At Southern Lifestyle Assisted Living of Lake Placid , the residents who were asked these questions were those who in a lock down unit with a diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, who knew their name or would look at you when called by their first name. These residents will be at this facility permanently. Of the eight residents who were asked questions, only two have family that still comes to visit them on a regular basis. All of these residents are mobile and ambulatory with the exception of two who were wheelchair bound. Based on the evaluation of the answers provided by these residents, the majority did state to “liking, feeling happy if they saw an animal and wanting an animal to visit them.” These questions were also asked
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With the use of pet therapy, nurses are able to help patients recover in a way that is different from the traditional approach, either by distraction from hospital or nursing facility routines and treatments or through the presence and interaction with an animal, which serves as comforting and relaxing. As a nurse, we must be fully aware of the patient’s perceptions, as a caring relationship is the key element of nursing practice, which is linked to a positive patient outcome (O’Nan, Jenkins, Morgan, Adams, & Davis 2014). This Capstone Project was evaluated for effectiveness by comparing previous studies made by other healthcare professionals and with the Pet Therapy questionnaire that was made and answered by some of the residents who were coherent versus those who had dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, prior to the interaction with an animal to support what they had answered …show more content…
These residents were comfortable, at peace while holding and stroking the dog, such that they did not want me to leave with the dog and would tell me “thank you for coming by.” Those few words meant so much to me to hear coming from someone who is alone and abandoned, as it happens more often in long-term care facilities. I also learned that by allowing or involving pet therapy with those who are in a health care setting, it would not only uplift their mood, but also give them a motive to continue to fight for another day of life. When speaking about separation from a dog, Konok et al. (2015) did mention that pet owners or those who have had a pet in the past (mostly dogs or cats) seen their pets more like their “own child” versus a family member, many which used their pet to help decrease stress. O’Nan, et al, (2014), pointed out an important fact when it comes to challenges nurses face each day on their duty, “Nurses make conscious decisions in an effort to practice caring despite increased patient complexity or workloads.” This is so true, as a nurse, there are days that we may feel like we cannot handle another admission, or cannot wait for out shift to
With the use of pet therapy, nurses are able to help patients recover in a way that is different from the traditional approach, either by distraction from hospital or nursing facility routines and treatments or through the presence and interaction with an animal, which serves as comforting and relaxing. As a nurse, we must be fully aware of the patient’s perceptions, as a caring relationship is the key element of nursing practice, which is linked to a positive patient outcome (O’Nan, Jenkins, Morgan, Adams, & Davis 2014). This Capstone Project was evaluated for effectiveness by comparing previous studies made by other healthcare professionals and with the Pet Therapy questionnaire that was made and answered by some of the residents who were coherent versus those who had dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, prior to the interaction with an animal to support what they had answered …show more content…
These residents were comfortable, at peace while holding and stroking the dog, such that they did not want me to leave with the dog and would tell me “thank you for coming by.” Those few words meant so much to me to hear coming from someone who is alone and abandoned, as it happens more often in long-term care facilities. I also learned that by allowing or involving pet therapy with those who are in a health care setting, it would not only uplift their mood, but also give them a motive to continue to fight for another day of life. When speaking about separation from a dog, Konok et al. (2015) did mention that pet owners or those who have had a pet in the past (mostly dogs or cats) seen their pets more like their “own child” versus a family member, many which used their pet to help decrease stress. O’Nan, et al, (2014), pointed out an important fact when it comes to challenges nurses face each day on their duty, “Nurses make conscious decisions in an effort to practice caring despite increased patient complexity or workloads.” This is so true, as a nurse, there are days that we may feel like we cannot handle another admission, or cannot wait for out shift to