Health care of elderly patients with diabetes

Šećerna bolest je kronični, neizlječivi poremećaj tolerancije glukoze. Karakterizirana je apsolutnim ili relativnim manjkom inzulina, što uzrokuje povećanu količinu šećera u krvi. Jedna je od najčešćih endokrinih bolesti i pogađa sve veći broj ljudi, različitih uzrasta. Postoje četiri osnovna oblika šećerne bolesti, a najčešće se pojavljuje u obliku šećerne bolesti tipa 2. Taj tip bolesti karakterističan je za stariju dobnu skupinu, koja ima neuravnoteženu prehranu i povećanu tjelesnu masu. Naime, često je oskudna simptomatologija, pa se bolest dijagnosticira u kasnom stadiju. Što se bolesti prije dijagnosticira, veći su uspjesi liječenja. Ukoliko se na vrijeme ne liječi uzrokuje akutne i kronične komplikacije. Akutne komplikacije su vrlo rizične i zahtijevaju hitnu intervenciju, u najgorem slučaju mogu uzrokovati i smrt. Dok, kronične komplikacije se postepeno razvijaju i u većini slučajeva uzrokuju invalidnost, a ponekad i smrt. Ključnu ulogu u prevenciji i liječenju šećerne bolesti ima medicinska sestra. Naime, ona ima cjelovit pristup bolesniku i njegovoj obitelji, te poznaje bolesnikove potrebe. Kvalitetna skrb kod zbrinjavanja osobe oboljele od šećerne bolesti zahtijeva veliko stručno znanje medicinske sestre, koja mora uspostaviti dobru komunikaciju s bolesnikom i educirati ga o brizi za vlastito zdravlje. Prilikom edukacije, cilj medicinske sestre je educirati bolesnika o važnosti održavanja pravilne prehrane, važnosti provođenja tjelesne aktivnosti, o načinu primjene pravilne terapije, te o važnosti prepoznavanja i sprječavanja nastanka komplikacija. Naime, ukoliko bolesnik održava razinu glukoze u krvi što bliže normalnim vrijednostima, pridržava se pravilne prehrane i tjelesne aktivnosti, može se znatno poboljšati kvaliteta života i produžiti životni vijek oboljele osobe.Diabetes is a chronical, incurable disorder of glucose tolerance. It is characterised with absolute or relative insuline insufficiation that causes increased amount of blood sugar. It is one of the most frequent endocrine diseases that affects large number of people of different generations. There are four basic types of diabetes, but mostly it occurrs as diabetes type II. The elderly are the most common group that is affected by this disease due to the unbalanced nutrition and increased body weight. Since the symptoms are often scarce, the disease is diagnosed in the latter stage. The sooner the disease is diagnosed, the higher the treatment success rates are. If it is not treated in time, it can cause acute and chronical complications. Acute complications are very risky and demand immediate intervention. Also, they can even cause death in worst case scenarios. On the other hand, chronical complications gradually develope and in most cases cause invalidity, and even death. The nurse holds the key role in prevention and treatment of diabetes. She has a complete access to the patient's and his family's medical records, thus recognizes patient's needs. In order to give high quality patient care, who is suffering from diabetes, a great amount of expertise is required from a nurse. The nurse is required to establish a good comunication with a patient in order to educate him/her about the care for his/her own health. During the education, the nurse's goal is to teach the patient about the importance of maintaining a healthy nutrition and physical excescise, the way of applying the suitable therapy, and the importance of recognising and surpressing the occurenceof the complication. If the patient is maintaining his/her glucose level as close as possible to the normal parameters, along with a healthy nutrition and physical excercise, it is possible to prolong the life span and life quality of the diseased