Nguyen is a 45-year-old woman admitted to the hospital for a spinal fusion of C5-6 and C6-7 vertebrae. She is from Vietnam and has lived in the...

Mrs. Nguyen is a 45-year-old woman admitted to the hospital for a spinal fusion of C5-6 and C6-7 vertebrae. She is from Vietnam and has lived in the United States for 15 years. She has been suffering from degenerative disc disease and osteoarthritis for the last 4 years and has lost some of the function in her right arm. Her plan of care was developed around the critical pathways for cervical fusion, with an expected length of stay in the hospital from 3 to 5 days. The surgical procedure was uneventful, but Mrs. Nguyen suffered from nausea and vomiting until the middle of postoperative day (POD) 1. Today is POD 2. She can get to the bathroom by herself but cannot dress, bathe, or pick up anything weighing over 3 or 4 lb. Her physician is recommending that she be discharged tomorrow, POD 3. She will be in a Philadelphia collar for 6 weeks, during which time she will be unable to drive.

           Mrs. Nguyen lives with her husband and two teenage sons, ages 14 and 16. Her husband owns a restaurant and works 12 to 14 hours a day. He will not be taking off any work time to care for her when she gets home. (Learning Objectives 1, 4, 5, 7, 8)

           a. List four reasons why the nurse is the best person on the interdisciplinary team to be involved in the coordination of disciplines.

           b. Identify goals of discharge planning for this client.

           c. Discuss potential blocks to successful discharge planning and possible nursing interventions.

           d. Describe strategies to reduce cultural barriers to discharge planning for Mrs. Nguyen.

           e. Determine Mrs. Nguyen's Blaylock Discharge Planning Risk