Impact of Recent Life Events on Justin's Health and Well-being

This nursing assignment discusses the impact of recent life events on Justin's health and well-being, his cultural interpretation of mental illness, communication strategies, and priorities of care planning.

Running head: NURSING ASSIGNMENT
NURSING ASSIGNMENT
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Describe how Justin’s health and well-being might be impacted by his recent life events.
The case study states that the risk associated with Type-II Diabetes, had been
prevalent in the O’Dowd’s family pertaining to the genetic influence. This can be counted as
an important factor that led to the manifestation of Diabetes-type II in Justin. Further, the
poor economic status of the family has acted as a major obstacle in availing appropriate
treatment interventions. Research studies state that families belonging to lower economic
groups are often exposed to a high risk of developing disorders such as Diabetes type-II
(Tilamn and Clark 2014). Also, Justin had been affected by the condition at an early age and
this led to harbouring depressive thoughts. The client has reported to feel low and unworthy
of himself. Also, another major contributing factor for the promotion of poor mental health
can be defined as the episode of bullying faced by the client in his high school. It can be said
that bullying has elicited symptoms of depression in the client (Almutairi et al. 2015). Also,
the case study reports that the client lost his uncle who was dear to him and this could also
negatively affect the emotional equilibrium of the client. The client has reported to feel
extremely active and positive about himself during his high school days, primarily because he
was not subjected to episodes of bullying (Holt et al. 2015). Therefore, the factors mentioned
above can be probable contributors in deteriorating the physical as well as mental health
status of the client.
How might Justin’s cultural interpretation of mental illness be different from your
own?
In close association to the case study, it has been mentioned that Justin belongs to the
aboriginal community. The indigenous community perceives mental health to be an influence
of balck magic and an evil spirit influence (Brooker and Waugh 2013). I am a Christian and
there is stark contrast in the perception of mental health disorders between my community

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and the indigenous community. My community perceives mental health disorders as a
condition that requires immediate attention. There is no discrimination made in the way a
challenged person is perceived by the community members. In fact, there are a number of
community support organizations who aim at providing assistance to the mental health
patients depending upon the type of their disorder.
Identify how your own attitudes and values relating to mental illness may influence any
communication with Justin?
I am a Christian and my religion and traditional beliefs expect me to be kind and
generous to all. At the same time, I have taken up the noblest profession as my career
prospect. As a nursing student, I have been trained in cultural competency. Hence, according
to my perspective I believe that with reference to the knowledge that has been delivered in
terms of the cultural competence models used in nursing and my practicum experience, I
would be able to carry out an effective and culturally safe communication with Justin. I
firmly believe that mental illness should not be associated with social stigma. It is just an
unstable state of mind that can affect any individual at any age (Carey 2015). It is important
to reflect upon the condition of the affected individual and support the patient in order to
speed up the recovery process. It is essential to understand the underlying cause of the
development of a specific mental illness and devise an appropriate recovery intervention
(Ferdinand et al. 2013).
How can partnerships with Justin and his immediate and/or extended family be
developed and maintained throughout his journey of care to enhance recovery.
As has already been mentioned in the case study, the client is depressed in relation to
his recent life-events. In order to devise an effective care plan for Justin, it is important to
maintain a positive patient-centred approach. It can be said that because Justin does not have

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a social circle, the care approach should be build upon following a family-centred approach.
Involving Justin’s parents would help in speeding up the recovery process. Educating the
family members about Justin’s risk factor would help in designing a risk free environment for
Justin (Herring et al. 2013). It would also help in ensuring that Justin is not left alone at any
point of time as that would lead to the occurrence of feelings related to worthless, self-guilt
and demotivation (Holt et al. 2015).
What are the social and cultural implications for Justin leaving his home and community
for assessment and treatment in the city?
As Justin hails from the aboriginal community. It can be said that leaving his home
and community can elicit feelings related to homesickness and cultural gap. It should be
noted here that Justin has already had a bad experience related to the episodes of bullying that
he had faced in his High School. Hence, Justin would be concerned about the manner in
which he treated on leaving his home and going to the city to avail his treatment. Studies
predict that societal distance can lead to feelings that would harbour feelings of depression
and anxiety (Horvat et al. 2014)
What needs to happen to ensure culturally safe care for Justin once he is hospitalised?
In order to ensure a culturally safe care, it is important to ensure that Justin is placed
under the care of health care professionals who are culturally competent. The best
recommendation could be to designate professionals belonging to the indigenous background
as his immediate care givers, so to provide a culturally safe care (Kelaher 2014). This would
make Justin comfortable and he would be able to trust the devised treatment procedure. He
should be educated about his medical health condition and the professionals should comply
with the ethical guidelines so as to provide an effective care delivery.

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From the information in the Mental Health Assessment and Mental State Examination,
what are the identified areas of concern and the priorities of care planning for Justin?
From the MSE score, it can be said that the identified areas of primary concern is the
presence of ‘suicidal ideation’ and ‘Mood and affect’. The client has reported to feel
extremely low in the mood and during the evaluation had very limited eye contact. The client
has further reported to feel extremely unworthy of himself and has also reported to harbour
suicidal thoughts (Parker and Milroy 2014). The client had also stated that he had a bleak
future and that his existence was futile. He had terribly lost weight and experienced
abnormality in his sleep pattern. Hence, the identified areas of concern would be mood and
affect and suicidal ideation.
Read the 1:1 intervention notes and identify the communication skills/strategies that are
allowing the health professional to talk with Justin in a culturally safe and recovery
focused manner.
The communication style adopted by a professional to engage in the process of
counselling can either elicit hope and optimism or can even lead to the worsening of the
situation. It should be noted here that the health care professional engaged in the conversation
with Justin is talking in a respectful manner. This can be counted as an effective example of
conducting the interview in a culturally safe manner. It should also be noted that talking
about suicide is a sensitive issue hence the professionals must be cautious while dealing with
such sensitive themes (Rotenstein et al. 2016). Another important phenomenon is to be able
to relate with the cultural and historical background of the patient (Thackrah and Thompson
2013). All these instances have been portrayed in the conversation style of the professional.

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Review the discharge plan and 3-month review and consider how Justin can be
supported to continue on his path of recovery a n d maintain his well-being when he
returns to his family and community.
Justin had been discharged on the basis of his testimony that he had confessed to the
Aboriginal Liason Hospital Officer. However, I feel that the decision of discharging Justin
was not completely correct. Justin had been evaluated to be critically depressed and he had
still been experiencing problems with his sleep pattern and his ability to manage his personal
hygiene. Hence, it can be predicted that on going home, the situation would further worsen
because Justin is still vulnerable and is not completely cured. According to my knowledge
and experience, I feel that Justin must be accompanied by a home-care nurse who would
accompany Justin to his home town and would help him for a while to get accustomed to his
family environment. This would not only help in making the process of transition easier but
would also help in making the family members aware about Justin’s present medical health
status and thereby create a safe environment around him (Walker et al. 2014).
After considering the issues for Justin, reflect on your own experiences of relating to
people from different cultures. Consider what you have learnt from Justin's story and
how your new knowledge might influence your practice.
I have had the opportunity to deal with a diverse group of clients belonging to
different cultural and religious background. Initially, I found it extremely difficult to be able
to carry out an effective communication. However, with my clinical experience and
theoretical concept on cultural safety models, I have been able to improve on my skills. The
informative case study on Justin has helped in developing a clear understanding about the
communication style that must be adapted while dealing with aboriginal patients. Further, it
has also helped me in relating better to the indigenous patients and possess a deeper

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understanding about the existing policies designed to help the indigenous population base of
Australia.

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References:
Almutairi, A.F., McCarthy, A. and Gardner, G.E., 2015. Understanding cultural competence
in a multicultural nursing workforce: Registered nurses’ experience in Saudi
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Brooker, C. and Waugh, A., 2013. Foundations of Nursing Practice E-Book: Fundamentals
of Holistic Care. Elsevier Health Sciences.pp.117
Carey, M., 2015. The limits of cultural competence: an Indigenous Studies
perspective. Higher Education Research & Development, 34(5), pp.828-840.
Ferdinand, A., Paradies, Y. and Kelaher, M., 2013. Mental health impacts of racial
discrimination in Victorian Aboriginal communities. Lowitja Institute.
Herring, S., Spangaro, J., Lauw, M. and McNamara, L., 2013. The intersection of trauma,
racism, and cultural competence in effective work with aboriginal people: Waiting for
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Holt, M.K., Vivolo-Kantor, A.M., Polanin, J.R., Holland, K.M., DeGue, S., Matjasko, J.L.,
Wolfe, M. and Reid, G., 2015. Bullying and suicidal ideation and behaviors: a meta-
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Kelaher, M.A., 2014. Experiencing racism in health care: the mental health impacts for
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Parker, R. and Milroy, H., 2014. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health: an
overview. Working together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and

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wellbeing principles and practice. 2nd ed. Canberra: Department of The Prime
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Rotenstein, L.S., Ramos, M.A., Torre, M., Segal, J.B., Peluso, M.J., Guille, C., Sen, S. and
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