Children & Young People
The Dignity Challenge very much focusses on the needs of the adult patient particularlky the elderly. How are organisations adapting these principles to meet the needs of the child/young person who is admitted to an adult ward.
A young persons needs are very different to those of an adult. They wish to be nursed with patients of similar age - single sex accomodation is not an issue in most cases though for the 'adult' patient we have made huge steps to eliminating this.
I would welcome thoughts on this issue and how organisations are addressing this
Hi,
In response to the the email below - could we please use the term 'the older person' rather than 'the elderly'. I note that when talking about a younger age group it is 'child/younger person.
'The Elderly' is a stereotypical term which makes older people into a homogenous group with no name - as 'elderly' is an adjective not a noun.
Sadly 'nounisation' is something that nursing and medical fraternities have done for a long time - I am a nurse and realise that to call someone 'a diabetic' 'an epileptic' 'disabled' labels them as a disesase or a condition rather than as a person.
I also tend not to use the term 'patient' on its own but rather say (for someone who is in hospital only) the patient Mr ....... This then does keep reminding us that we are all human beings first and patients/service users and clients second.
Sadly politicians and the media are as bad as health care - they still use the term - so why don't we challenge it more?
I hope that people will take what I am trying to say in the right spirit. It has been a request from older people/older adults/seniors to use the appropriate terminology to describe us - as I am a working nurse and education who is also receiving my old age pension - since Horrocks et al from City university did the research in 1993. If you Google it you will find it in an old BASELINE Journal.
With best wishes,
Lorraine
A Dignified Revolution
I agree with your comments there are young adults (over 16)on adult wards who are not catered for. How would nursing staff deal with a 16 year old who needed assistance with showering/bathing
It's a concern that I have sometimes pondered as well.
As a young person myself. I am only 29. How do we deal with a young adult, a child, or a teenager.
I came to the conclusion that you would do it in the same way you would the older person.
So we're talking about dignity, and maintaining it. Well it's the same. The only thing that changes is perhaps the way you speak to a person. If you look at the essence of care benchmarks, it states in there to the effect that you should engage a patient in terms that are familiar to them. So that they feel that their personal world and identity are respected.
Health service is cradle to grave. So you're right to flag this issue.