Acute Pharyngitis
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Acute Pharyngitis
In the course of life, human beings are faced with various health conditions. Some of these conditions may be mild, while others may be severe. Severe health conditions may prevent a person from performing normal duties. An example of a condition that is presented in various people is acute Pharyngitis. Acute Pharyngitis is a condition that is characterized by the inflammation of the back of the throat, which is also known as the pharynx. Additionally, this condition is characterized by pain as well as a sensation of scratchiness within the regions that surround the throat. In most cases, it is referred to as a sore throat. The presence of this condition makes the swallowing of food to be difficult.
Pathophysiology of Acute Pharyngitis
Acute Pharyngitis mainly occurs due to the quick occurrence of a sore throat as well as the inflammation of the pharyngeal. The onset of this condition is characterized by the absence of cough and nasal congestion. Moreover, the condition is associated with nasal discharges which separate the bacteria from the viral etiologies. Acute Pharyngitis can be caused by the presence of various viral as well as bacterial pathogens such as group A Streptococcus (GAS) and fungal pathogens (Candida) (Anjos, Marcondes & Lima, 2014). Bacterial Pharyngitis mostly occurs during winter. On the other hand, enterovirus infection is common during fall and summer.
Pharmacology of Acute Pharyngitis
Pharmacology is a branch of medicine that is associated with the action of drugs. In the case of acute Pharyngitis, several drugs can be used to deal with the condition. However, one of the drugs that were prescribed to the patients during the visit to the hospital is Amoxicillin 875mg tablet. The patient is expected to take one tablet twice a day through the mouth for one month. The generic and the brand name that is associated with Amoxicillin is Amoxil (Cots et al., 2015). The class that Amoxicillin belongs to is the ß- lactam antibiotic. The main action that is performed by Amoxicillin is that it fights bacteria as well as stops them from growing, and this is achieving by preventing them from forming the cell walls. After the drug has performed its action in the body, it is then execrated through the urine after six to eight hours. As much as Amoxicillin may be effective in dealing with acute Pharyngitis, there are some cases whereby it may have side effects and interaction. Some of the side effects associated with Amoxicillin include Diarrhea, Vomiting, Yeast infection, and Upset Stomach. Amoxicillin has high interaction with various drugs as Probenecid used to treat gout, allopurinol, and other anti-biotics. This drug has been prescribed to these specific patients because she has shown some signs of inflammation developing. The primary condition that these drugs treats are bacterial infections. Apart from Amoxicillin, other drugs can be used to treat acute Pharyngitis such as penicillin, clindamycin, and macrolides.
Clinical Diagnostic Reasoning
- Differential diagnosis
Acute Pharyngitis was diagnosed as the main condition that the patients was experienced. However, before the diagnosis of the diseases, other conditions shared the same symptoms. These diagnoses included epiglottis, diphtheria, Measles, Hand foot and mouth disease, oropharyngeal cancer, and infectious mononucleosis.
- Priority Diagnosis Discussion
This list of the condition led to a thorough assessment to come up with the main condition, which in this case, was acute Pharyngitis. Various factors played an essential role in selecting acute Pharyngitis as the main diagnosis. The main factor was the acute onset of sore throat, whereby there was no cough, but there was nasal congestion as well as discharge, which showed a bacterial etiology (Dingle, Abbott & Fang, 2014). The second assessment that led to this diagnosis is the rapid antigen detection test, which showed the presence of Group a Streptococcus pharyngitis.
- The rationale for the Key of the plan of care
Various elements have to be considered in the key plan of care that is aimed at solving this condition that the patient has. One of the aspects that have to be included in the plan of care is medication, whereby the patient is expected to take oral antibiotics such as penicillin or antibiotics. The rationale for including the medication is that it will help to clear the infection as well as prevent cases of reinfection (Ali et al., 2015). The second element in the plan of care is taking throat lozenges. Throat lozenges are essential in this case as they will help to reduce sooth the throat and prevent any pain that may be present. The third element in the plan of care for the patient is to drink warm liquids (Stewart et al., 2014). Warm fluids are vital in the sense that it helps to kill any germs that may be present in the infected area. The other element in the plan of care is to quit smoking. Since the patient has been diagnosed with acute Pharyngitis, she has to void smoking at all costs. Avoid smoking will help to reduce the amount of bacteria that is within the infected area.
Ethical Concerns
Various ethical concerns have to be adhered to administering the plan of care to the patient.
- Review of the Provision of the ANA Code of Ethics
Various provisions have been provided in the ANA Code of Ethics, and they have to be adhered when dealing with a patient. One of the ANA Code of Ethics that played an important role in the relationship with the patient who has been diagnosed with Acute Pharyngitis is the nurse’s practice with compassion as well as respect for the worth, dignity, and unique attributes of each person. This provision was important when dealing with the patients since it enabled me to treat her with love and respect and ensure that she got all the care that was required to deal with the condition.
- Cultural Implications of this Encounter
The cultural implications of this encounter is that it may be hard to communicate with the patients. The patients may be coming from another cultural ground that has a different language. Therefore, there will be a language barrier since there is no common language between the two parties.
Barriers to Care
As much as the patient needs to access medical care for her condition, certain factors may hinder the provision of care.
- The Actual and Potential Barriers
The main barrier to care is financial constraints. Sometimes, the cost of acquiring the medication for acute Pharyngitis may be costly beyond the ability of the patients. Therefore, due to financial constraints, it will be hard for the patient to access the care. The second barrier to care is race or ethnicity. Cases of racism and ethnicity within the society affects the administration of health care services because of discrimination. People who belong to specific ethnic groups or races may be discriminated from getting the care required to deal with acute Pharyngitis. The third barrier to care is accessibility. There are times whereby accessing the health facilities may be difficult for the affected patients, and as a result, they end up not getting adequate health care.
- Three Priority Social Determinants of Health for the Patient
Social determinants play a critical role when it comes to the health of patients. The first social determinant of the health of a patient is poverty. Many people who are living in poverty do not have access to healthy foods. This issue affects them in the sense that they have consumed food unhealthy food, which ultimately leads to health problems. The second social determinant of the health of the patient is an unsafe neighborhood (O’Sullivan, Moreland & Webb, 2017). These neighborhoods are characterized by problems which may contribute to various health condition. Education is the third social determinant of health for the patient. Individuals who are educated are aware of the actions they have to undertake to remain healthy. Therefore, uneducated individuals will be easily attacked by various medical conditions since they do not know the prevention measures they should undertake.
- Health Care Policy
Health care policy can be employed to overcome the barriers that prevent access to medical care. In this case, one of the health care policy that will be used to overcome the barriers present is to make the cost of health care affordable. Making the cost of health care affordable is important as it will allows people to access medical care even with a low budget.
Evidence-Based Practice
The main Clinical Questions that were used to search for the information in the database include
- What is acute Pharyngitis?
- Pathophysiology of Acute Pharyngitis.
- Differential Diagnosis for Acute Pharyngitis.
- Barrier to Health Care
The information related to these questions were found in various articles. These research articles were quality since they provided the required information. Furthermore, the evidence that was presented within the article was credible as professionals in the medical field published them. From the articles, the main areas that require improvement is to increase the quality of medical service provided to the patients.
Self-Reflection
The resources that were selected helped to provide the required information. However, some areas would have to be changed. An example of an area that has to be changed is the presentation of the results. The results of the study should be presented clearly in a way that will be easy to understand for every person.
Advanced Practice Practitioner
The specific person that contributed to the development of the plan of care for this patient is the CEO of the hospital. The CEO helped in drafting the plan that would be given to any patient who was found within conditions. This approach was important as it ensures the best measures were undertaken to help the patient receive proper care and get rid of the condition.
References
Ali, M., Han, S., Gunst, C. J., Lim, S., Luinstra, K., & Smieja, M. (2015). Throat and nasal swabs for molecular detection of respiratory viruses in acute Pharyngitis. Virology journal, 12(1), 178. Retrieved from https://virologyj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12985-015-0408-z
Anjos, L. M. M., Marcondes, M. B., Lima, M. F., Mondelli, A. L., & Okoshi, M. P. (2014). Streptococcal Acute Pharyngitis. Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical, 47(4), 409-413. Retrieved from; http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0037 -86822014000400409&script=sci_arttext
Cots, J. M., Alos, J. I., Barcena, M., Boleda, X., Cañada, J. L., Gomez, N., … & Llor, C. (2015). Recommendations for the management of acute Pharyngitis in adults. Acta Otorrinolaringologica (English Edition), 66(3), 159-170. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2173573515000423
Dingle, T. C., Abbott, A. N., & Fang, F. C. (2014). Reflexive culture in adolescents and adults with group A streptococcal pharyngitis. Clinical infectious diseases, 59(5), 643-650. Retrieved from https://academic.oup.com/cid/article-abstract/59/5/643/2895827
O’Sullivan, L., Moreland, N. J., Webb, R. H., Upton, A., & Wilson, N. J. (2017). Acute rheumatic fever after group A streptococcus pyoderma and group G streptococcus pharyngitis. The Pediatric infectious disease journal, 36(7), 692-694. Retrieved from https://journals.lww.com/pidj/FullText/2017/07000/Acute_Rheumatic_Fever_After_Gro up_A_Streptococcus.23.aspx
Stewart, E. H., Davis, B., Clemans-Taylor, B. L., Littenberg, B., Estrada, C. A., & Centor, R. M. (2014). Rapid antigen group A streptococcus test to diagnose Pharyngitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One, 9(11), e111727. Retrieved from https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0111727