| Interlocutor: SETTING: HOME VISIT |
| PATIENT: You have mild COPD, and have been given a home oxygen cylinder to ease your breathlessness after a recent flare-up. Your GP has asked the community nurse to visit you at home to see how you are. TASK: – When asked, explain that overall you feel better and less breathless, but your throat feels a bit dry and sore. – Explain that you have not been getting any headaches or feeling confused. Tell the nurse that the mask feels uncomfortable sometimes and irritates the skin underneath. – Tell the nurse that you will try some moisturizing cream before changing to nasal prongs. – Say that you stopped smoking a year ago. Explain that you have been having some trouble sleeping, so you sometimes take one of your partner’s sleeping pills to help. – Agree to the nurse’s suggestions about sleeping pills. |
| SETTING: HOME VISIT |
| NURSE: You are a community nurse, visiting a patient with mild COPD who recently had a flare-up. Last week, he/she was given an oxygen cylinder for short-burst therapy at home. The patient’s GP has asked you to check on the patient to see how he/she is coping. TASK – Greet the patient and introduce yourself. Find out how he/she is feeling and how he/she is coping with the oxygen therapy. – Reassure the patient that what he/she is feeling is normal. Explain the reason (drying of the mucous membrane in the respiratory tract) and suggest solutions (e.g. keeping hydrated). – Ask about any other side-effects (e.g. headaches, feeling confused). – Sympathise with the patient and suggest that he/she use moisturising cream to help. Find out if he/she knows about the option of nasal prongs rather than a mask. – Check that the patient no longer smokes at all, and ask if he/she has any remaining concerns. – Sympathise with the patient but stress why he/she should avoid sleeping tablets (they cause slow breathing). Suggest alternatives. |