Health Case Study: Analyzing Munny's Risks, Interventions, and Ethics

This case study examines Munny's health challenges, including job-related stress and the impact of past trauma. The analysis identifies the risk of cardiovascular disease due to stress and highlights the need for immediate interventions, such as advising Munny to resign from his stressful job to prioritize his health. Ethical considerations, particularly informed consent and patient autonomy, are discussed. The study also addresses Munny's mental health concerns stemming from childhood trauma, recommending psychotherapy as a key intervention. The document emphasizes the importance of understanding the patient's feelings, moods, and behaviors to effectively manage stress and trauma, with a focus on long-term mental health support. References from various research papers support the arguments made in the case study.

One of the urgent risk areas based on the case study is Munny’s job. According to the
case study, Munny finds his job stressful because he has to start working very early in the
morning. Munny also gets more stressed when he finds out that his employer is not contented
with his services and he is likely to be fired. Stress is a major risk factor for cardiovascular
diseases. This is so because high levels of cortisol from long term stress increase the cholesterol
and triglycerides which with time accumulate in the blood vessels blocking the transfer of blood
(An et al., 2016). When this happens, the function of blood vessels is impaired resulting in a
heart attack.
One of the interventions I would take with my client is taking a break from the stressor.
Since Munny’s job is becoming stressful to him and affecting his health, the best thing to do is to
take a break from the stressor. This is so because the health of a person comes first before
anything else since the productivity of an unhealthy person is always low compared to healthy
people (Cook et al., 2017). Therefore, I will advise Munny to write to his employer seeking his
approval for resignation citing health issues as the main reason for the same. This will happen
immediately Munny confesses that his job is stressing him.
One of the ethical issues that a nurse needs to take into consideration when working with
Munny is the issue of informed consent. The concept of informed consent stipulates that the
patients should be informed about the risks and benefits of the medical procedure he is to be
subjected to (DeHart et al., 2014). Before subjecting Munny to any medical procedure, there is a
need to inform him of the benefits and risks of that procedure. Also, the nurse should consider
the patient's right to self-determination which holds that the patient has a right to make a decision
about the medical procedure he is to be subjected to including refusing treatment (Cervantes
Gracia et al., 2017).

The major mental health concern from the case study is the trauma that Munny
underwent while young when his family was displaced and his father shot by Khmer Rouge.
Early life adversities such as trauma have been reported to be the major risk factor for the
development of behavioral and psychological problems later in life (An et al., 2016). Also,
people who have experienced childhood maltreatment or adversities have been reported to have
higher rates of depression and traumatic stress which are major risk factors of psychological
problems (Cervantes Gracia et al., 2017). Therefore, since Munny went through a traumatizing
experience during his early life, he is likely to be experiencing mental problems.
The best intervention that I can undertake with my client to address the mental health
concern of trauma addressed above is psychotherapy. Psychotherapy involves booking an
appointment with a mental health professional to talk about the mental health-related issues that
the patient is experiencing. Psychotherapy is important because it helps a person learn about his
condition, moods, feelings as well as behavior. The knowledge a person gets through
psychotherapy will help him control, cope and manage stress (DeHart et al., 2014). Normally,
successful psychotherapy takes months to be completed. Therefore, I will book an appointment
with a therapist on behalf of Munny as soon as I have realized his moods, feelings, and thoughts
are changing.

Reference
An, K., Salyer, J., Brown, R. E., Kao, H. F. S., Starkweather, A., & Shim, I. (2016). Salivary
biomarkers of chronic psychosocial stress and CVD risks: a systematic
review. Biological research for nursing, 18(3), 241-263.
Cook, A., Spinazzola, J., Ford, J., Lanktree, C., Blaustein, M., Cloitre, M., ... & Mallah, K.
(2017). Complex trauma in children and adolescents. Psychiatric annals, 35(5), 390-398.
Cervantes Gracia, K., Llanas-Cornejo, D., & Husi, H. (2017). CVD and oxidative stress. Journal
of Clinical Medicine, 6(2), 22.
DeHart, D., Lynch, S., Belknap, J., Dass-Brailsford, P., & Green, B. (2014). Life history models
of female offending: The roles of serious mental illness and trauma in women’s pathways
to jail. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 38(1), 138-151.