1) Being culturally competent as a nurse means understanding a patient's cultural background and how it influences their views on health and medical treatment. It is important to consider a patient's culture, beliefs, and level of understanding when assessing them and providing information.
2) Explaining genetic conditions like Down syndrome and sickle cell disease can help alleviate parent's stress by providing accurate information on what causes the condition and what to expect. It is important for nurses to have this understanding to support parents.
3) Other genetic blood disorders nurses should be aware of include thalassemia, which is more common in people of Mediterranean descent. Low hemoglobin levels can cause anemia, so nurses must understand different conditions and avoid
1. To be culturally competent Discussion
To be culturally competent DiscussionTo be culturally competent DiscussionPlease make a
reply to this student post adding something extra of what the student already did. APA
references and less than 20 % similarity.Question 1To be culturally competent means to
address a patient’s needs while observing specific cultural variations that are important to
them and understanding how these affect their view of medical treatments (Purnell, 2013).
As a culturally competent nurse it is important to take the patient’s culture into account
while completing an assessment. It is crucial to assess their perception of the condition,
how this is viewed in their culture and how said views can affect how they care for their
child. Some cultures view certain conditions as punishment for example. The level of
understanding from the parents also plays a major roll. The nurse must be aware of the
educational level of the parents and how prepared they are to receive information and
apply it when caring for their child.A nurse’s understanding that Down syndrome is
disorder that occurs during cell division, involving a complete or partial extra copy of
chromosome 21 while in utero is important in alleviating some the stress experienced by
the new parents wondering if this was caused by them or hereditary (Perkins, 2017). This
can help them obtain accurate information on the condition, what to expect and
development of the child in the future. The nurse can be a source of information for the
parentsWhen faced with the adversity that your child has a health issue the first concern is
how this will affect them, their development and the prognosis of this condition. As a parent
I would be concerned about health implications, risks and precautions I need to have to care
for my child.Question 2a. Helping Michelle understand the possibility of her baby’s
condition can result in successful management and prevention of exacerbation periods if
she were to have it. It is important to explain to her that sickle cell disease is a disorder that
affects the hemoglobin portion in red blood cells that carries oxygen to cells in the body.
The hemoglobin molecule seen in sickle cell is called hemoglobin S. This hemoglobin S
affects the shape of the red blood cells making it look like a crescent shape. This an
autosomal recessive condition which means the child inherits a copy of the gene from each
parent even if the parent shows no symptoms of the condition (NIH, 2020). Although there
may be few exceptions, sickle cell disease is inherited from both parents which means they
would have to have the gene in order for the baby to have this as well. In contrast sickle cell
trait can be present when the baby inherits the gene from one parent only which means
they will carry it but not show any symptoms of the disease.ORDER NOW FOR ORIGINAL,
PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPERSb. A test can be done to identify if the person has sickle cell
2. disorder however it would be most reasonable to see a genetic counselor who can offer
valuable information on genetic blood disorders as well as family history (CDC, 2019).
Testing should be encouraged because in the future there could be complications if the child
engages in competitive sports such as heat stroke and muscle breakdown stemming from
rigorous training (CDC, 2019).c. Some of the factors that can shape the conversation is
recognizing Michelle’s educational level and knowledge of this condition in general. This can
be a guide to how to approach the subject, how much information to provide and how to
ascertain it has been understood. It is important to discuss the prevalence of this disease
among African Americans and how it affects 1 in 500 in the population (Purnell, 2013).
Becoming familiar with the statistics may assist Michelle in understanding this is something
that affects many people like her and her husband and some people are able to lead a
healthy life without major complications.Question 3a. A disorder of the blood in which the
amount of hemoglobin is low is, particular to people of Mediterranean descent is called
Thalassemia. In this disorder due to the lack of hemoglobin the red blood cell’s life is
remarkably shorter in the body (CDC, 2020). It is important for the nurse to be aware of this
as to differentiate what is normal in this population and not. Also, to prevent providing
certain medication that can increase the possibility of a hemolytic crisis (Purnell, 2013). To
be culturally competent Discussionb. Low hemoglobin levels prevent oxygen from reaching
every part of the body preventing it from working appropriately. The condition caused by
this consistent low hemoglobin level in the blood is called anemia. Anemia can have many
causes some including vitamin deficiency, bone marrow abnormalities or hemolytic cause
such as in Thalassemia. Anemia can cause a person to feel a variety of symptoms including,
shortness of breath, tiredness, weakness, dizziness, pale skin, fast heartbeat and increased
fatigue (CDC, 2020). Anemia can be addressed depending on the causative agent in order to
correct it and prevent further complications. Some of the treatments include vitamin
supplementation, blood transfusion or dietary supplementReferencePerkins, A., & Vermont
Tech. (2017). The lowdown on Down syndrome : Nursing made Incredibly Easy. Retrieved
from
https://journals.lww.com/nursingmadeincrediblyeasy/Fulltext/2017/03000/The_lowdow
n_on_Down_syndrome.10.aspxPurnell, L. D. (2013). Transcultural health care: a culturally
competent approach (4th ed.). Philadelphia: F.A. Davis.Sickle cell disease – Genetics Home
Reference – NIH. (2020, May 12). Retrieved May 16, 2020,
from https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/sickle-cell-disease#inheritanceWhat is
Thalassemia? (2020, April 15). Retrieved May 16, 2020, from
https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/thalassemia/facts.htmlWhat You Should Know About Sickle
Cell Trait. (2019, October 21). Retrieved May 16, 2020, from
https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/sicklecell/documents/SCD factsheet_Sickle Cell Trait.pdfTo
be culturally competent Discussion