Unit 9

Principles of Growth & Development
• There is a continuous movement from simple to more complex
• Development and growth move from head to feet and from torso to extremities
• Each stage of development and growth has a specific set of tasks that the person must master before successfully moving to the next level
• Progression moves forward in an orderly manner, but the rate varies for each person
• Growth patterns progress at own rate

Stages of Growth & Development
• Neonatal & Infant: birth to 2 years
• Infant gradually learns to sit/crawl/stand/walk
• Alertness increases
• Teeth appear
• Food intake progresses
• Verbal skills begin to develop

Stages of Growth & Development
• Toddler: ages 2-3
• Learns to control elimination
• Begins awareness of right & wrong
• React with frustration & negative responses
• Tolerates brief periods of separation from mother
• May want to play with other children

Stages of Growth & Development
• Preschool: ages 3-5 years
• Builds on motor & verbal skills already developed
• Develops rivalries with siblings
• Gradually increases cooperative play
• Improves language skills
• Develops more active imagination
• Becomes more sexually curious

Stages of Growth & Development
• School age: 6-12 years
• Able to communicate
• Develops more motor skills & increased sense of self
• Establishes peer relationships
• Reinforces proper social behavior through games
• Chooses sex-differentiated friends

Stages of Growth & Development
• Preadolescent: 12-14 years
• Hormonal changes stimulate secondary sex characteristics
• Mood swings & feelings of insecurity are common
• Develops growing awareness of and interests in opposite sex

Stages of Growth & Development
• Adolescent: 14-20 years
• Gradual development of sexual maturity
• Greater appreciation of the individual’s own identity
• Conflicting desires for freedom & independence & the security of dependence
• Establishes personal coping systems
• Displays gradual success in mastering the developmental tasks of the age

Stages of Growth & Development
• Early adulthood: 20-50 years
• Independence & personal decision making
• The choice of a mate
• Establishment of career & family life
• Optimal health
• The choice of friends to form support group

Stages of Growth & Development
• Middle age: 50-65
• Final career advancement, ending in retirement
• Children who were raised during adulthood are leaving home
• Health still at good level but shows some slowing down
• Future is less certain with more time spent on leisure activities
• Financial pressures may exist

Stages of Growth & Development
• Later maturity: 65-75 years
• Gradual loss of vitality and stamina
• Physical changes signal aging process
• Chronic conditions may develop & persist
• Period of gradual losses of mate, friends and self-esteem
• Some independence and depression

Stages of Growth & Development
• Old age: 75 years +
• Failing physical health and growing dependency
• Realization of one’s own mortality through other losses

Basic Human Needs
• Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
• Physiological: food, water, air, sleep & sex
• Safety: security, stability, order, protection, freedom from fear and anxiety
• Psychological: love, and to be loved; feel respect for self and others
• Actualization: need for actualization through realizing individual potential to its fullest

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting the patient’s physical needs:
• Shelter
• Oxygen
• Food & nutrition
• Rest & sleep
• Elimination
• Physical activity
• Sexuality

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting the patient’s emotional needs:
• To feel love
• To be loved and give love
• To be treated with respect & dignity
• To feel that their self-esteem is protected

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting intimacy & sexuality needs:
• All humans are sexual
• Sexuality concerns the ability to develop relationships, to give of oneself to others, and to appreciate the giving of others
• Intimacy is one aspect of sexuality; intimacy may be expressed in many different ways
• Each intimate relationship has an element of commitment
• Age, illness, and disability do not diminish this need

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting the patient’s spiritual needs:
• Remember that each patient has a right to believe in any faith system or to deny the existence of any beliefs
• Listen to a patient’s thoughts and keep them confidential
• The nursing assistant’s role is to reflect the patient’s ideas, not to try to convince the patient of your own

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting the patient’s need for human touch :
• This need should NEVER be overlooked
• Nonsexual touching can include a friendly hug and smile, a pat on the shoulder, a clasp of the hand, a backrub

Basic Human Needs
• Meeting the patient’s social needs:
• Social needs and activities increase selfesteem and make one feel good as a person
• All people have the need to understand others and be understood
• In addition to verbal communication, we also communicate by the way we say words, tone of voice, facial expression, form of touch, way we stand, and unhurried approach

Basic Human Needs
• Cultural influences:
• Culture affects personality development and the way that individuals express their basic needs; the nursing assistant should consider the patient’s culture when providing care

Dealing With The Fearful Patient
• Recognize this patient is a person with individual likes and dislikes
• Give the quality of care that considers these likes and dislikes
• Help the patient find ways to occupy all the empty time while hospitalized

Dealing With The Fearful Patient
• Do not take negative remarks or refusals of care personally
• Give the patient an opportunity to talk; assure the patient that you will not share the information with others
• Explain the need for procedures and assist if help is needed
• Respect the patient’s right to privacy at all times
• Treat the patient courteously

Dealing With The Fearful Patient
• Do not take negative remarks or refusals of care personally
• Give the patient choices and allow him as much control over his care as possible
• Respect and treat the patient as a unique individual

Dealing With Intimacy
• Intimacy: a feeling of closeness with another human being
• Intimacy may be shared between friends and lovers
• Intimate relationships may be sexual in nature and expressed in different ways
• In each intimate relationship, there is an element of commitment
• It is important to recognize that not everyone has preference, opportunities, or moral standards

Dealing With Intimacy
• Terms related to human sexual expression:
• Heterosexuality – sexual attraction between opposite sexes
• Homosexuality – sexual attraction between persons of the same sex
• Bisexuality – sexual attraction to members of both sexes
• Masturbation – self-stimulation for sexual pleasure

Dealing With Intimacy
• Opportunities for patients to meet sexual and intimacy needs in a health care setting are not always easy; ways to assist the patients to meet these needs to include:
• Not invading a patient’s privacy; always knock and wait before entering
• Speak before opening curtains drawn around bed
• Do not openly judge another’s behavior and preferences as wrong

Dealing With Intimacy
• Do not discuss information about a patient’s sexual preferences
• Provide privacy if a patient is masturbating
• Discourage patients who make sexual advances toward you
• Recognize the need for intimacy is a basic human need expressed in many forms

Discussion

End of Lecture