An Intervention for Obesity

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer discusses that obesity is escalating throughout North America as a result of macro-environmental, micro-environmental, as well as biological social and cultural factors. The writer also points out that obesity is linked to numerous diseases, psychological problems and mortality. The writer maintains that socio-cultural factors in the forms of advertising and ethnic customs influence the consumption of large amounts of unhealthful foods and interfere with the over-eater's motivation to eat healthfully. Further, the writer maintains that it is the role of the nurse to develop an effective individualized care plan. The writer concludes that best practices can be achieved by individual nurses, other health professionals, the entire unit, and by the mental health care system as a whole.

From the Paper:

"A gap analysis demonstrated inconsistencies between the evidence as outlined above and current practices. As indicated the research indicates the beneficial impact of nursing interventions upon reduction in patient overweight and obesity. However, on a rehabilitation unit and indeed on any surgical unit, overweight and obesity are much more aligned with crisis interventions and little can be achieved in the way of interventions simply because the problem is too pronounced. The overweight patient who must ambulate and participate in strenuous exercises after arthroplasty is just not capable of these actions. Interventions aimed at weight reduction are introduced out of realization of crisis but the patient needs to direct energies to recovery as well as to the intervention. Another consideration is that prompt discharge from the unit interferes with the type of sustained intervention that is needed."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dicenso, A., G. Guyatt & D. Ciliskaand (eds.). (2004). Evidence based nursing: A guide to clinical practice. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier, Mosby.
• Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (2002). Best practice guidelines. http://www.rnao.org
• Shaw, K., P. O'Rourke, C. Del Mar & Kennedy, J. (2006). Psychological interventions for overweight or obesity. The Cochrane Library, 4, 1-62.
• White, R. & Gettner, S. (2000). Predictors of rehospitalization for symptomatic venous thromboembolism after total hip arthroplasty. The New England Journal of Medicine, 343 (24), 1758-1765.

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• Dissertation or Thesis # 146324 : "The Prevention of Childhood Obesity"

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