Geriatric Special Topics: Age-Related Health Changes (3HR)

Course overview

Target Audience: The target audience for this education program is nurses who work with older adults and want to increase their knowledge of age-related changes in health. Course Overview: The course of normal aging, independent of disease, is accompanied by a myriad of changes in the body’s systems. The clinical implications of these age-related alterations are important in nursing assessment and care of the older adult. Changes associated with normal aging must be differentiated from pathological processes in order to develop appropriate interventions. Manifestations of aging can adversely impact the health and functional capability of older adults and require therapeutic strategies to correct. Age-associated changes predispose older persons to selected diseases. Thus, nurses’ understanding of these risks can serve to develop more effective approaches to assessment and care. This education program provides nurses with information about age-related body changes and nursing interventions important to the care of older adults as it relates to these changes. OBJECTIVES On completion of this chapter, the reader should be able to: 1. Describe the structural and functional changes in multiple body systems that occur during the normal aging process 2. Explain the clinical significance of these age-related changes regarding the health and disease risks of the older adult 3. Discuss the components of a nursing assessment for the older adult in light of the manifestations of normal aging 4. Identify care strategies to promote successful aging in older adults, with consideration of age-related changes