A.
The Transtheoretical Model (TTM) offers a suitable model for implementing health education for seniors with osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a condition in which the bones wear out gradually with age and a small fracture develops which limits the physical and physiological functionalities of the affected individual. The illness is common in seniors because of the gradual decrease in the body’s ability to replace the worn out bone tissues. The bone formation process involves a ‘wear and replace’ methodology (Moylan & Binder, 2007). However, at old age, the replacement of the tissues cannot adequately fill in for the worn out material, and the bones will weaken with time.
The TTM framework is based on four constructs that insist ion the idea that health needs change with advancing age. The four constructs which also form the principles of adult learning include the stages of change, decisional balance, self-efficacy and the process of change (Moylan & Binder, 2007). In this case, the seniors need education on osteoporosis management. The TTM will play the four constructs to educate the seniors that age is an influencing factor and that behavioral patterns (dietary and physical activity) are one way to manage the illness. The program will thus help them make a decision through decision-balancing that favor their advancing age and minimize the risk of osteoporosis. On the other hand, the TTM framework will help the seniors develop self-efficacy techniques that focus on self-health and management at old age.
B.
One of the major health Indicators of the Health People 2020 is the ‘Health across the Life Stages’. This indicator is based on the goal and objective of ensuring that people across all ages receive care that suits their needs as they form and transform with age. The Indicator serves to ensure that people of all ages, especially the ages more prone to illness and lack of appropriate health management techniques such as the children, minority and the seniors receive quality care despite the financial, social and cultural variations that may be prevalent within the society (People & US Department of Health and Human Services, 2011). The Indicator advocates integration of clinical procedures with health promotion techniques which focus on self-management and self-care for the seniors as they advance in age. The idea is to help them cope with their decreasing physical and physiological capabilities
C.
D.
In designing and developing of the teaching materials, the educator should ensure that information is understandable and clear to the learners. As such, the educator should consider various factors about literacy levels and readability of the materials. These factors include word choice, use of figures and illustrations, sentence length, layout tone, and appeal of the materials to the learners. The assessment tools that might be used by the educator include; asking the learners questions to understand the level of understanding and comprehension. The second assessment tool is relating learned knowledge to real life experiences (Moylan & Binder, 2007).
E.
Teaching plan and audience: Educating seniors on the risks of osteoporosis, self-management and coping mechanisms
The learning process is usually a critical aspect of the health education and promotion sessions. It should not only match the demographics of the target population but also be acceptable to them at individual and groups level. The session must also ensure that the target population is able to acquire skills that can help the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ within the population receiving this education (Lach et al., 2004).
Individual sessions: These will involve taking each person through a learning process for self-efficacy and management respective of their individual social-economic and cultural backgrounds. The purpose here is to develop individualized self-care techniques tat will serve each person at individual level.
Gender-based groups: These sessions will incorporate the idea that gender plays a significant role on the self-management process. Each gender has its specific challenges and needs especially at old age. Thus, incorporating those strategies at gender level that will enable the learners discover their health need and the techniques to fulfill those needs based on their genders are critical. These will also form a platform where the learners can share their concerns and communally develop strategies that can effectively help them overcome the challenges. These groups will also serve as channels through each person will monitor their adherence to the program in relation to those of others (Lach et al., 2004). The members will serve as colleagues through assisting each other to adhere and fulfill their needs to help alleviate the possibilities of developing osteoporosis.
The major challenge in these two approaches is the variations in literacy levels, cultural and religious beliefs. These could weaken the association between members or between the learner and I as the educator. On this perspective, the best outcomes are limited.
At the end of the program, the expectation is that all learners will be in a position to recall all that has been learned and possibly act as educators to others. Similarly, the learners must be able to portray their learned ideas into their lives through self-care and self-management techniques. Behavioral change and perceptions about their lives and wellness will be monitored to ascertain the efficacy of the program (Lach et al., 2004).
References
Lach, H. W., Everard, K. M., Highstein, G., & Brownson, C. A. (2004). Application of the transtheoretical model to health education for older adults.Health promotion practice, 5(1), 88-93.
Moylan, K. C., & Binder, E. F. (2007). Falls in older adults: risk assessment, management and prevention. The American journal of medicine, 120(6), 493-e1.
People, H., & US Department of Health and Human Services. (2011). Healthy People 2020.
