Monday, October 19, 2009

Just my thoughts:)




Describe on theory about the general pathophysiologic changes that occur in cancer from the cellular level to the tumor stage.
Cancer as a whole usually occurs from a mutation of a single cell. This cell then grows out of control because there is an absent of signal that alerts normal cell growth (Hurst, 2008). At a certain point the normal cell is no longer capable of returning to its orginal form and growth continues. Some cancer may be benign which usually is in a single location whereas metastasis is usually spread form its orginal unit. When metastasis occurs the cancer cells divide rapidly and tend to become overly aggressive. Some changes that may be present upon assessment of a cancer patient include: changes in their GI/GU habits, abnormal bleeding or discharge, presence of lumps, change in daily intake due to indigestion or sores and pain. Tumors may occur on glands, tissue, organs, or any part of the body depending on its blood source which is needed for growth and maintenance. The abnormal growth of cells forms a tumor (lump) that may interrupt other bodily function such as normal hormonal secretion. Now lets say that there is a tumor growing on a gland such as a thyroid, this tumor then may cause abnormal secretion of hormones (ectopic) which can increase damage to the body or just cause imbalances (Hurst, 2008). That is cancer and tumor in a flash:)
All information taken from:

Hurst, Marlene. (2008). Hurstreviews: Pathophysiology review. Brookhaven, Mississippi:


McGraw Hill.

What can nurses do to confront teenage smokers (think about developmental stage) to get them to quit?
For teenagers I believe the best way to get them to think about quitting smoking is explaining and showing them the affects of smoking. Education is the best way to treat them as adults, so that is what we have to keep in mind. Many this age are smoking to explore or to try to fit in with others, so during this developmental stage it is important to let them know you are not judging them and you are there to support whatever their decision may be because as we know teenagers don't like to be told what to do. I was actually lucky to have a best friend who started smoking when she was 12 years old, whom would never let me touch a cigarette even if I begged. Sometimes it is helpful to have people around you that will be there for you if they decide to quit.


If parents smoke, do you think their kids are more likely to smoke?
I definitely believe that parents play an important role on whether their kids smokes or choose not to smoke. If you expose you children to an environment with parents that smoke chances
are that their child will grow up to explore and are more likely to become smokers themselves. I believe that since these kids have cigarettes around their homes, they can get a hold of carcinogens easily without searcing for a supplier.
What is the most common cause of death in males and females under the age of 18?
The most common cause of death in males and females under the age of 18 would have to be motor vehicle accidents for the younger adults and injury for the rest of this age group. The main reason for motor vehicle accidents is that adolescent and young adults during this time are searching for an identity and are willing to take more risks than other age groups. Some kids may be invoved in gang activities and/or are exposed to firearms.
List one strength and one weakness in the next generation of school age kids and explain you answer.
One of the strength the next generation of school age kids will have is increased knowledge. I believe the kids in today's generation have more pressure in school to do well ad reach above and beyond their age level which is excellent in some ways, but scary at the same time. I can remember looking at my younger brother's school work when was in middle school and thinking to myself that I needed to review in order to actually help him out on his homework. Of course that was a few years ago which probably means that kids are expected t learn and know more then we did at their age.
The weakness I would consider with school age kids is the pressure they are under to fit in with the other students their age and how easily they can be influenced. I have heard many horror stories about what the kids in elementary/middle/& high school talk about and experience and trust me kids nowadays need early education in all different departments to help with prevention of smoking, pregnancy, drop out rates, drinking and drug abuse. I look at my nephew who is only 18 months and I have already decided that I want to home school him because of all the bad influences school will bring into his life. Just my thoughts:).

Friday, October 16, 2009

Folk/Home remedies???


Describe a folk remedy or a home remedy that you know of. Mention the source you heard it from.

An old cold and congestion remedy that my family has used for many years is taking honey that is mixed with ginger and lemon and drinking it mixed in hot tea. Although the smell alone makes me gag, I believe that my "home remedy" works in some ways because whenever we take it we all feel better within days. I know a cold usually takes up to 10 days to clear up, so whether or not there is some truth to using this remedy I will never truly know because even with research everyone is different (so what may work on one person may not necessarily work on someone else).

Is there any truth to it or is there evidence to disclaim it? Find an article and tell us whether the current research supports the "old-wives" tale or disclaims it.

I was suprise to find out that there is some truth to my family's cold/congestion remedy. It turns out that there is research stating that hot tea does help with congestion, but it is no 100% recommended which is fine with me because different remedies work for different people (Davis, 2007). Also, Vitamin C as we know is commonly used for the common cold in America and as I found out honey does contain a lot of Vitamin C. Reseach has shown that Vitamin C is useful towards shortening the duration and severity of the common cold virus (Simasek & Blanino, 2007). Although there is not 100% guarantee that my "home remedy" will work, I will continue to use it and pass it down to my kids (if I have any in the future:) ).

Do you disagree with using "home-remedies" like the one you posted or not? Do they cause more harm than good? or do they serve a purpose?

I very much agree to using "home remedies" to a certain extend, I believe that there are many therapies/remedies out in the world that are being used that are helpful for some medical illnesses. But I also know that there are many medical issues that need to be taken care of by a healthcare provider when possible because in some cases the situation at hand may be too severe and "home remedies" may not be the best idea or option. My "home remedy" I would consider to be harmless for the fact that nutural foods are used which would cause no harm if there is no benefit from the remedy. Everyone in the world have there own therapies/remedies for different illnesses and whether or not it serves a purpose is up to the person to decide; so in my case I would say that my remedy does serve a purpose for my family.

Would you remmend the one you described to a patient?

As far as recommending my "home remedy" to any patient of mine, I would hold back just for the fact that many patients rely on your every word as a nurse (unless they are close friends or family and you know they won't sue you). If they were to a specifically ask me what types of remedy I use at home at this point I would definitely tell them, but if they were to ask me if I would recommend this remedy I would tell them that "it's you own call on whether you decide to use it or not".


References:


Davis, C. (2007). Foods & news that fight colds & flu. Vegetarian times, (338), 46-48.




Simasek, M., & Blandino, D. (2oo7). Treatment of the common cold. American family




Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Direct-to-Consumer Marketing of Drugs


Describe how you feel about direct-t0-consumer marketing of drugs in the U.S. So you think DTC marketing really influences people decisions about drugs.

I'm really not affected by direct-to-consumer marketing. The only time I see marketing about pharmaceuticals is when I watch T.V.(and as we all know in nursing school there is not much time for that). Although I can admit that watching the same commercials that try to advertise the same drug/product tends to get on my nerves, I believe these drugs are a waste of time and money. I am lucky enough to realize that there are other issues in my life to worry about, other than testing out a new product that is set out to work miracles on everyone. I do believe though that direct-t0-consumer marketing does actually have a lot of business in the U.S. For example the Proactive facial product for acne, I can truly say has attracted many of the younger population in the U.S. I can't tell you how many people I have come across that have acutally tried Proactiv and have been disappointed with the end results. I feel bad that drug marketing influences the majority of the population so easily that everybody has hope that the marketing product will set out to do, what it was made to do (but in many cases that is not how it works out). One thing we all need to remember is that everyone is different and that is why many of the products advertised or sold react differently with each individual.