Caring for the Elder with Impairments in Hearing and Vision

Hearing and vision impairments’ care for the elderly
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Hearing and vision impairments’ care for the elderly
Introduction
Nursing assessment is the collection of information about a patient, including their basic data such as age, weight, height, and place of birth, and physiological, sociological, psychological, and spiritual data. This information helps the nurses to come up with an effective care plan for the patient. Nursing assessment is important for all suspected conditions, including those that come with the old age, for example, hearing and vision-related problems. Such an evaluation requires the use of specific screening tools and diagnostic procedures, which are specific to the condition being examined. This paper aims to discuss nursing assessment procedures for vision and hearing problems, the different conditions, and the evaluation processes followed.
Nursing Assessment
Nursing assessment is important to determine the level of hearing and vision loss an elderly person has. It helps the medical practitioners to create a sustainable care plan that helps the old cope with the changes they experience at that time. The nurses also get the information they require to guide the family members on the ways they should handle the elderly. When screening for hearing loss, nurses use whispered voices, clock ticks, and finger-rub techniques to determine the intensity of the problem. They also use varying distance voices to evaluate the response of the old person being assessed (Moyer, 2012).

Vision impairment assessment includes long and short vision, contrast, and color sensitivity. The nurses use a score to determine the severity of vision impairment and sensitivity (Wang, Chan, & Chi, 2014).
Medical professionals need to use diagnostic measures to determine the extent of the loss in function. For hearing loss, it is important to look at possible causes of the problem, including ear discharge, earache, tinnitus, vertigo, and inflammation of ear parts like pinna and postaural areas. Further tests can be done using audiogram, Weber, and Rinne tests. The purpose of these tests is to measure the frequencies the old person can process. Usually, the old cannot process the high-frequency sounds, which are the most common (Soucek & Michaels, 2012). The eye tests are different, and they involve extraocular muscle function, acuity tests, papillary reflex, examination using pen light and cover card to determine the position of the eye, and corneal status check. Checking the different parts of the eye is based on the revelation that any of them can cause a declined function of this important organ (Souza, 2014).
Screening and diagnosis can lead to the detection of some conditions for both hearing and vision impairment. The common ones for auditory are presbycusis that is more prevalent in men, Meniere’s disease, otosclerosis, and tinnitus (Moini, 2012). The most common visual conditions among the old are macular degeneration, cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy. These conditions, also known as the four eye diseases, are because of the reduced neural function that controls the visual functions. The symptoms manifest in different ways, including cloudy visions, eye hemorrhage, yellow spots (drusen), and watery eyes (Crews & Whittington, 2000).
Conclusion
It is clear that nursing assessment is important to determine the levels of vision and hearing impairments among the old. The process uses normal screening and advanced diagnostic measures. These procedures not only help the nurses to determine the level of functionality, but also the diseases affecting these important body parts. This information helps the medical practitioners to devise effective intervention plans that make the lives of these people better.
References
Crews, J. E., & Whittington, F. J. (2000). Vision Loss in an Aging Society: A Multidisciplinary Perspective. New York, N.Y.: American Foundation for the Blind.
Moini, J. (2012). Introduction to Pathology for the Physical Therapist Assistant. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Moyer, V. A. (2012). Screening for Hearing Loss in Older Adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement. Annals of Internal Medicine, 157(9), 655-661.
Soucek, S.L., & Michaels, L. (2012). Hearing Loss in the Elderly: Audiometric, Electrophysiological and Histopathological Aspects. London, United Kingdom: Springer Science & Business Media.
Souza, T. A. (2014). Differential Diagnosis and Management for Chiropractors. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Wang, C., Chan, C. L. W., & Chi, I. (2014). Overview of Quality of Life Research in Older People with Visual Impairment. Advances in Aging Research, 3, 79-94.