Air Quality
Air Quality Index
As a community health nurse, if I had patients with respiratory issues that were affected by poor quality air index, modifying their care and giving proper education would be my focus for these patients. Air quality index tells you how clean or polluted the air is. When air pollutants are high it makes it harder for patients with asthma and other respiratory diseases breathe comfortably. While we can’t control outdoor air pollutants, we do have some control of the air inside of our homes. I would suggest that my patients improve the air quality in their homes by purchasing better air conditioning filters or air purifiers to decrease air pollutants. I would inform them to keep windows closed at home and in the car to avoid exposure to smog. Planning activities over the next few days would have to be based on checking the air quality forecasts, which they would be able to do by visiting a website called “AIRNOW”. This website gives up to date information on the quality of the air in your community. Keeping medications on hand is imperative. It’s especially important to take preventative asthma medications, such as Advair or Flovent, as prescribed, and to keep rescue inhaler nearby in case of an asthma attack. I would be sure to tell my patients to stay hydrated and breathe properly. Dehydration makes the lungs feels worse. Breathing through the nose instead of the mouth is advised, the nose’s job is to filter the air and bring it to the right temperature and appropriate level of humidity. If you breathe through your mouth, you bypass this filtration system (Dr. White, 2012). These are just a few ways I would modify the care of my patients in the case of a poor quality
As a community health nurse, if I had patients with respiratory issues that were affected by poor quality air index, modifying their care and giving proper education would be my focus for these patients. Air quality index tells you how clean or polluted the air is. When air pollutants are high it makes it harder for patients with asthma and other respiratory diseases breathe comfortably. While we can’t control outdoor air pollutants, we do have some control of the air inside of our homes. I would suggest that my patients improve the air quality in their homes by purchasing better air conditioning filters or air purifiers to decrease air pollutants. I would inform them to keep windows closed at home and in the car to avoid exposure to smog. Planning activities over the next few days would have to be based on checking the air quality forecasts, which they would be able to do by visiting a website called “AIRNOW”. This website gives up to date information on the quality of the air in your community. Keeping medications on hand is imperative. It’s especially important to take preventative asthma medications, such as Advair or Flovent, as prescribed, and to keep rescue inhaler nearby in case of an asthma attack. I would be sure to tell my patients to stay hydrated and breathe properly. Dehydration makes the lungs feels worse. Breathing through the nose instead of the mouth is advised, the nose’s job is to filter the air and bring it to the right temperature and appropriate level of humidity. If you breathe through your mouth, you bypass this filtration system (Dr. White, 2012). These are just a few ways I would modify the care of my patients in the case of a poor quality