Case study

Today Tony arrives at the Community Health Centre to see Jenna, the mental health nurse. Jenna had been his case manager several years ago, before he was transferred to GP care. He had asked for an appointment because since his mother passed away six months ago, he finds he feels sad all the time and does not want to join his cousins in the machinery shed. He is worried he will end up in hospital again. On arrival he noticed how noisy the waiting room was with people crowding around the reception desk, people yelling and phones ringing. When it came to his turn to speak, he was told that he had missed his appointment and his doctor couldn’t see him. The person at reception said they were booked out and if he couldn’t be on time, that was too bad, and he would have to wait till the next available time. But he said was sure he had the right time and he said so, using a profanity in Italian. He fumbled in his pockets for the card with the appointment date, but she crossed her arms, raised her voice, and told him to ‘go away and learn to speak English and if he didn't move away from the desk, she would call security'. Tony could feel himself starting to shake, his face feeling hotter and hotter, and clenched and unclenched his fists. He was trying so hard to keep control and he knew if he didn’t move, he might do something he'd regret and end up in seclusion again. Just then Jenna, the practice nurse came through the door. She made eye contact and smiled and said ‘Hi Tony, I’m glad you made it. Come inside and let's have a chat.

This assessment enables students to demonstrate understanding and application of core unit content.  Students will need to select one (1) case study from those used in tutorials throughout the semester.  and answer a series of questions in a narrated PowerPoint. Topics will include assessment,  psychoeducation, psychopharmacology, and nursing care and interventions when working with  consumers with mental health issues.  This assessment encompasses content presented in online lectures, interactive online tutorials, and  self-directed learning, throughout the 10-week semester.

Select one (1) case study from those presented during tutorials (e.g., Josh, Tony etc). Develop a  PowerPoint presentation of no more than eight (8) slides. Your presentation should include:

This must be a narrated PowerPoint, and your presentation should be between 8-10 minutes duration.  You must include your script in the ‘notes’ section of your PowerPoint. Please see.  Your presentation must critically discuss the following questions in relation to your chosen case study:

1. The condition the consumer has.
2. One (1) pharmacological treatment.
3. One (1) legal/ethical issue.
4. One (1) nursing intervention and rationale.
5. The role of the multidisciplinary team in caring for someone with this condition.

Writing requires skill and being able to write within a specified word limit is an essential component  of professional and academic work. Reading and writing critically are fundamental skills which  demonstrate an understanding and an ability to make judgements and solve problems, hence  why only 10% of a word count should be direct quotes. That is, if the word count is 1500 words  only 150 of those words should be direct quotes. Word counts provide students with an indication  of the amount of detail and work required for each assessment item.

What is included in a word count?

Essentially, all text within an assessment item from the introduction through to the conclusion is  counted in the word count. This includes all in-text citations, direct quotes and headings. The word  count does not include the following:

History Tony

Rossi is 73 years old man living in regional NSW. His is part of a large Italian community that established itself in the area mid last century. His family are farmers and Tony as always worked in the family business, planting and harvesting crops. These days he keeps himself busy helping his cousins maintain the farm machinery. Tony never married and now he lives on his own following the death of his mother, six months ago. His cottage is fifteen kilometres out of town, located near the home of his older sister and her husband. Tony was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was 19 years old. He has always been supported by his family, and he has not had an admission to for almost fifteen years. Over the years he has been case managed by community mental health nurses at the community health Centre. Now he sees his GP once a month for a depot injection. He has been offered his medications as oral tablets, but he has always preferred the depot injection. He fears becoming unwell, and then made an involuntary patient under the State Mental Health Act and spending time in seclusion. After his first admission to a large regional psychiatric hospital in 1968 he experienced periods of long inpatient admissions until a community mental health team was set up at the new community health center in the early 1980's. For many years Tony could not talk about his experiences in the hospital where his treatment included long periods of seclusion and physical restraint, and several treatments of Electroconvulsive Therapy. However, later in his 60's he shared his story of hope and recovery from the trauma of his time in the hospital, to a local group supporting young people who were known to the juvenile justice system. Tony sees his GP every month and is currently being managed for schizophrenia, diabetes type 2, hyperlipidaemia, chronic obstructive airways disease and arthritis in his left hip. He is reluctant to agree to a hip replacement because he does not want to be admitted to hospital. He does not drink but does report smoking ten cigarettes a day.