How to write an essay on psychological factors affecting healthcare professionals (Solved)

Give examples of psychosocial factors that affect the health care professional and the effect those factors could have on patient education.

Psychosocial factors at work influence the well-being of healthcare providers and patients and could strongly affect work-related outcomes. Healthcare providers can be affected by factors like the physical environment, job security, job satisfaction, personal traits of the patient, past experiences, financial capabilities, and support from the organization. Factors like lack of experience and financial support could affect the delivery of health information to patients (Goetz et al., 2015). Some personal characteristics of patients like poor health literacy can affect how healthcare workers disseminate information and understanding the information by patients. Other factors like job satisfaction and job security can affect the psychological state of healthcare providers leading to poor delivery of information to patients.

Examples of psychosocial factors that affect the patient and the effect those factors could have on patient education.

Psychosocial factors that affect the patient include mood, cultural norms, health literacy, and family support. During health education, the psychological well-being of the patient characterized by mood and affect can influence concentration and understanding of information. The cultural norms of the patient can influence the acceptance of health interventions and execution of orders by the healthcare provider (Goetz et al., 2015). Regarding health literacy, well-learned individuals are more likely to understand health information and follow discharge instructions to the latter. The availability of family support ensures that patients are reminded of treatment aspects like medication intake.

What is meant by personality styles and give examples of approaches that could be used to help the patient. Include self-perception as a factor.

People are fundamentally different in the way they behave, especially in the aspects of thinking, feeling, and responding. Personality styles represent ways individuals respond to situations as dictated by their personality (Kerber et al., 2021). Personality styles include analytical, amiable, driver, and expressive personality. For instance, analytical personality traits include systematic, cautious, and prudent responses to situations. One of the approaches that can be used to help the patient during health education is encouraging them to observe their behavior. Self-perception can help the patient to identify positive and negative thoughts that could impair their well-being (Kerber et al., 2021). Another intervention is being supportive to the patient and asking their opinions before making decisions.

List the steps in adjustment to illness and how the patient copes with each step.

Patients may find themselves experiencing stages of adjustment during the illness which include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance (Stroebe et al., 2017). During denial, the patient may flat-out disbelieve and seek third opinions. Coping with this stage involves actions like resuming medical treatment or continuing with denial itself. The loss of health can provoke anger leading to actions like pushing away loved ones and raising voices to healthcare workers. During bargaining, patients cope by seeking all possible treatment options available and cling to irrational hope even when the facts state otherwise (Stroebe et al., 2017). Coping with depression will involve actions like expressing their feelings, exercise, and meditation while those in the acceptance stage cope by making up for wrongdoings and being close to their families.

Explain the health professional’s role in teaching the patient at different life stages.

The human life cycle is divided into stages that include prenatal development and the newborn, infancy and childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. The role of the healthcare provider is to understand the expectations of the patient at each stage and use the most appropriate means to provide care. The healthcare professional should provide effective patient-centered teaching while considering the psychosocial factors at each stage. When dealing with young children and adolescents, the provider should use language that can be understood and involve their families in teaching.

Define the role of the family in patient education.

The family is the closest team to patients making their involvement in health education crucial. The family listens to healthcare providers and helps the patient execute orders upon discharge (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), 2013). Secondly, the family can help to remind the patient of what was taught and assist the patient in making the right interventions.

How might the family influence the compliance of the patient and what measures can the health care professional use in communication with the family?

The family can influence the compliance of the patient by ensuring they adhere to medication in the absence of the healthcare providers. The family can pressure patients to execute medical orders and motivate patients to adhere to their treatment (AHRQ, 2013). To effectively communicate with the patient’s family, the healthcare provider should observe family communication patterns, engage in active listening, and create time to discuss their issues.

References

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2013). Patient and family engagement. https://www.ahrq.gov/hai/cusp/modules/patient-family-engagement/notes.html

Goetz, K., Berger, S., Gavartina, A., Zaroti, S., & Szecsenyi, J. (2015). How psychosocial factors affect well-being of practice assistants at work in general medical care?- A questionnaire survey. BMC Family Practice, 16, 166. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-015-0366-y

Kerber, A., Roth, M., & Herzberg, P. Y. (2021). Personality types revisited–A literature-informed and data-driven approach to an integration of prototypical and dimensional constructs of personality description. PloS One, 16(1), e0244849. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0244849

Stroebe, M., Schut, H., & Boerner, K. (2017). Cautioning health-care professionals. Omega, 74(4), 455–473.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0030222817691870