Genogram and Family Assessment in Nursing Practice: A Report

This report addresses a nursing assignment focusing on family assessment, specifically utilizing genograms and the FAMTOOL. The assignment requires defining genograms and explaining their rationale in nursing assessments. It also involves selecting and describing another family assessment tool, such as the FAMTOOL, and discussing its benefits. The report details how genograms visually depict family structures, including relationships, diseases, and behavioral patterns, while the FAMTOOL assesses family health, communication, and values. The FAMTOOL, a 4-point Likert scale, evaluates family dynamics and is crucial for planning socio-psychological nursing interventions. The report emphasizes the importance of these tools in understanding family health, identifying strengths and weaknesses, and guiding nursing interventions across various healthcare settings. References include Britt (2016), Forgeron et al. (2012), Weeks & O'Connor (1997), and Yarwood, Richardson & Watson (2016), highlighting the research and application of these assessment methods.

RUNNING HEAD: NURSING
NURSING
Name of Student
Name of University
Author note

1NURSING
Response to PART 2
The genogram represents a symbolic set that constitute the graphic representation
involving the diseases and dynamics of social relationships within family. The concept of
genogram is based on the customary genealogical tree that take into account – the hereditary
and the behavioral patterns along with the psychological facets in relationships. The
genograms has a potential for research studies as well as in nursing family assessments
(Yarwood, Richardson & Watson, 2016). It is used as screening test of patients and to draw a
genetic, psychological relationship of other family members with the case. This tool is
designed in such a way that it ensure the optimum level of care, the genetic and the
behavioral situations of entire family, which is difficult to acquire otherwise (Britt, 2016).
Genograms are applied hugely in nursing assessments to perform various important
investigations and interventions such as family counseling. It can be used as a tool to observe
the relationships and the patterns that is transferred from one generation to another generation
for explanation of the family issues. The flexibility of the tool make it perfect for planning of
any health education strategy intended to prevent diseases and from health promotion.
The FAMTOOL help the rehabilitation nurses to take a quick, a positive assessment
of the patients and also their family members. It helps in measurement of the entire family's
health. The tool helps in comparison of the responses in regards to family relationships. The
tool reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the family and the tool take into consideration
the whole family health system and it also includes the initial assessment of patients and their
families entering healthcare system. FAMTOOL is a tool with 4-point Likert scale marking
(Forgeron et al., 2012). It has responses such as – 1). 0- offalse 2) 1 - mostly false 3) 2-
mostly true (4) 3 –true. Total scores in 12 items spans from 0 to a maximum of 36 points. The
tool is used for the adults and the adolescents. FAMTOOL is taken up, independently by
family members during family assessment and interview. The FAMTOOL items performs a
concept analysis in order to point out the health of families, harmony and working together,
effective communication, collective beliefs, value connectedness, planning together, shared
decision making and working holistically with dimensions of physical, social, emotional,
spiritual health, mutual respect and optimism (Weeks & O'Connor, 1997).
The items of this tool represent the different domains present within the framework
of family health and how the nurses are to use this tool effectively in order to diagnose the
psychological and physical state of the entire family before planning the socio-psychological
nursing interventions. As for example, various items on FAMTOOL assesses human
behaviors so as to check the behavioral dynamics of the family and it is of stupendous vitality
to the nurses so as to make the right use of the tool in every manner. The FAMTOOL can
help the nurses within a broad spectrum of primary, the secondary, and the tertiary settings.
The FAMTOOL has twelve statements and each of which reveal critical facets of the family
structure and it is important for the nurses to use these relations and findings to great effect.

2NURSING
References
Britt, S. L. (2016). The intergenerational transference of money attitudes and behaviors.
Journal of Consumer Affairs, 50(3), 539-556.
Forgeron, J., Richter, S., Young, S., Higginbottom, G. M. A., Boyce, M., Ortiz, L., &
Callendar, S. (2012). Evaluating the utility of the FamCHAT ethnocultural nursing
assessment tool at a Canadian tertiary care hospital: A pilot study with
recommendations for hospital management.
Weeks, S. K., & O'Connor, P. C. (1997). The FAMTOOL family health assessment tool.
Rehabilitation Nursing, 22(4), 188-191.
Yarwood, J., Richardson, A., & Watson, P. (2016). PUBLIC HEALTH
NURSES'ENDEAVOURS WITH FAMILIES USING THE 15 MINUTE
INTERVIEW. Nursing Praxis in New Zealand, 32(3).