Posted: August 28th, 2022

Patient Evaluation

Patient Evaluation
The best evaluation tool for the patient suffering from osteoarthritis and hip joint pain is the WOMAC Index. Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC) is used to assess the condition of a patient suffering from osteoarthritis (Holtz et al., 2020). The tool is used to assess three elements including pain, stiffness, and physical function. For instance, the pain element will be used to assess the causes such as while walking, standing, walking down or up the stairs, or lying down. Stiffness will be used to assess if the patient experiences stiffness after walking or sitting down (Holtz et al., 2020). The physical function will be used to assess the condition of the patient while sitting down, going out, sitting in a car, rising from bed, carrying out heavy domestic duties, putting on or putting off socks (Holtz et al., 2020). WOMAC Index was developed in 1982 and has been used in several clinical trials.
WOMAC Index has been used widely for the assessment of elderly patients (Bilbao et al., 2020). It is compatible with the patient in the case study. The 81-year-old patient who is coming to the clinic for an annual physical examination requires a comprehensive assessment. It will be essential to evaluate the three aspects of the patient including pain, stiffness, and physical function. The comprehensive assessment will help a practitioner to take the necessary steps to alleviate pain, address the cause of the pain, and stop the deterioration of the problem.
The tool will be useful in interpreting the condition of the patient. The higher the score, the higher the level of pain, stiffness, and physical dysfunction. One of the benefits of the tool in examining elderly patients is that takes a short time to examine the condition of patients (Fathi et al., 2020). For instance, it takes at least 5 to 10 minutes to carry out a comprehensive assessment of a patient. The tool is critical since elderly people do not like spending much time in the hospital.
The patient evaluation requires a practitioner who knows to examine the health of a patient (Fathi et al., 2020). A practitioner should study the health background of a patient before assessment. The answers to the assessment questions will determine if a patient is improving or not. The evaluation should consider the medication or therapy sessions that a patient is attending. It will be crucial to determine if the therapeutic interventions have an impact on the health of the patient.
It is critical to observe the language the patient understands, the ethnic background, level of education. The considerations are vital in achieving positive outcomes of delivering patient-centered care (Kim & Park, 2018). For instance, a language barrier may require a translator while the ethnic background will demand cultural competence. The education level of the patient is critical in assessing if they understand the medication, therapeutic interventions, and assessing the recovery.
Immunization requirements are vital in assessing if the patient requires a flu shot. A practitioner should examine the risks posed by the health condition of a patient. It is vital to explore other health promotion activities such as physical fitness, exercise, and a balanced diet. The health promotion considerations are critical in ensuring the patient is living a healthy life (Holtz et al., 2020). For instance, the patient should receive health education on the need to avoid straining the hip to avoid pain. The patient should continue with the current medication and come back for additional evaluation.

References
Bilbao, A., Martín-Fernández, J., García-Pérez, L., Arenaza, J. C., Ariza-Cardiel, G., Ramallo-Fariña, Y., & Ansola, L. (2020). Mapping WOMAC onto the EQ-5D-5L utility index in patients with hip or knee osteoarthritis. Value in Health, 23(3), 379-387.
Fathi, H. M. (2019). Unilateral versus bilateral primary knee osteoarthritis: Relation to the Western Ontario McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), C-reactive protein and radiological assessment in Egyptian patients. The Egyptian Rheumatologist, 41(4), 271-276.
Holtz, N., Hamilton, D. F., Giesinger, J. M., Jost, B., & Giesinger, K. (2020). Minimal important differences for the WOMAC osteoarthritis index and the Forgotten Joint Score-12 in total knee arthroplasty patients. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 21(1), 1-9.
Kim, J. S., & Park, J. S. (2018). A comparative study on health promotion behaviors by complementary alternative therapy utilization of elderly women with osteoarthritis. Journal of Digital Convergence, 16(2), 451-459.

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