Community Nursing for Chronic Kidney Disease

Running Head: Nursing 0
COMMUNITY NURSING

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Introduction
Chronic disease means those diseases that continues for a long time and causes a serious
burden for life on family and nation. A person suffering from the disease is depended on other
individuals for support. They, in some cases are disabled for life. The individuals suffering from
the chronic disease causes the greatest burden on nation. One such chronic disease is chronic
kidney Disease that disables a person for life. There is treatment of the disease but owing to its
seriousness, it is incurable (Mayo Clinic, 2019). It is the situation where the kidneys are damaged
and are not healthy enough to purify the blood in the body thus leading to increased wastage in
the body. If the purification of the blood is not done then it may lead to death of an individual in
some cases. Such diseases hamper the normal functioning of the person and affect their various
aspects of their life. The essay will be highlighting the self-management strategies taught by the
community nurses to patient and his family to deal with kidney chronic disease.
Community Nursing
About Chronic Kidney Disease
Chronic kidney disease means the failure of the proper functioning of the kidneys to
purify the blood of an individual thus leading to toxicity in the body. The main job of the
Kidneys is to filter water and blood from the waste in the body. It also balances the salts and
minerals content in the body. When the functions of the kidney get hampered, the waste started
getting heaped in the body leading to the spread of toxics in the body. The failed kidneys can
only be treated with dialysis or complete transplant. According to the Australian Government
report, the Chronic Kidney Disease affects one in ten adults of Australia (1.7 Million)
(Australian Governement, 2019). The disease also contributes to one in nine deaths of Australian
adults. There are major causes due to which the disease occurs in an individual. The causes are
Diabetes, heart disease, High blood pressure and family history (Heart, 2019). The long-time
affliction with the high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease could lead to the Chronic
Kidney disease. The Chronic Kidney Disease initially causes no problems but as the condition of
the kidney exacerbates. The body started showing some symptoms. The symptoms include
fatigue, chest pain, dry skin, headaches, nausea, appetite loss, vomiting, insomnia, shortness of

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breath, and muscle cramps. The kidney disease could lead to other problems such as heart
disease and strokes (Obrador & Levin, 2019).
The diagnosis of the Chronic Kidney Disease can be done through estimated glomerular
filtration rate (EGFR), Urine test and blood pressure test. The chronic kidney disease can be
treated if diagnosed early. The treatment can be done to avoid Kidney failure that include
controlling blood Sugar, maintaining the healthy blood pressure and weight, consuming low salt
diet and limiting the intake Alcohol and smoke. If the kidneys are not treated properly then it
may cause kidney failures in a long run. The Kidney Failure can only be treated through dialysis
or kidney transplant (Brown & Brennan, 2015).
Many people think that suffering from chronic kidney disease could lead to dialysis. All
kidney diseases do not lead to dialysis. A person suffering from chronic kidney disease can lead
a productive lifestyle where a person can excel in his career and personal life by taking healthy
diet. Although the patient has full, potential to live a healthy life but managing One’s life along
with disease is not an easy task. An individual gets physically and mentally drained. The disease
sometimes creates frustration in the patient due to the increased fatigue (Lopez-Vargas & Craig,
2016). The conditions of the diseases might make individuals incapable of doing certain jobs
which require high physical labor such as the jobs in defense sector or any job which require the
high level of physical energy. The conditions of the disease might make some unfit for various
employment opportunities. Moreover, the disease causes the psychological and financial burden
on the families. It becomes a tough time for them to manage the things (Prasad - Reddy, Isaacs,
& Kantorovich, 2017).
Managing lifestyle with chronic disease
The management of the disease related symptoms becomes essential to live a normal
productive life by an individual. An individual can do the management in an effective manner, if
he has a proper knowledge of the disease. Everything related to the disease such as symptoms,
interventions to control them, a proper diet, and pharmacological ways of treating the symptoms
are taught to them (Ricardo, et al., 2016). The proper knowledge of the disease will increase the
awareness of the disease and they will be able to control the symptoms. The proper accumulation
of knowledge is not possible by the patients. It can teach them regarding the proper interventions
to control the symptoms. Various digital technologies can be used in improving their awareness