COLLEGE OF NURSING

2ND Semester S.Y. 2020 - 2021

March 2021

NAME: Santos, Aira Kristelle M. Date Performed: March 18, 2021

COURSE/YEAR/SECTION: BSN 1-1 Date Submitted: March 18, 2021

ACTIVITY # 5

OUTBREAK DETECTION

On the morning of March 11, the Philippine Department of Health received a

telephone call from a student at a university in south-central Mindanao. The student
reported that he and his roommate, a fraternity brother, were suffering from nausea,
vomiting, and diarrhea. Both had become ill during the night. The roommate had taken
an over-the-counter medication with some relief of his symptoms. Neither the student
nor his roommate had seen a physician or gone to the emergency room.

The students believed their illness was due to food they had eaten at a local
pizzeria the previous night. They asked if they should attend classes and take a
Microbiology midterm exam that was scheduled that afternoon.

Questions:

1. As an attending nurse what questions (or types of questions) would you

ask the student to collect information systematically?

As an attending nurse, I would respond to such situation by collecting information

systematically through interviewing. I will ask various questions to the students for
me to collect subjective data, which will be of great help in terms of formulating a
correct nursing diagnosis and in providing nursing intervention. First and foremost, I
will be asking the students about their food consumption as well as their activities
during the day before the incident happened. I will raise questions about their age,
medical history, family history, and lifestyle practices. Moreover, I will ask them
questions that are related to the symptoms that they were suffering from, such as
nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. In terms of nausea and vomiting, I will ask if how
often they feel nauseous, when did the vomiting begin, how long it lasted, and how
does it occur. Also, I will ask the students if they are vomiting undigested food or
what the vomit looks like. Moving to the symptom of diarrhea, I will ask the
frequency, duration, pattern, and severity. Not only that, I will ask about the
characteristics of the stool if whether it is watery, bloody, or fatty. Lastly, I will ask if
what type of medication they took to relieve the symptoms, what other illnesses they
have, and if do they have a decrease in their appetite.

2. What would you advise the student about attending class that day?

In terms of attending the class that day, I would advise the students to take a
rest. Truly, when experiencing symptoms like diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting, the
body should have some rest to cover up what has been loss. Proper rest can boost
the immune system and can help an individual to feel better sooner. Staying home
when sick helps people to avoid the spread of illness and to recover properly.
Attending the class when feeling ill, makes a person harder to focus or concentrate,
and that can certainly affect to their activities and even the results of it. Although the
microbiology midterm examination is important, they have to realize that their health
will always be more of it as it is one’s wealth. The reason behind their absence is a
considerable excuse and their professor will surely understand it. For now, what is
best is for them to relax, and while doing such, they also need to consider a good
sleep because this is a powerful weapon that helps the body to recharge. Of course,
they should drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration, take medication, and relieve
discomfort. In such ways, they will feel better and they can go back to their usual
daily activities.

3. Do you think this complaint should be investigated further? Please explain.

In my opinion, this complaint should be investigated further to make things

clearer. Based from the given situation, the students’ life is at risk and that is a fact
that should not be taken lightly. We very much know how every individual aims for
good health knowing that illnesses can disrupt all aspects of life. Investigating this
circumstance will lead to knowing the cause of the symptoms suffered by the
students. Here, we will recognize the factors that triggered such situation to happen
and the possible ways to stop it. By this, there is a great chance to prevent or to not
let occur the same scenario happen once again. Besides, investigating further can
help to determine the number of individuals who were also affected by such.
Through this, the healthcare providers can monitor and give accurate intervention,
just like in the case of the two students who have called for an assessment. In a
matter of fact, through investigation, we can make the local pizzeria accountable for
their actions, if proven that there is really negligence.
4. Do you think these cases of gastroenteritis represent an outbreak at the
university? Why or why not?

I think that these cases of gastroenteritis represent an outbreak at the university.

In the given situation, we can imagine that there are other people who might be
students, instructors, or other university officials, who are engaged in visiting and
eating in the said local pizzeria. For sure, other victims are not yet aware of their
symptoms or they might as well tend to ignore it. The illness known as
gastroenteritis is an inflammation of the lining of the intestines caused by viruses,
bacteria, or parasites. This is often caused by a norovirus infection that spreads
through contaminated food, water, or by contact with an infected person. Signs and
symptoms of this kind of illness include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. From such,
we could tell that this is the exact condition which happened with the two students
and probably to other unidentified people. For this, we confirmed that it does really
represent an outbreak in the university, thinking that some individuals kept on having
contact with infected persons, without knowing that the person has acquired the
illness. Truly, if this kind of situation is not given focus, this will result in a more
complicated aspect or result.

5. What have you learned from this activity?

Through this activity, I have learned various things as an aspiring healthcare

provider and as an individual. Truly, I have realized that in such situation, nurses
should really apply their knowledge about the nursing process such as Assessing,
Diagnosing, Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating. They should not just jump out
to conclusions, but rather collect data and information to come up with the right
diagnosis. Also, I learned that nurses need to have critical thinking and problem-
solving skills in order to handle stressful situations, just like on this case study. On
the other hand, as an individual, I have realized that we should be mindful of dealing
with our environment, especially in this time of global pandemic. We have to always
ensure the safety of the foods that we are going to consume on a daily basis.
Certainly, through this, we can protect ourselves from foodborne illnesses as well as
food poisoning. Also, let us be aware of how we interact with others because we
might not know that they can harm us. Lastly, the most significant aspect that I have
learned from this activity is to always stay healthy and safe. In our current situation, I
 believe that this is everyone’s top priority as it helps us to be alive and kicking in this
new normal.

Presentation of Limited clarity and Quite well Engaging, creative, Score

Ideas thought. developed and and thoughtful
1 point detailed 3 points
2points
Organization Evidence of some Logical Coherent and
organization organization organized structure
1 point 2points 3 points
Vocabulary Unsophisticated and Straightforward Precise, vivid, and
at times vocabulary and sophisticated
inappropriate effective sentences vocabulary, varied
vocabulary with that are rarely patterns, and lengths
of sentences
simple sentences complex or varied.
3 points
1 point 2points
Content Chosen form rarely Chosen form Chosen form
conveys content generally effectively and
effectively. appropriate for innovatively conveys
1 point content. content.
2 points 3points
Surface Surface feature Occasionally few Few surface features
Feature Errors errors may at times surface feature errors; only noticeable
distract the reader. errors such as if looking for them.
1 point punctuations, 3points
spelling, or
pronoun reference
errors
2points
RUBRICS FOR ESSAY