Family health assessment part 2

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Family Health Assessment Paper Part I

Students Name

NRS-429VN: Family Centered Health Promotion

Family Health Assessment Part 1

Family structure and style is an essential aspect of health today. Any health worker must understand these aspects well as it assists inpatient and family health care. To understand a given family structure, a given individual will be required to conduct a family assessment to evaluate certain aspects that are important for the patient and family care. Assessment by a given individual can be carried out through the utilization of several methodologies. The most appropriate method is the use of interviews and questionnaires which will be answered by the family members to understand the structures. Understanding family structures and styles will enable individuals to identify the strengths and potential barriers to health. However, the information also enables a health care worker to develop the family-centered strategies utilized for support and guidance in health. The purpose of the paper is to enable us to understand family structures and their impacts on family and patients care

Family questionnaires

1.Does your family has given perception towards the health of a given individual in the community

· Yes

· No

2.What percentage of individuals pay attention to their nutritional status

a) 100%

b) 50%

c) 10%

d) 0%

3. How many hours do the individuals in the family approximately sleep after work

· 8 hours

· 2hours

· 6hours

· 4 hours

4.Does the family practice elimination yes-----, no----

5. Do people in the family exercise frequently to maintain their health yes......, no------

6. Does anybody in the family have problems with their cognitive ability Yes..... no........

7. How many individuals might have problems with their sensory organs in the family---------

8. Do individuals in that family have confidence in their self-esteem, Yes....., No.....

9. How good is the role relationship of the family Excellent...., better......, bad.....

10. How many males and females do we have in the family

a) Males-----

b) Females------

11.Does the family structure allows for coping with the environment surrounding the family Yes...., No...

Family structures

Family structure describes members of a household who are linked by certain aspects. They are either linked by blood or marriage. For an individual to best understand family structures, aspects such as family composition, race, ethnicity, spirituality, social class, and many others must be put into consideration. Several attributes must be put into consideration when trying to define the above aspects of family structures.

Several attributes define the family composition, race/ethnicity, social class, spirituality, and environment of a family in South Africa which constitute the father aged 49 years, mother 43 years, children who are 25 years and 7 years respectively, and an adopted child who is 8 years. Family composition refers to a group of individuals who share a common tie that is either by blood, affection, or co-residence. This aspect does not necessarily mean parents and their children but different individuals differing in terms of age and relationships. Several attributes define this family's composition. The attributes include a relationship by common tie and blood, the relationship constitutes of the individuals who show love and caring to other individuals, family composition supports open communication and making every individual in the family to feel important, respected, esteemed and important. Besides family composition, some attributes define the race/ethnicity of this group. This includes the culture of the individuals (Zulu), language (Zulu) which they speak, religion (Christianity), and traditions of these particular individuals of a given family.

Moreover, certain aspects define the social class, spirituality, and environment of a given family. Attributes that define social class include the income obtained by the family members with the mother, father, and one of the sons being at work thereby getting a better income, wealth and education and occupation of these individuals with the father being a Doctor, the mother a nurse and the son being an information expert. Attributes that define spirituality include the meaning of that spiritual practice, transcendence, values, connection with oneself and others, and becoming a subject of progress. The environment is defined by the benefits which the family has with the community and the relationship which the family has with the people around.

Family health and behaviors

The family has their way which they seek for health. Them being from a well-developed family, they have insurance covers that protect their family members in case of any disease arising. Currently, all the family members are in good health and there is no family member who has a pre-existing condition. Although they seek health from the hospitals, they still believe in the utilization of bitter herbs in the treatment of their diseases for example utilization of Artemisia herb in the treatment of malaria (Bora, 2011). There is no family member that has been admitted to the hospital as a result of any illness. The family advocates for a conducive environment for all the members. Thus, any member of the family can raise an issue and it will be discussed by everyone. Moreover, the family has a meal plan that ensures that they eat healthily. The children have a high ability to comprehend things and learning showing that their cognitive is very high. There is no family member who has a sensory-perception issue. The sexuality of the parents is good as they relate well among themselves and with their children. They also have a high self-perception as they are working in a project together despite the little time that they have. They all want the best for the family.

Findings

There are various strengths and barriers which is noted from this particular family in South Africa. One of the functional health pattern strengths was identified in nutrition. The family is very strict about what they consume. The mother ensures that in every meal, a balanced diet is taken. That ensures that all the family members eat healthy while at home. Additionally, the food that each person consumes is portioned appropriately depending on their body mass index and the activities that they undertake (Karaca, 2016). The family has a very strict rule of drinking water. Each person has a water bottle that they use to take water. The children carry packed water in the morning as they head for school.

The family also has a good role relationship. They divide the roles among themselves evenly and depending on what a person enjoys doing. That makes it easier to carry out the roles effectively. The family has an open forum once every week. That creates a platform whereby any member of the family can air their views about any matter. It also creates an opportunity to discuss any issues that might have been identified during the week. Although the father is the head of the family, the decisions are made based on the majority view. That has also enabled the family to have a good coping mechanism. If any member has an issue, they are not afraid to air their issues out as they are sure they will be solved amicably.

Some barriers to health were identified in the questionnaire. One of the barriers that were identified was in the area of activities and exercises. The family does not have a family gym. Additionally, there is no member of the family that has signed up in a local gym. The parents have sedentary jobs thus making lack of exercising bad for their health. However, the children take part in activities but only at school. Exercising is good to boost one’s health. The family tries to compensate for that by eating clean but that should not be the way. They should eat clean and also exercise to keep fit and healthy (Margaritelis et al., 2018).

The family also has a poor sleeping pattern. That applies more to the parents. Both parents are employed but their jobs sometimes require some nights on call. Thus, they wake up very early to conduct their research before heading to their respective jobs. Consequently, they sleep late as they are talking with their kids since they reach home late. To improve the overall health of the family, the sleeping and resting patterns should be improved. Additionally, due to drinking a lot of water, most of the times almost everyone wakes up at night to relieve themselves.

Application of Family systems theory

Family systems theory is an important aspect in bringing changes in the family. Family systems theory defines a family as a complex social system that involves the interaction of members to influence each other's behavior. According to Luhmann (2013), a system formation happens in reality and theorists must exclusively describe what they are. The family system theory is a theory of human behavior that indicates that a family is an emotional unit and it uses systems thinking to describe the complex interactions in the unit (Erdem & Safi, 2018). Thus, the members of the family are connected to each other emotionally. Being an emotional unit indicates that the family can affect the members’ thoughts actions, and feelings. That indicates that the family system’s theory can be used to solicit changes in family members. As the family members talk about issues, it affects how some of the members view such things. Thus, for instance, if they are speaking about something that should not be done, the family members will know that such a thing is wrong and they will change. Such changes ensure that the family members adopt good ways and live the bad ways. Thus, in general, it promotes positive changes to the overall family functions over time.

Rosenbusch (2012), shows the need for the wellbeing of families of expatriate families based on the family systems theory. He states there should be boundaries set to ensure that the children of expatriates are comfortable. for instance, if the Zulu family goes to work in another country, family systems theory maintains the connection between the members. According to theory, it states that even if a family breaks there is still that connection existing among the family members. This aspect shows the importance of the family systems theory to family change.

Conclusion

The purpose of this paper was met based on the discussion above. The paper enables one to understand different aspects of family structures that are attributes that define different elements of family structures. However, it enables one to understand family health and behaviors which is important to the lives of these individuals of this South African Zulu family. It was discovered that the family has a good role relationship, coping, and nutrition health behavior. However, some challenges were identified in the exercise, sleeping patterns, and elimination health categories. The paper has also enabled us to understand how the family systems theory applies to this aspect of family structures.

References

Luhmann, N., Baecker, D., & Gilgen, P. (2013). Introduction to systems theory. Cambridge: Polity.

Rosenbusch, K., & Cseh, M. (2012). The cross-cultural adjustment process of expatriate families in a multinational organization: A family system theory perspective. Human Resource Development International, 15(1), 61-77.

Erdem, G., & Safi, O. A. (2018). The cultural lens approach to Bowen family systems theory: Contributions of family change theory. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 10(2), 469-483.

Karaca, T. (2016). Functional Health Patterns Model–A Case Study. Case Studies Journal ISSN (2305-509X) Volume, 5.

Margaritelis, N. V., Paschalis, V., Theodorou, A. A., Kyparos, A., & Nikolaidis, M. G. (2018). Antioxidants in personalized nutrition and exercise. Advances in Nutrition, 9(6), 813-823.

Bora, K. S., & Sharma, A. (2011). The genus Artemisia: a comprehensive review. Pharmaceutical Biology, 49(1), 101-109.