E-Poster: Clinical Errors, Patient Risks, and Nursing Strategies

This e-poster assignment analyzes the case of Wilferd Dockrill, a 75-year-old patient admitted for asthma exacerbation, highlighting his vulnerability to clinical errors due to factors such as hearing and vision impairment, reluctance to use hearing aids, and age-related care needs. The assignment identifies three key clinical errors: negligence in care, delayed asthma treatment, and lack of awareness regarding hearing aids' importance, detailing the potential adverse consequences. The e-poster further outlines four strategies to mitigate these risks, including two specific communication strategies. It emphasizes the importance of effective communication and proactive nursing interventions to ensure patient safety and prevent health deterioration. References from various research papers are included to support the findings and recommendations.

HUMAN LIFE COURSE DEVELOPMENT
Strategies that can be implied in future:
To avoid the further deterioration of health, it is
extremely important to use effective prevention
strategies. In case of Mr. Wilfred, strategies that can be
applied to prevent further damage of health are as
follows:
• Proper care should be provided by the help of nurse,
who can assist him in performing all his daily
activates and hence reduces the risk of fall and other
health issue (Miller, 2018)
• As the patient is admitted due to exacerbation of
asthma, hence immediate treatment must be
provided such as, providing prescribed medication
which can provide quick relief (Short-acting beta
agonists, which are rapid relief bronchodilators
drugs and also has low risk of side effects) and
inhaler (Zein et al., 2015).
• Developing appropriate awareness regarding the
importance of hearing aids by the help of effective
communication between nurse and the patient
(Norouzinia et al., 2016).
Clinical errors
Clinical errors are defined as the
error in judgement observed in
clinical environment. In case of
Wilferd dockrill, the identified
clinical errors are:
• Negligence in the care.
• Delay in the treatment of
asthma.
• Lack of awareness regarding
the importance of hearing aids.
Potential consequences
• As the patient is 72 years old, he needs proper attention and care to complete the
daily activities. If proper care is not provided it can lead to further health
deterioration. For example, it may increase the risk of fall, which is commonly
observed in elder patient (Urden, Stacy & Lough, 2017).
• The patient is admitted to hospital due to the exacerbation of asthma. The
symptoms of the asthma is getting worse, if the treatment is delayed any more it
can lead to further deterioration of health such as, shortness of breath and chest
pain and can also be life threatening (Boulet, 2016).
• As the patient is suffering from auditory deficit, it is extremely important to wear
hearing aids all the time. In the absence of hearing aids, he might miss an
important information regarding his medication or asthma care which can lead to
health deterioration in future (Mahmoud et al., 2016).
Risk of healthcare and clinical
errors
Wilferd dockrill has an exacerbation of asthma
that is making his health condition worse.
He has been suffering from auditory and
optical deficit. He wears hearing aids in both
ears but avoids using it continuously to save
the batteries and also wears glasses.
He is 72 years old hence needs proper care.
References
Boulet, L.P., 2016. Asthma in the elderly patient. Asthma research and practice, 2(1), p.3.
CDC (2019). [online] Cdc.gov. Available at:
https://www.cdc.gov/asthma/pdfs/asthma_facts_program_grantees.pdf [Accessed 22 May
2019].
Mahmoudi, E., Zazove, P., Meade, M. and McKee, M.M., 2018. Association between hearing
aid use and health care use and cost among older adults with hearing loss. JAMA
Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, 144(6), pp.498-505.
Miller, C.A., 2009. Nursing for wellness in older adults. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Norouzinia, R., Aghabarari, M., Shiri, M., Karimi, M. and Samami, E., 2016. Communication
barriers perceived by nurses and patients. Global journal of health science, 8(6), p.65.
Urden, L.D., Stacy, K.M. and Lough, M.E., 2017. Critical care nursing: diagnosis and
management. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Zein, J.G., Dweik, R.A., Comhair, S.A., Bleecker, E.R., Moore, W.C., Peters, S.P., Busse, W.W.,
Jarjour, N.N., Calhoun, W.J., Castro, M. and Chung, K.F., 2015. Asthma is more severe in older
adults. PloS one, 10(7), p.e0133490.
Death rate observed due to asthma in
older patient is 37.2% (CDC, 2019). (CDC, 2019).