Advanced Nurse Practitioner Diagnoses

The main factor of the pathophysiology for Jennifer is a marked pain in her throat. Her throat has become sore, specifically her cervical nodes (which is a sign clearly indicative of disease). Thus it is difficult to eat, which explains why she neglected to eat her breakfast. Another capital aspect of Jennifer’s pathophysiology which is particularly revealing is her fever, which is common in children (de Pont, 2015, p. 2). Initially her fever was low grade. However, in just a matter of days it exceeded 103 degrees. Her body is attempting to counteract the effects of the malady afflicting it via the fever. One of the foremost associated alterations of her adaptive responses is the current state of her skin. Her skin is desiccated and warm, which is indicative of the fever the child has experienced over the past couple of days. Her skin will likely continue to remain dry and warm as her fever temperatures increase if the root cause of her disease is not addressed. Other adaptive responses include the reddening of the tympanic membranes. This discoloration is both suggestive of the fever the girl is experiencing as well as of the general pain associated with her throat. Even the difficulty she has swallowing is emblematic of her associated alterations for the unnamed malady.

The functional changes which have occurred within Jack’s body are indicative of the pathophysiology he is experiencing; they are slight compared to that of the subjects of the other three scenarios. Jack’s hands have changed in color and in texture to the alteration to his body caused by the onset of the disease process from exposure to chemicals and abrasive solvents at his job. They have turned red to reflect some of the irritation which he has experienced. Moreover, the texture of his hands is also indicative of the pathophysiology of his exposure to these chemicals. Whereas his hands were smoother or more conventional in texture before, they have now become flaky. What is significant about these facts is that they are also demonstrative of the associated alterations of Jack’s adaptive responses. Some of those foreign agents he was exposed to at work have caused his hands to change color and texture. His adaptive response also includes a mild temperature variation in which his hands occasionally feel warmer than they once did. This fact is also representative of the irritation of his hands which is in response to the exposure to the aforementioned chemical agents. Another important factor about these associated alterations is that they correlate with time; the more time passes before Jack addresses this issue, the greater his symptoms will become.

The primary pathophysiology Martha is experiencing is a loss of appetite. She is in a fairly stressful situation and her body is responding to it by changing her eating habits and perhaps experiencing depression, which is related to loss of sleep (Hein et al, 2017, p. 273). The function of eating is not the same for Martha, since she now has less of a desire to engage in this activity. Moreover, her body seems to have less of a need for food now, since Martha claims she simply does not have the appetite she once has. This fact is definitely demonstrative of a functional change in her body in response to a condition such as stress. The associated alterations Martha is dealing with include helping her mother much more than she used to do so, because her mother has now moved in with her. As such, Martha is engaging in many more stressful activities at a time in her life—her retirement—she is supposed to engage in more fun and peaceful ones. She is spending much more time cooking now since her mom likes to eat five times a day, and Martha is responsible for bathing her and helping her around the house. Martha’s adaptive response is manifest in her difficulty sleeping. Her body is attempting to deal with this stressful situation by worrying and staying on alert to help her mother, which makes it difficult to relax. This adaptive behavior is also demonstrative of the stress Martha is experiencing, which is linked to depression (Zhao and Castellanos, 2016, p. 421).

At the center of the mind map Jack’s hands as they currently are: red, flaky, warm, and slightly irritated. The map will have arrows to six circles around it for epidemiology, pathophysiology, risk factors, clinical presentation, disorder diagnosis, and adaptive responses to alterations. The epidemiology will contain information about whether or not any of Jack’s co-workers are manifesting the same symptoms on their hands, and whether or not those who they are in contact with (friends and family members) manifest those same symptoms. The pathophysiology will indicate that Jack’s hands have changed colors and textures as defined earlier in the document. The risk factors all pertain to Jack’s job and the solvents and chemicals he works with. These also include the lack of protective gloves at his job. The clinical presentation involves the sequence of events. First Jack’s hands were fine, then he began working with these chemicals without gloves, now they’re red and flaky. The diagnosis of the disorder is a rash from exposure to the foregoing chemicals and solvents. Adaptive responses to alterations are based on the sensation which Jack is experiencing from his hands. This sensation centers upon the warmth he is feeling in them.