Objectives: At the end of this chapter, the learner will:
- Identify age related variations in conducting a health assessment.
- Discuss the involvement of care givers/guardians in the assessment process.
- Complete the Activity of Daily Living Assessment for the geriatric patients.
- Discuss abuse and neglect for at risk populations.
Overview of Assessment of Special Populations
In prior chapters, the essential knowledge of health assessment were laid out to prepare the nurse to assess adult patients in a clinical setting. Information on comprehensive assessment and focused assessments were also presented, with the aim of preparing the nurse to be able to vary assessments depending on clinical situations presented. This chapter other adaptations of performing health assessments according to special populations. Examples of such include pediatric assessment, geriatric assessment, newborn assessment and obstetric examination during pregnancy, labor and delivery and the postpartum period. There is a wide diversity of special populations but this chapter will provide information on pediatric assessment and geriatric assessment, wherein nurses will highly likely perform them in clinical settings.
Pediatric Assessment
This website presents a comprehensive approach to assessment of children:
Watch this video to see example of a pediatric assessment:
Geriatric Assessment:
The following link provides an introduction to geriatrics. This provides a background why this particular population needs to be provided special care. Continue reading all the pages to learn about physical changes of aging and evaluation of the Older Adult:
Elder Abuse
The elderly or geriatric patient is a special population at risk for abuse. The following link contains essential knowledge that will assist the nurse in the analysis of the issue and how it impacts health assessment: