Write a 50-word comment for each of the below paragraphs and support with a reference.
Often nurses can identify the first signs of unsafe driving during an assessment. This is important especially in older adults due to a decrease in vision, mobility, etc. Nurses incorporate questions about driving to identify if the patient is safe enough to continue driving. Some questions that a nurse may ask is How do you usually get around; do you drive or have someone drive for you? Do you notice any vision problems at night vs. the day? Have you had any traffic violations? how many wrecks have you had in the past year? Is your family concerned about your driving? Etc. All these questions are directed towards the safety of the patient and are placed so that the patient may become more aware of their situation and may open up other driving options. (Betz, et al, 2019)
Some common risk factors that can affect ones driving are vision impairment, hearing impairment, mental status, and slower motor functions. This can be due to the normal aging process and or illness that the patient was diagnosed with. Some Common referrals related to driving safety are normally a physician or primary care provider. A patient may be referred to a doctor due to dementia, Alzheimers, stroke, sleep apnea, etc. When noticing that a patient may be declining in their health that could affect their safe driving, it is always best for the patient to get a second opinion. Discussion about an older adult’s safety when driving can be hard because the patient may feel like their independence is being taken away.
The research of this discussion table helps me see that a lot of older adults may not be able to drive everywhere they need to go. So, looking at grocery stores, pharmacies, and emergency services through an older adults eyes can become challenging. You must start thinking about transportation and distance. Normally these things I do not have to think about because I can drive my car to wherever I need to go. But, if older adults cannot drive, they need to find transportation such as a family member, friends, or public transportation services such as taxis or the metro.
