is to serve the surroundings as a regional and a national leader in the rehabilitation in five relevant jurisdictions that comprise: rehabilitation research, educational training of the community and professionals and different advocacy initiatives.

The network assists about 350000 people regarding an ambulatory visit every year, and since the incorporation, MedStar NRH has admitted excess of 35000 inpatients besides conducting 2 million outpatient visits. (Source: https://www.medstarhealth.org.com). Besides, the hospital offers individual needs to its clients. Moreover, the hospital provides IV therapy of all kinds including Immunotherapy and Chemotherapy (https://www.medstarhealth.org.com).

Referral Information

Due to the hospital reputation, the client clearly stated that "I have been battling with stroke for the past two years and when my long-term friend John learned about my health condition, he told me how Medstar NRH was the best place I could receive the best treatment". Moreover, the client stated that he has previously been to some hospitals, but he has not seen any improvements in his health condition. The client has said it is a pleasure being in the hospital especially after getting testimonials from previous patients like Johns cousin, Franklin. Moreover, he goes on to say, "I feel very much confident being in Medstar and I believe am going to receive the best treatment here, so it is a great pleasure to be attended in this hospital." The client was referred for the sole purpose of getting proper medical attention for his condition. The client stated that the main reason for his referral by John, his friend, was to enable him to get over his situation and once again get a good job and provide for his family.

Client information

The client is a 74-year-old white male accountant, holding a bachelor's degree in accounting. He has been suffering from the stroke at home over the past two years. The client lives at home with his wife and is a former employee of the state government in the accounts department. Besides, the client resides in Washington DC with his wife and four children, and the client does not drink nor smoke and has never fallen a victim of substance abuse. He has never been in the military, and he is a Christian. His four children live with him in Washington, and his primary source of income was from the employment. The client is a tall, overweight man with short hair.

Client issue

Due to his condition, the client has been referred to MedStar NRH by his friend. A stroke is a medical condition that affects the brain (Fisher, 2009). The disease mostly occurs when blood flow to a designated area of the brain is cut off. When this takes place, the patient's brain cells are deprived of enough oxygen and begin to die, and when the brain cells die during the process, memory abilities controlled by the brain region is lost (Fisher, 2009). How a person is affected by a stroke varies from individual to individual, and it depends on where the stroke has occurred and to the extent to which the brain is damaged. For instance, someone having a minor stroke may be permanently paralyzed on one body part and losing their ability to speak. While some people may as well recover entirely from the condition, however, more than 2/3 of the condition survivors will have some other types of disability (Fisher, 2009).

Studies conducted by MedStar NRH, department of research in conjunction with Stanford Stroke Centre, reveals that every year, about 800,000 people experience a unique or recurrent type of stroke (Fisher, 2009). Moreover, the two agencies explained that the stroke is one of the major leading causes of many deaths in the United States (Fisher, 2009). The condition has got some signs like the victim experiencing sudden numbness, difficulty in speaking, trouble to see with both eyes, the problem of staying balanced and weakness on the legs. The patient said, "all I want is proper medical attention for my condition."

The client views his condition as a difficult to cope with. He says "I find it difficult to live with this condition because most of the time am feeling week and tired of making me not to perform any work, I am becoming a burden to my family" Further, the patient asserts that the condition made him leave his job of which he could earn a living for his family due to writing difficulties that the situation brought (Hodge, 2005). His close friends together with his wife describe the condition as a severe threat to human lives that needs immediate medical attention once somebody has been diagnosed with it. Consequently, the agency views stroke as a killer condition that distorts someone's reasoning and hence has conducted different initiatives to ensure that people are screened to identify the disease at an earlier stage to provide timely medical attention is given (Hodge, 2005).

Despite the client's wife is sick, she accompanied him to the agency for the first day, and she narrates that her husband's condition started when he was working in the government department as an accountant. She said" my husband come home during summer holidays and suddenly started complaining of numbness on the right side of his face, and with time his speech became slurred followed by his left arm becoming weak"afterwards the client had no other option but to quit his job. The client revealed that, he has been seeking medical attention from the time he was diagnosed to be suffering from this condition; however, he admits that at first, he thought the state was not something serious and delayed seeking medical attention hoping the condition signs to disappear, but as days went by, his health status was worsening. He says he has never seen any significant improvement on his health despite sacrificing financially to seek the best medications in other hospitals. The client now wants the agency to be the last solution to treat his condition.

Client data

The client was born at his father's farm in Washington DC and raised him in a middle-class family. He was brought up in Washington ever since his childhood, and during his late twenties, the client married his wife and afterwards was blessed with four kids of whom they live within Washington to date. The client family history reveals the condition has been on the family lineage since the client family has been tending towards being under diabetes medication besides being diagnosed with high blood pressure. The client health condition seems to have originated from genetic disorders of his family which was evident from the client genogram (Hodge, 2005). After 29 years of service in the state government, the client started experiencing sign and symptoms of stroke which eventually made him voluntarily leave his duties as a result of practical concerns.

The client 74 years old white male has a past medical history significant for his present health status. The client has been in this health condition for about two years. His health condition has been gradually deteriorating due to lack of proper medical attention. The client seeks to care for his status at this time because he believes that MedStar is the right hospital that he would find a lasting solution to this condition.

The client is experiencing a lot of difficulties which is relatively constant ever since he was diagnosed with the stroke. The client describes the pain and difficulty he is experiencing as being associated with the majority of his body parts becoming pale and weak and he has tried all means to get over the condition but to no avail. The client endorses a 6lb weight loss over the past five months, decrease food appetite and fatigue (Hodge, 2005). Moreover, the client reveals that he has been experiencing some drenching night sweats that necessitate him to change his shirt during the night. The client shows weakness in the face with some bowel movements and difficulty in speaking and trouble seeing with both eyes. Besides, the patient past medical history has been marred with hypertension, which was diagnosed five years ago (Hodge, 2005).

The client mental health history has been accompanied by mental derangement over the past year, one year after being diagnosed with the stroke. The condition has made the client have a different personal appearance and having difficulty in social interaction with others. However, the client does not use any substance. After completing his studies at Reed College where he attained his degree in accountancy, the client worked in steel manufacturing company as level I accountant for three years before later being employed by the state government.

The client's social life has been in a company of his family and college friends. The client reveals not ever taking part in sporting activities even while at the college, he says most of the time they spent sitting down and playing cards. This is significant information that can contribute to the present condition of the patient (Spring, 2010). A sedentary lifestyle associated with the client's social life which was accompanied by a lot of sitting might have increased the likelihood of the client having obesity which eventually caused high blood pressure leading to the stroke. Non-participation in vigorous sporting activities and lack of exercise increases the chances of obesity which ultimately leads to stroke (Spring, 2010). The client has never been in the military.

Having been a victim of circumstance and being apprehended by the police due to late night walk with his colleagues, the client, found the prisons cells filthy which him together with other prisoners contact various types of illness despite being apprehended for less than six days. The conditions under which the prison cells are cleaned are not up to the standards and the medical attention being offered in prison is under the measure. Moreover, the client reveals that, prisoners are being subjected to poor services besides brutal treatment and after being ill, the is lack of proper medication as well, according to the 2006 report by the united states justice department, prisoners were found to be vulnerable than the general public to be experiencing severe illness that requires standard medical attention (Spring, 2010). For instance, about 45% of the prisoners have been reported to be having cancer, and stroke-related issues which is much higher than that of the general population is 31% this is some of the originating factors that have contributed to the condition of the patient (Hepworth, Rooney & Gottfried, 2013).

The family life cycle of the client is one of the significant factors that contributed to him being vulnerable to the condition. Lack of congruence concerning nee...