The article, Clinical Assessment, and Management of a Child with Bronchiolitis authored by Kelsall-Knight (2012) seeks to inform nurses of the proper methods of caring for children ailing from bronchiolitis. As the author outlines, nurses looking after children with bronchiolitis face challenges due to the variations in the level of conditions with which the patients present. Bronchiolitis can be mild or severe, and both levels require specialized attention at both the hospital and home after the patients have been discharged. As the author notes, both nurses and the caregivers should have firsthand information on how to deal with the situation to protect the vulnerable patients as well as preventing re-infection.
Q1
Two important ideas have been identified in the article that can be used to educate family members on bronchiolitis. First, the author provides the predisposing factors that can be critical in protecting children from the infection. According to him, children who are born prematurely are the biggest vulnerable group. The rationale for this is that they have a smaller airway that is easily blocked in case of an infection. Also, they are born with low levels of maternal immunoglobulin G which results in low immunity (Kelsall-Knight, 2012). When such factors are not taken into consideration when caring for such children, their conditions are likely to become severe.
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Secondly, the article provides information on the treatments and management of bronchiolitis. It is worth noting that in addition to targeting nurses in the article, the author offers crucial information which caregivers can use to offer a readily available solution. The author, using the available research classifies the condition into three categories including mild, moderate, and severe. To manage the mild condition, the parents should ensure that the affected children are adequately hydrated (Kelsall-Knight, 2012). A primary home remedy identified is to feed the children of smaller servings of milk while increasing the fluids that they consume. This ensures that they will not become tired when feeding regularly.
For moderate conditions, the parents should take the children to the hospital and whereby they are supposed to be admitted. The author also outlines that nurses should monitor the patients for vital signs and record their oxygen saturation levels. The recommend method of administering oxygen is the head box since it is less invasive (Kelsall-Knight, 2012). Besides, when the children cannot be federal, intravenous feeding is recommended. For severe cases, children should be admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit to receive respiratory support.
Q2
The two ideas presented by the author were selected for various reasons. First, they offer a comprehensive overview of how the children suffering from bronchiolitis are supposed to receive care. For instance, they offer both the preventive, management and treatment procedures that have been found to be effective. Secondly, the two ideas consider the different setting that they children are exposed to including the hospital and home. The two ideas guide both parents and the nurses on how to act in their respective environments.
The information may also be effectively used for patient teaching. Primary health care is concerned with the preventive mechanisms of different conditions, and this has been captured in the article through the two ideas. Although it includes information on how to care for children who are susceptible to bronchiolitis, the guidelines can be used by nurses to inform caregivers on how to offer quality care to the patients. This information has to do with the right diet for the patients, maintaining a safe environment and how to react when the symptoms of mild, moderate, and severe bronchiolitis are observed. Besides, by providing the background information on the various causes of bronchiolitis, the nurses would be in a position to caution the caregivers on what to desist from to ensure that their children are not unnecessarily exposed to the causative factors.
Q3
The information portrayed by the author is in agreement with the ideas expressed by other authors on the discussion board. The information concurs that bronchiolitis is a leading cause of hospitalization in children and infants. Also, risk reduction remains the most imperative method of controlling conditions in young children. Due to their weak immune system, exposure to the causative agents is likely to lead to a full blown condition. Furthermore, the author recognizes the caregivers as imperative stakeholders in children’s health since they spend most of their time with the children. Therefore, achieving a comprehensive health can only occur if they are involved in the health process. Such involvement has been regarded as critical for all the conditions that require both social and in kind assistance.
Conclusively, management and prevention have been identified as the most effective methods of addressing bronchiolitis in children. Management involves taking the necessary steps at the hospital including observing the children’s symptoms as well as offering them oxygen support in case of a severe condition. At home parents should ensure that the affected children are adequately hydrated and that they are taken to the hospital, then their symptoms deteriorate. Nurses should pass any information they deem relevant to the parents which involve taking care of the children with bronchiolitis to prevent the cases becoming severe.
References
Kelsall-Knight, L. (2012). Clinical assessment and management of a child with bronchiolitis. Nursing Children and Young People , 24 (8), 29-36.
