Laura's Case Study: Health Challenges, GP Interactions, and Solutions

This report presents a detailed analysis of a case study involving Laura, a 16-year-old girl experiencing various health issues, including asthma, physical injuries, and alcohol consumption, alongside challenges in communication and social engagement. The report examines Laura's interactions with her GP, Rob, highlighting both helpful and unhelpful actions taken during consultations. It delves into the complexities of her health literacy, behavior patterns, and the influence of her environment, including family dynamics and peer interactions. The report discusses the application of the Transtheoretical Model for behavior change and explores the suitability of various therapeutic approaches, such as psychodynamic and humanistic therapies, to address Laura's underlying emotional and psychological challenges. The analysis also includes recommendations for improving the GP's strategies, emphasizing the importance of addressing psychological issues, promoting health literacy, and involving the family appropriately while maintaining Laura's privacy and dignity. The report concludes with a comprehensive evaluation of the case, offering insights into effective healthcare strategies for adolescents facing similar challenges.

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This is the presentation of the case of Laura who is a 16 year old girl. She has been experiencing parental
separation from a very young age. Some of her traits include poor and lack of proper communication
skills with her half-brothers, friends and stepfather. Some of her health conditions include asthma which
has been at the mild end of the spectrum, Furthermore Laura has experienced a wrist injury and injury in
her ligament which has made her to disengage from sports. In the current scenario, she has been
withdrawing and isolating herself from the social commitments and attachments and has tend to adopt a
sedentary lifestyle.
One of the recent habits that Laura has adopted is the intake of alcohol by observing her friends and
peers doing the same. She has been furthermore been subjected to excessive consumption of alcohol.
Thus the collaborative and cumulative impact of physical and her physiological injuries is negative
attitude, behaviour, perceptions and lack of proper communications. Laura has been experiencing several
of health hazards and complications together with effecting on the poor achievements her skills and
achievements.
Over the consultation with her GP, Laura has been receiving numerous help and unhelpful actions. This
particular presentation highlights the problematic nature or behaviour of Laura , the consequences
relating her poor management of health and coping up with the effective strategies in relation to her
conditions.
INTRODUCTION
It can furthermore be helpful for Rob to modify the unhelpful action s by the incorporation of the
alteration that are generally more provoking in nature. Rob can furthermore change the mode of the
motivation. Irrespective of giving the booklets regarding the health, he can furthermore provide her with
some of the motivational videos that will help in grabbing quick attention of Laura (Nouri & Rudd,
2015).
Furthermore Rob should stop in involving the father of Laura since it is causing no help since Laura has
a very poor connection with him. According to personal insight of Laura, she feels that her step father
does not have love or affection towards her and she only hates him since he criticises her. This step of
rob will help in the restoration of the dignity and privacy of Laura. This will furthermore increase in the
rate of the trust and honesty over the service provided by Rob. Laura will furthermore get motivated that
this will help in prevention of her tendency towards withdrawal from the treatments. This will initiate in
positive influences over the health outcomes and she will furthermore be motivated regarding the
participation on sports. Hence forth Laura’s participation in physical activities will improve some of the
other health concern and issues that she has been facing.
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Laura has been behaving towards her self-perceptions due to the issue of poor communication. This
nature of her is very much problematic and chronic since she believes that the main cause behind all her
challenges and problems is her chronic fatigue syndrome, asthma and glandular fever. According to the
perception of Laura, her exhaustion, physical weakness, the lack of energy for taking medication on time
is related and connected to wrist injury, asthma and her injury over ligament and knee. Furthermore some
of her past experiences like the parental separation and physical injuries has resulted in some of the
major harmful nature and attitude towards her health condition (Maslow, 2013). For this reason, Laura
tends to make her decisions of behaviour on the basis of incomplete information and data. This situation
justifies towards the poor communication that adds to the low rate of the health literacy (Edwards et al.,
2015). It is basically her poor health awareness which has been preventing her from the sustainable
behavioural changes. This situation is furthermore contributed by perceptions, beliefs, opinions and
based over intuitions and emotions. One of the finest example is that Laura makes excuses of going to
bed in the time of withdrawing from exercises.
One of the trait among Laura is that she hates her step father and her friends have been preventing her
from having and enjoying a sedentary lifestyle through out. She is furthermore not at all comfortable to
openly communicate regarding her insecurities and her fear with her parents and peers. Laura wants to
stay with her dad and she has no body for reframing her thoughts that leads towards harmful and
negative attitude (Nouri & Rudd, 2015). She furthermore has failed towards perceiving the instances of
her weight gain as abnormal.
For the reason of poor social connections, Laura is being restricted to sleep, watch television and her
initiative towards part time work and also to gain weight. Some of the poor health habits and Laura is
generally unable towards perceiving the effect on her health status for the perceived notions. Laura’s
friend, Sarah, Elise are not at all engaged towards the promotion of health behaviour. This is furthermore
called the observational learning and she is involved in abuse of alcohol.
It is furthermore to note that excess consumption of alcohol is connected to poor concentration rampant
mood changes in disturbance of the communication pathways and poor physical weakness (Larimer,
2013).
Laura furthermore lacks the academic achievements. She lacks the intrinsic and the extrinsic motivation
of the change of her nature or the behaviour irrespective of the recommendation of doctor. Hence the
cumulative impact includes the physical inactivity, the laziness and the non-adherence towards medical
regimes.
Transtheoretical model is appropriate for Laura. As per the insight and the illustration by Kushnir et al.
(2016), the strategies of the behaviour needs to be based on the readiness of the individual regrading the
stages. The five of the stage models are :
Precontemplation-no intention to change
Contemplation- intention to change in future
Preparation- preparing to change in few days
Action- refers to active participation in change
Maintenance- able to maintain change for six months
Laura is on her precontemplation period. Rob should be employing the psychodynamic theory and the
humanistic towards the motivating Laura. This is because it is an effective treatment towards the addiction
since it helps towards individual towards coming in contact with the inaccessible aspect regrading her
inner feelings. It is furthermore to be understood that it is not possible to solve her issues and challenges
of the consumption of alcohol without knowing the repressed and the unconscious desires or the motives.
This method psychoanalysis might help Laura towards integration of her unconscious wishes. This method
and approach will furthermore help Laura towards engaging in her self reflection that will furthermore
help her in dealing with her self difficulties and challenges regrading her emotions like the poor
connections and communication skills the her family members and friends.
Some of the helpful reactions from Rob as illustrated in the case study –
Efforts to induce behaviour change
Elimination of negative impressions of Laura connected to the illness related to growth. Assistance to
Laura for changing her perception regrading her poor concentration, weakness which are not related to
medial ligament injury, asthma and injury in wrist. He motivated her, consoled her by the explanation
regarding the negative impact of the abuse of the alcohol and poor social connectedness. Rob furthermore
attempts to make her realise that poor health outcomes are connected to physical inactiveness and lazy
nature. It is evident from doctor’s words- “...drinking can cause serious problems.... combined with a lack
of activity, you not managing your asthma properly, and you carrying a bit of weight could all result in you
feeling tired…”
Counselling on health promoting activities
Repeated advocate of reduction of the consumption of alcohol. In doctors words- “Start by doing at least
30 minutes per day – activity that will make you puff slightly”. Other activities recommended by Rob
include running, walking, and swimming. In addition, Rob explains its health benefits. In his words
“...exercise can do wonders for your mood? ...”
Improving heath literacy
Rob tends to increase the awareness regarding the potential risk of the diabetes and heart attack in the
future. Rob gave Laura a set of the pamphlets that includes asthma, physical activity and the prevention of
the abuse of alcohol. These are furthermore helpful in educating her regarding the causes of the ill health
and the potential risks.
Involving family
Rob has initiated help by engaging Laura to her family. Due to her concern, this might help her to motivate
the change of her health habits.
Insert your fictitious employe
Some of the un helpful actions of Rob as appeared from the case scenario are:
Failure to address psychological issues
Failing to recognise due to low level of self esteem. Rob has been failing to understand that Laura has been
needing the cognitive behavioural change more than the lifestyle changes.
Failure to address the problem of self-actualisation
Problem solving, creativity and spontaneity
Patient’s dignity and respect
By the involvement of the family , Rob was a failure to maintain the confidentiality regarding the problem
of Laura. It might help her to withdraw from the further considerations and treatments. For the instance,
Laura was being offered when David said that Laura does nothing , around the house and she has been too
lazy for taking her asthma medications on a proper basis.