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Nurse Labs: Impaired Physical Mobility

Discussion in 'Other health news and research' started by Michelle, Nov 18, 2019.

  1. Michelle

    Michelle Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    270
    While doing some research on the Interwebz on how to limit the ill-effects of being bedbound, I came across this article for nurses on a site called Nurselabs on how to approach patients who have limited mobility, particularly those who are bedridden.

    There were two things I found interesting, aside from the general advice:

    1.) The advice if applied to ME/CFS is mostly decent. Regarding energy conservation, in the "Nursing Interventions" section, it makes a point of stating that nurses should "Provide the patient rest periods in between activities. Consider energy-saving techniques." The rationale? "Rest periods are essential to conserve energy. The patient must learn and accept his her limitations." A few steps below that is an intervention to encourage resistance training, which may be problematic for ME/CFS patients (though I would imagine would be preferable to aerobic training).

    2.) NO mention of ME/CFS. In all of the list of conditions that may cause immobility, at no time is ME/CFS mentioned, despite the fact that this disease is more common than, say Kawasaki Disease or Guillain-Barre Syndrome or even MS. To be sure, bedridden ME/CFS patients are decidedly in the minority, but it is a reminder of the lack of awareness about this disease. When looking at home care agencies, it is common to find them listing experience with ALS or MS but I've never seen one that mentions ME/CFS. This is a serious problem that deserves the attention of our community as many of us require in-home care. We need nurses and home care workers/agencies who understand the care needs of ME/CFS patients. Treatment for our disease may or may not be close at hand but management is and will always be urgently necessary for the relief of suffering and maintenance of quality of life.

    That said, I just noticed that they've also got an article by the same guy written a few months later on Fatigue (it's better than you might think!) that specifically mentions CFS, so there's that, I suppose. It's not a bad article about how nurses should approach conditions with significant fatigue, including MS, Lupus, RA, etc. that could be applicable to ME/CFS. GET does get a mention, but it may be helpful in other conditions. However it mostly emphasizes energy conservation.

    Alas, when I first stopped by the site, on the right hand column was a recent post about--sigh--somatoform disorders (by a different author).

    Right. Off to do some energy conservation of my own. ;)
     

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