Nur 264: Nursing Across the Lifespan III

Unit 1: Childhood Obesity Case Study

Case Study - As nurses, how can we use the nursing process to care for this
teenage girl?

Case Study:
A 14 year old African-American girl is admitted to the hospital for an asthma
exacerbation. She is 73 kg and 158 cm tall. She states she gets “out of breath
easily” on a daily basis. While in the hospital, her family brings her pizza, fried
chicken, chips, and cookies to eat.

Case Study Questions:

1. What is this patient’s BMI? What percentile does she fall into and how would
you classify that percentile?

2. Assessment - What should we assess about this patient? List at least 10

things the nurse needs to assess or ask about this patient. (can include
questions, measurements, assessments, history, labs, etc.)

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

g.

h.

i.

j.
 Case Study Resumes:

This girl eats out with her family 3-5 times a week. She likes to drink Coke,
Mountain Dew, and the new energy drinks. She says she does not like fruits and
vegetables and tries to stay away from them. She is very sedentary, with little
physical activity daily to include walking to the bus stop. She spends about 4 hours
a day watching TV or talking to her friend on My Space.

She is hypertensive as 136/86. Her parents are also obese. Diabetes runs in her
family, as well as a history of heart disease and stroke. In conversation she does not
make eye contact. She says she gets made fun of at school and has little friends.
She doesn’t like the way she looks.

Case Study Questions:

3. List 5 nursing diagnosis for this teenager.

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

4. Planning - What objectives/goals would be appropriate for this teenage girl?

Try to be specific for this patient.

a.

b.

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5. Implementation – What interventions would the nurse suggest for this
teenager? Think about specific ways to work with a teenage girl. Fill in the
table below with your ideas.

Diet Exercise Behavior

6. Evaluation – How would you evaluate that the objectives were met and what
outcomes would you expect?