Mrs. Elizabeth (Libby) Gardner is a 63 year old African-American woman who is arriving at the outpatient heart clinic for her first visit. She is married, has two adult children, and four grandchildren.

Mrs. Elizabeth (Libby) Gardner is a 63 year old African-American woman who is arriving at the outpatient heart clinic for her first visit. She is married, has two adult children, and four grandchildren. Libby and her husband Joe, live in a middle class suburb, and her children live locally. Until this hospitalization, she worked as an administrative assistant for a law office. Her husband has recently retired and stays busy with community activities.
She was discharged from the hospital one week ago after experiencing a large anterior wall myocardial infarction (MI) which resulted in left-sided heart failure. The discharge summary from the hospital includes the following data:
Blood Pressure 136/88
Pulse 96 and regular
Respirations 20 and clear
Temperature 98.8°F temporal
Weight of 156 pounds
S3 heart sound audible in early diastole
Bilateral non-pitting edema present in feet and ankles
Libby states a past medical history of hypertension, elevated cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes mellitus; she states that all of these conditions “run in [her] family”. Her reported medication history includes: an ACE inhibitor, Beta Blocker, diuretic, statin, and oral hypoglycemic agent. The patient states she is “pretty good” about taking her medications and following dietary recommendations.
Intake assessment data at the heart clinic includes:
Blood Pressure 162/96
Pulse 92 and regular
Respirations 32 with crackles in the bases, bilaterally
Temperature 98.2°F temporal
The patient denies pain
She is mildly anxious and complains of shortness of breath at night and with mild activity
Bilateral 2+ pitting edema is present in ankles and feet
Directions
From the case study choose ONE aspect of patient education that you will provide for Mrs. Gardner.
For example, you may want to discuss patient education related to:
Dietary management
Medication management
Shortness of breath with activity and at night
Pathophysiology of congestive heart failure
Or, another area you feel that is important
In a 300 to 500 word post, discuss the patient teaching you would provide Mrs. Gardner related to the ONE chosen area.
Include one reputable resource that you can direct her or her family for further support, maintenance, and/or reinforcement of the education you provided. Be creative, you may want to use a community resource, electronic resource, support group, technological tool, assistive device, etc.