Samonte, Joy C.

BSN-IV, A1
March 4, 2018

SPICES WRITE UP

Using the Fulmer SPICES assessment tool, I’ve identified 3 problems with my geriatric
patient, and they are the following: problems with sleep, problems with eating and feeding, and
problems with urinary incontinence.
The first problem is the problem with sleeping. My patient have verbalized difficulty in
sleeping for several years now. He stated being able to sleep only an hour at night and would
spend the rest of the
night awake. However, he also stated that sometimes he would just fall asleep without him
knowing but would wake up early in the morning, nevertheless. Despite having inadequate sleep,
he stated that he doesn’t feel drowsy or tired in the morning. On the other hand, he recognizes
that difficulty of sleeping comes with old age.
The second problems is his problem with his eating and feeding. The patient stated that
prior to his illness he had a big appetite when it comes to eating. He would eat a lot of rice and
coke to go along with his food. However, when he got ill, he barely has the appetite to eat. He
wouldn’t even finish 50% of the food served. He makes up for his lack of appetite by drinking
sterilized milk and or the nutren milk. His lack of appetite was not brought along by old age, but
was caused by his illness and should be back to normal once he is well again.
The third problem is his urinary incontinence. According to the patient, he is able to feel
his urinary urge to urinate, however, there are times when he can’t hold it in. His inability to
control his urination happens especially at night. When asked if he drinks lots of water before he
sleeps at night, he said yes. Therefore, the reason behind the patient’s incontinence might be that
he drinks a lot of water before he sleeps or it could also be because of old age. Sometimes, with
old age our bladder muscle becomes weaker, thus, the urinary incontinence or the uncontrolled
leaks.