Difficulties and limits of treatment of a patient with obesity

Анотація

Aim: the paper provides an insight into the specifics, complexity and limitations of treating obese patients in the practice of a nurse.
Methods. The work is a result of summarizing a literature review on the issue.
Results. The most common complications in the treatment of obese patients include access, identification and puncture of vascular access; in non-invasive blood pressure measurement, it may be difficult to find a suitable cuff width. In the nursing care of an obese patient, electrocardiogram evaluation is also a challenge, as it is often distorted by the difficult penetration of tension through subcutaneous fat. The standard width of a bed preventing positioning and adequate hygienic care may present another technical problem. Obesity increases probability of poorer hygiene, which may be associated with a worse level of bandaging and increased risk of infection and pressure ulcers.
Conclusions. LeeFong and Rose et al. emphasize that staffing of the workplace is important for the safety of both, the personnel and the obese patient. Jamadarkhana, et al. authors emphasize the need for proper equipment of medical facilities. Based on the elaboration of a literature review, we are entitled to state that it is necessary to improve the conditions for effective provision of nursing care to obese patients by providing better conditions in the technical, material and personnel area, not only in terms of safety of these patients, but also for protection of the health professionals. It is desirable to address this issue to nursing students already during the undergraduate education, so that they come to practice prepared.
Key words: obesity, patient, nurse, nursing care.