Maternal Child Nursing Care, 5e

Book Preface

This fifth edition of Maternal Child Nursing Care combines essentialmaternity and pediatric nursing information into one text. The text focuses on the care of women during their reproductive years and the care of children from birth through adolescence. The issues and concerns of childbearing women and the health care of children are the primary concentrations. The promotion of wellness and the management of common women’s health problems and child development in the context of the family are also addressed. As we move further into the twenty-first century, this fifth edition of Maternal Child Nursing Care is designed to address the changing needs of women during their childbearing years and children during their developing years.

Maternal Child Nursing Care was developed to provide students with the knowledge and skills they need to become competent critical thinkers and to attain the sensitivity needed to become caring nurses. This fifth edition has been revised and refined in response to comments and suggestions from educators, clinicians, and students. It includes the most accurate, current, and clinically relevant information available.

APPROACH

Professional nursing practice continues to evolve and adapt to society’s changing health priorities. The rapidly changing health care delivery system offers new opportunities for nurses to alter the practice of maternity and pediatric nursing and to improve the way care is given. Increasingly, nursing practice must be evidence based. It is incumbent on nurses to use the most up-to-date and scientifically supported information on which to base their care. To assist nurses in providing this type of care, Evidence-Based Practice boxes with implications for practice are included throughout the text. Consumers of maternity and pediatric care vary in age, ethnicity, culture, language, social status, marital status, and sexual orientation. They seek care from a variety of health care providers in numerous health care settings, including the home. To meet the needs of these consumers, clinical education must offer students a variety of health care experiences in settings that include hospitals and birth centers, homes, clinics, private physicians’ offices, shelters for the homeless or for women and children in need of protection, and other community-based settings.

Care Management has been used as an organizing framework for discussion in the nursing care chapters. This approach demonstrates how nursing must collaborate with other health care disciplines to provide the most comprehensive care possible to women and children. Nursing Care Plans reinforce the problem-solving approach to patient care. In chapters that focus on complications of childbearing, reproductive conditions, and childhood illnesses, medical interventions are included along with nursing care management. Throughout the discussion of assessment and care, we alert the nurse to signs of potential problems and provide informational boxes that highlight warning signs and emergency situations.

Patient education is an essential component of the nursing care of women and children. The chapter on women’s health promotion and screening emphasizes teaching for self-care to promote wellness and to encourage preventive care. The chapter on transition to parenthood focuses on teaching for new parents and infants at home. Special boxes highlight community care throughout the text. Family-Centered Care boxes incorporate family considerations important to the care of women and children. Issues concerning grandparents, siblings, and different family constellations are addressed. In the pediatric chapters, these boxes focus on the special learning needs of families. Legal Tips are integrated into the maternity section to emphasize issues related to the care of women and infants. Alerts are located throughout the text to draw attention to important information on medications, nursing care, and safety.

This fifth edition features a contemporary design with logical, easy-to-follow headings and an attractive four-color design that highlights important content and increases visual appeal. Hundreds of color photographs and drawings throughout the text, many ofthem new, illustrate important concepts and techniques to further enhance comprehension. To help students learn essential information quickly and efficiently, we have included numerous features that prioritize, condense, simplify, and emphasize important aspects of nursing care. In addition, the text encourages students to think critically.