Page 149 - Petelin, Ana, ur. 2024. Zdravje delovno aktivnih in starejših odraslih / Health of Working-Age and Older Adults. Zbornik povzetkov z recenzijo ▪︎ Book of Abstracts. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem/University of Primorska Press

Community nurse in the role of protecting the elderly in the local
community

1
2
Mara Županić , Sanja Zoranić , Snježana Brući , Ivana Živoder 4
3
1 University of Applied Health Sciences, Zagreb, Croatia
2 University of Dubrovnik, Dubrovnik, Croatia
3 Special Hospital for Medical Rehabilitation Naftalan, Ivanić Grad, Croatia
4 University North, Varaždin, Croatia
Introduction and purpose: The paper deals with the association of the increasing pro-
portion
of people over the age of 65 and their needs with the health services provided by
community nurses. The work of a community nurse with older adults includes: assess-
ing the needs for health care of older adults in their home, planning of health care, im-
plementation of health care and evaluation. Much of this population group does not
need continuous care, however, with increasing age, the functional ability of the old-
er adults is also declining, which is the reason why care and support are needed, and
community nurses are in the best position to provide such care.
Content presentation: According to the 2021 Census, the Republic of Croatia has 3 871
833 inhabitants, while the share of the population aged 65 and over is 22.45% (Cro-
atian Bureau of Statistics). Considering that older adults are at higher risk for chronic
diseases and disabilities, they therefore are more likely to need health services. Car-
ing for an aging population requires a sufficient level of knowledge and skills associated
with gerontology. This includes understanding the normal aging process and expected
changes such as psysiological, psychosocial, functional and cognitive changes common
health needs, chronic problems and care, as well as the application of the concept of
health promotion for older adults. This indicates that community nurses should pro-
vide an individualized care plan, with the aim of preventing functional decline and en-
suring the maintenance of health. The main objective of community activities in the
care of the older adult population is to ensure that the community nurses understand
care planning for chronic patients and promote healthy ageing and activities to reduce
the impact of age-related diseases and disabilities. The community nurse represents a
link, i.e. a bridge between the family and a whole range of other services available to
her in the local community, the nurse refers the family to individual services, taking in- problemi, izzivi in priložnosti na področju zdravja ... | concerns, challenges and opportunities in the health ...
to account the protection of the interests and rights of the older adults family. Through
home/, the community nurses implement measures of all levels of prevention, they
identify the risks, and instruct and collaborate with other sectors to support a person
and their family in need. The paper will present national norms and standards of com-
munity nurses, guidelines for the implementation of health care in the field of commu-
nity care, the number of health professionals who carry out health care in the home,
by counties in 2022 and the distribution of the number of visits of community nurses to
the older adults and the number of identified diseases and conditions in home health
care, by groups of diseases and age groups of users in Croatia in 2022.
Conclusions: Complex interventions such as geriatric assessment and community mon-
itoring have the potential to support the older adults to live independently. The pro-
grammes are comprehensive models of community care for the weak older adults and
community nurses are indispensable members of the interdisciplinary Gerontology/
Geriatric Team in protecting the health of the older adults
Keywords: nursing, health care, older adults, community

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