FAMILY HEALTH ASSESSMENT

FAMILY HEALTH ASSESSMENT

Questions for Interview                               

Values – health perceptions

                Do you follow any set guidelines based on your perception of health? 

                Tell me about your health care experience

                Does your cultural belief have any weight on your decisions regarding health care?

Nutrition

                What type of meals are prepared in your home?

                Who prepares the meals?

                Does the family eat meals together?

Sleep / Rest

                What does the word sleep mean to you?

                How much sleep do you receive in a 24 hr. period?

                Describe your sleeping conditions.

Elimination

                Describe a normal elimation in a 24 hour period?

                Is the activity of elimation addressed in your culture?

Activity / exercise

                Do you participate in any organized activities?

                Do you participate with members of your same ethnic heritage?

                As a family, do you participate in any exercise activities?

Cognitive

                How do you learn best?

                Do you know more than one language?

Sensory / Perception

                How do you perceive your place in your community?

                How do you perceive that your culture fits into your daily life?

                How does your co-workers perceive your cultural beliefs?

Self-perception

                Where do you perceive yourself in your family dynamic?

                Tell me what you think about the affect your culture has on your daily interactions.

                How do you perceive yourself as a brother, father, husband?

Role relationship

                Describe your role in your marriage.

                Describe the cultural effect on your self-image of your role.

                How do you accept the role of stepparent?

Sexuality

                What does the word sex mean to you?

                How does sexuality and your culture mesh?

                How does being a stepparent deal with the sexual issues of the teenagers in your family?

Coping

                How do you cope with a loss of a family member?

                What are some ways you cope with problems culturally.

                What coping mechanism do you use most?

The interviewee is a Guatemalan male in a second marriage to a Caucasian female with two biracial teenagers.  He also has a daughter of his own in his homeland living with his parents.  The cultural effect on his life is great.

His beliefs regarding his health care is that when there is an acute need for health care, it is sought out.  Due to the language barrier, health care is limited to work clinic or urgent care units.  His cultural belief is strong that you do not go unless ill and there is limited to no preventative care sought out.  He himself only attend the work clinic while his wife and stepchildren have family doctors and seek preventative care.  Although the wife encourages the interviewee to see the family doctor, he refuses. 

The family meals are prepared by the wife and daughter.  The interviewee believes that it is the responsibility of the woman to prepare the meals even though both work outside the home.  The diet of the home is generally a Hispanic type of meal.  The men then clean the kitchen after the meal is completed, so that chores are shared. 

Sleep means the time that the interviewee rests.  He rests when he comes home from work and then goes to bed around 10 pm to be up by 430 am for work.  Rest is also when he is playing his video game.  Sleep itself is not as important as rest.  He states that they take frequent siestas in his home country.

The topic of elimination and sexuality was difficult to address as he considered it to be private.  Sexuality is not to be flaunted or on display.  As the stepparent he has set firm ground rules for the teenagers clothing and behaviors.  His beliefs are based on his culture.  His sister whom also lives with her family in the household dresses very, modestly.  No outward displays of affection other than a kiss is displayed in the house.

Activity is an important part of his culture.  He plays soccer weekly with others of his ethnicity.  He also encourages the children to be active in team sports.  At times he is out with the children playing miniature golf or at the batting cages.  He supports the children in group activities such as group outings or dates but not individual dating until later in their teens.

His ability to learn is hampered due to his limited ability to understand English.  He has attended English classes and can manage to communicate adequately.  His wife is also a translator for the Hispanic community.  With his classes he has become fluent enough to be a team leader at work as a leader inspector.

He perceives his role in his family as two-fold.  He has his immediate family but he also has siblings in this country.  As the oldest child here, he feels the need to become the head of the family also.  He not only deals with problems of his family he must address sibling problems.  He also continues to send money to support his child and parents back home.  The dollar exchange to the money exchange used in Guatemala is tremendous.  Few dollars brings large amount of money home to the parents.  He has also supported his wife’s parents at one time.  He is a firm believer that family is important and comes first.

The interviewee assumed the role of father and husband for the family he married into.  The blended second marriage has been a challenge to all involved.  Both husband and wife are of catholic upbringings and Catholicism is practiced in the home.  Both American and Guatemalan celebrations are observed in the home.

Coping mechanisms are varied with this interviewee.  At the beginning of their marriage, the interviewee was involved with alcohol.  As with many families, the couple went through difficult times due to the alcohol use.  At some point, he decided to abstain from alcohol and remain sober.  In his homeland, it is very common for alcohol usage for everything from celebrations to coping mechanisms.  Unfortunately this problem isn’t just limited to this ethnic culture.  He copes with problems now days by doing woodworking projects.  Viewing his works, displayed intricate and detailed workmanship was exhibited.  He has difficulty dealing with issues occurring in his homeland as he has no way of going home to visit.  He currently uses Skype to reach out and communicate to his family outside the United States.  He maintains frequent phone contact with the sister that lives in Tennessee.  His sister, her husband and two children live with him due to the family relocated from Tennessee to Ohio.  It is customary for families to live together to save funds to send home to help parents and other family members.

As discovered with this interview, cultural and heritage never completely leave a person’s life.  The challenges for a second blended marriage faces the same difficulties no matter the ethnic backgrounds involved.

The nursing diagnosis for this gentleman would be

1. Readiness for enhanced family coping r/t extended family issues
2. Readiness for enhanced parenting r/t step parenting of two teenagers

FAMILY HEALTH ASSESSMENT