Introduction
Computerization and automation enable the creation of new tools for more effective interaction between healthcare workers and patients. At the moment, the predominant way of storing and exchanging information is the electronic health record (EHR). They allow doctors to receive up-to-date information about diseases, pathologies, and the patient’s condition to prescribe or adjust treatment. However, the records in the electronic card can be inappropriately structured, which is why this work will consider creating a database for adult patients with hypertension.
Clinically Based Patient Problem
The problem that will be considered in this paper is the self-treatment of hypertension in a patient 18 years of age and older in an outpatient clinic in New York. The question is essential because WHO has identified hypertension “as one of the most significant risk factors for morbidity and mortality worldwide” (Kitt et al., 2019). It cannot be wholly cured; therefore, constant monitoring of the patient’s condition is necessary. It comprises periodic measuring of blood pressure, taking medications, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The patient can observe some points on their own; however, to minimize life-threatening complications, a person needs to undergo preventive examinations. Using a database management approach provides improved monitoring capabilities, prescribed medications, and the transfer of medical data (Workneh et al., 2018). In the case under consideration, an outpatient clinic is presented, which cannot treat a person in a hospital; therefore, information, if necessary, should be promptly transmitted to the hospital for in-patients. Likewise, it is vital to create the most structured database for ease of criteria selection for analysis and with the ability to add free-form manual notes for completeness of the information.
Hypothetical Database
The database should include the initial information about the patient, the disease, and the drugs. Learning about a person includes gender, age, ethnicity, eating habits, weight and height, exercise, perceived stress levels, and genetic predisposition. Gender is required for risk identification, while some diseases may occur more often in men. Doctors recommend measuring blood pressure from the age of 18 since the disease may begin to develop asymptomatically at this stage. Ethnicity provides information about the possibility of taking certain medications. Diet is directly related to being overweight; obese people are more likely to catch more severe hypertension. Improper performance and volume of sports affect blood pressure since constantly tense muscles compress blood vessels, impairing general circulation. Stress levels depend on several factors, such as work, socioeconomic status, anxiety, and depression (Liu et al., 2017). Genetic predisposition can be determined from the data of close relatives. Hypertension has many dangerous elements because it affects the eyes, heart, brain, blood vessels, and kidneys. Further, information about a specific drug taken during treatment is necessary to exclude the option of incompatibility with the new instructions.
Description of the Patient Problem
Hypertension is persistently high blood pressure; in other words, it happens when three control changes show the pressure is above standard. It can go up or down with specific activities, such as performing sports or sleeping, respectively. The primary symptom of the disease is a headache because blood vessels narrow and blood unstably enters the brain. Alternative sensations include tinnitus, weakness, dizziness, and palpitations. The treatment of hypertension is prevention since it helps avoid complications such as stroke (Kjeldsen, 2018). Critical recommendations for therapy include lifestyle changes and drug healing. From a medical perspective, antihypertensive remedies are most often used, which are prescribed after a prolonged state of high blood pressure.
Recommendations for self-medication for hypertension are to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle. It includes eating well, keeping track of the weight, increasing physical activity, coping with stressful situations, getting rid of bad habits, and measuring blood pressure regularly. Eating involves minimizing salt, fatty meats, coffee, and carbonated and alcoholic beverages and maximizing potassium-rich foods, fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy products, and seafood. Physical activity more often three times a week for 30-40 minutes helps to reduce weight. Stress levels can be reduced by changing attitudes and looking for positive stances under challenging situations. Rest comprises planning leisure activities and getting enough sleep every night. Smoking and alcohol harm the circulatory system since they increase the risk of vascular blockage. Pressure can be measured at home with special devices and recorded in a diary. The patient should adhere to the recommendations, and the doctor should monitor the condition and, if necessary, add medications to the therapy.
Data from the EHR
Filling out the database should start with structured data since they are more meaningful and easier to interpret. These include gender, age, ethnicity, activity level, stress level, and genetic predisposition. Modern society assumes alternative genders besides males and female, and therefore, for the correct treatment of the patient, it is necessary to add an extra feature. Age is quantitatively measured; this parameter is standard for any base. Ethnicity must cover the main religious backgrounds of New York. The activity level is divided into five categories: low, below average, average, above average, and high. It is measured by the number of hours of exercise per week. The stress level can be tested with a unique bracelet, which will give accurate data. A nurse can enter based on low, medium, or high indicators. The item genetic predisposition comprises “yes” or “no” options and contains information about similar diseases of close relatives. Next, will be considered the criteria with the possibility of unstructured data.
Illnesses will include a point of all previous abnormalities, their period, and probable deviations. The drugs in the database can be classified by name, dose, and period of administration. These two items should have a choice called “other”, from which there will be a transition to open records. Unstructured data should include essential notes about the course of the disease. For example, the patient becomes worse with a specific type of strength training. It is necessary because of the individual characteristics of a person and the severity of the disease.
Data Entities and their Relationships to the Attributes
The database comprises a variety of related information, including the characteristics of an individual. For clarity, Figure 1 shows a conceptual map with a description of the object and its relationship with attributes.
Note. The database allows the collection and storage of mandatory information about patients with hypertension who self-medicate. It is an effective way to monitor a person’s condition, which includes structural and non-structural data. Likewise, the scheme allows both the patient and the doctor to walk through the self-medication checkpoints and see weak points quickly. It is essential to use the recommendations for self-management altogether since this gives the best recovery prognosis.
Conclusion
Self-medication of hypertension is a transparent process that the patient can carry out independently. It is necessary to maintain proper nutrition, play sports, calmly relate to stressful situations, get rid of bad habits, and regularly measure blood pressure. Complex cases require the intervention of doctors who, with a convenient database with patient characteristics, will quickly prescribe or adjust drugs. Hypertension is a common disease that affects many of the population because of non-compliance with preventive recommendations. It is a predictor of deadly diseases and therefore requires timely and correct treatment.
References
Finocchi, C., & Sassos, D. (2017). Headache and arterial hypertension. Neurological Sciences, 38(S1), 67–72.
Kitt, J., Fox, R., Tucker, K. L., & McManus, R. J. (2019). New approaches in hypertension management: a review of current and developing technologies and their potential impact on hypertension care. Current Hypertension Reports, 21(6).
Kjeldsen, S. E. (2018). Hypertension and cardiovascular risk: General aspects. Pharmacological Research, 129, 95–99. Web.
Liu, M.-Y., Li, N., Li, W. A., & Khan, H. (2017). Association between psychosocial stress and hypertension: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Neurological Research, 39(6), 573–580.
Workneh, F., Adem, A., & Pradhan, R. (2018). Understanding cloud-based health care service with its benefits. 2018 Second International Conference on Inventive Communication and Computational Technologies (ICICCT). Web.