Application of Clinical Reasoning Cycle

Running head: APPLICATION OF CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 1
Application of Clinical Reasoning Cycle
Student’s Name
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APPLICATION OF CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 2
Application of Clinical Reasoning Cycle
Mr. Joni is an individual whose life can expose him to different health risks. From his
age, the patient is slowly entering the risky age where people who are aged 65 years and above
have a higher risk of developing life-related complications. The fact that he has a poor diet due to
eating out and limited exercise means that he is at the risk of becoming obese which leads to
multiple complications. For lifestyle diseases and conditions, patient history is important since it
determines the conditions that Joni is likely to develop. Since he has a history of hypertension,
has moderate obstructive sleep apnea and smokes one pack of cigarette a week plus a few beers
show the risks that he is prone to. Further, genetic factors also exist since his father has
hyperglycemia and experienced stroke three years ago creates other risks that can expose him to
multiple complications.
From the case study, Mr. Joni can be seen to be living under conditions that can expose
him to developing heart-related conditions. This is because, from his medical examination, he
has hypertension and sleep apnea which can highly increase the likelihood of heart-related
conditions. Family history is also shapes the possibility of developing the condition since he
comes from a family with a history of life-related conditions. The nature of his lifestyle has
limited his ability to exercise and he can only afford walking to or from the station. When
frustrated at work, he smokes more than one packet of cigarette a week and drinks a couple of
beers every Thursday. When all these factors are combined with his medical history and family
medical history, it worth concluding that he is at the risk of developing heart-related conditions.
According to Bundgaard, Nielsen, Delmar, & Sorensen (2011) patient information is
important in determining the risk factors that exist and how they can lead to the development of
other life-threatening conditions. This means that the assessment of patient medical history and

APPLICATION OF CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 3
clinical signs forms the basis of clinical judgment and the care plan. The first information that
relates to the challenge that Joni is the hypertension problem that he has. Messerli, Rimoldil, &
Bangalore (2017) suggests that longstanding hypertension develops into heart failure since it
creates increased risks of heart disease. This can be seen from the nature of medications that the
patient is taking and vital observations like heart rate, blood pressure, and heart rate variability
which seem higher than the normal observations.
Patient lifestyle is also an important element in the development of multiple
complications in patients who have hypertension. Joni smokes at least one packet of cigarettes
every day and drinks several beers which can increase the risk of complications. Smoking
damages artery linings which lead to building up of atheroma that narrows the arteries (Hajar,
2017). The accumulation of carbon dioxide from smoke also reduces the amount of oxygen in
the body. In hypertension patients, this can increase the heartbeat due to the need for the heart to
pump faster to supply oxygen. Alcohol, on the other hand, is linked to increased blood pressure
which relates to heart-related problems. This means that the patient is at the risk of developing
chest heaviness as the heart strains to pump blood.
On the other hand, genetic factors have been highly attributed to the risk of developing
heart-related complications. Family members share genes, lifestyles, behaviors and even the
environment that influences the health outcomes of the individual. Imes & Lewis (2014) argues
that genetic factors can increase the development of blood pressure, heart disease and other
complications. The risk of heart disease has been said to be high when heredity combines with
lifestyle choices. This is seen in the case of Joni whose father has other complications like
hyperlipidemia and stroke which are all pointers of heart-related complications. This means that