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Sunday, November 1, 2009: 4:35 PM
Learning Objective 1: use the competencies of geriatric practice to guide learning and support communication with older adults.
Learning Objective 2: develop an understanding of the professional responsibilities of providing care to better support healthy aging.
With the rapidly growing older adult population, nurses are truly the key providers for the older adult assisting them in: (1) managing their chronic illnesses; (2) complying with medications/treatments; and (3) supporting referrals to community agencies for individual needs. Nursing students are learning of the importance of having an understanding of the social and political issues facing the older adult in order to support their questions and concerns about health care and services.
As the population ages and advances in medical care try to keep older adults with multiple health concerns viable, nurses need to have the opportunity to have conversations about and with older adults. Through a partnership with an older adult theatre group, Stagebridge Theatre Training Company, nursing students were supported in their learning and encouraged to dialogue and role-play situations experienced by older adults. Nursing students worked through their issues related to the stereotypes and personal biases they had on aging and reflected on beliefs and values. This partnership supported communication and effective ways to teach about the health and care of the older adult aging-in-place. Learning how to react when they hear comments expressed by other nurses, health care workers, families, or the older adult themselves did prove to be helpful in group discussions and personal reflection about care, treatments provided, and communication regarding informed consents.
This pilot project was introduced to nursing students in the initial weeks of their first clinical course in order to support their learning to better assess their own communication and skills with older adults, families, and caregivers. Dialogues with participants were centered on sensitive issues related to hospitalization, driving, hearing impairments, vision issues, end-of-life issues, advanced directives, insurance coverage, and medication management. The older adults in this theatre group helped nursing students to address the physiological and psychological aging concerns with reflective discussion and active participation.
This presentation will be able to provide information on the geriatric competencies that students learned in case scenarios. Each student validated that reflection of specific personal experiences were of value in planning care, communicating, and advocating for the older adults and families.
As the population ages and advances in medical care try to keep older adults with multiple health concerns viable, nurses need to have the opportunity to have conversations about and with older adults. Through a partnership with an older adult theatre group, Stagebridge Theatre Training Company, nursing students were supported in their learning and encouraged to dialogue and role-play situations experienced by older adults. Nursing students worked through their issues related to the stereotypes and personal biases they had on aging and reflected on beliefs and values. This partnership supported communication and effective ways to teach about the health and care of the older adult aging-in-place. Learning how to react when they hear comments expressed by other nurses, health care workers, families, or the older adult themselves did prove to be helpful in group discussions and personal reflection about care, treatments provided, and communication regarding informed consents.
This pilot project was introduced to nursing students in the initial weeks of their first clinical course in order to support their learning to better assess their own communication and skills with older adults, families, and caregivers. Dialogues with participants were centered on sensitive issues related to hospitalization, driving, hearing impairments, vision issues, end-of-life issues, advanced directives, insurance coverage, and medication management. The older adults in this theatre group helped nursing students to address the physiological and psychological aging concerns with reflective discussion and active participation.
This presentation will be able to provide information on the geriatric competencies that students learned in case scenarios. Each student validated that reflection of specific personal experiences were of value in planning care, communicating, and advocating for the older adults and families.