Client Scenario
Discussion
Purpose
The purpose of the graded collaborative discussions is to engage faculty and students in an interactive dialogue to assist the student in applying pathophysiology knowledge. Meaningful dialogue among faculty and students fosters the development of a learning community as ideas, perspectives, and knowledge are shared. This discussion will support the professional formation of the nurse practitioner (NP) role.
Course Outcomes
This discussion enables the student to meet the following course outcomes:  
CO 1: Analyze pathophysiologic mechanisms associated with selected disease states across the lifespan.
CO 2: Examine the way in which homeostatic, adaptive, and compensatory physiological mechanisms can be supported and/or altered through specific therapeutic interventions across the lifespan.
CO 3: Distinguish risk factors associated with selected disease states across the lifespan.
CO 4: Integrate advanced pathophysiological concepts in the diagnosis and treatment of health problems in selected populations.
CO 5: Relate research findings to the management of patients with complex pathophysiologic dysfunction.
Preparing the Assignment
Follow these guidelines when completing each component of the discussion. Contact your course faculty if you have questions.
General Instructions
The purpose of this discussion is to examine an assigned disease process and determine which disease process explored in the discussion Janessa, the client, is experiencing. Follow the instructions below and your faculty member will reveal which disease process Janessa is experiencing at the end of the discussion week.
Step 1: Review the following client scenario:
Janessa, a 41-year-old female client, presents to the NP complaining of shortness of breath, weakness, and dizziness for “about a month.†She denies having a cough or recent illness. She has a history of endometriosis, and her physical assessment reveals her lungs are clear to auscultation bilaterally, and her mucous membranes are pale.
Step 2: Review your assigned disease process from the chart below. Your assigned disease process is based on the first letter of your last name.
Last Name
Disease Process
A – H
Condition: Anemia
I – P
Condition: Heart Failure
Q – Z
Condition: Asthma
Step 3: Review your assigned disease process and answer the discussion prompts below with explanation and detail, providing complete references for all citations.
Step 4: Reply to a peer with a different assigned condition.
Include the following sections:
1. Application of Course Knowledge: Answer all questions/criteria with explanations and detail.
Discuss the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms of your assigned disease process. Which clinical manifestations observed in Janessaâ€s case could be explained by the pathophysiological mechanisms?
Analyze Janessaâ€s clinical manifestations in the context of your assigned disease process. Do these findings support a diagnosis of your assigned disease process? Why or why not?
Identify and justify the diagnostic tests (including labs, imaging, or other diagnostic tests) that would be most appropriate for investigating a diagnosis of your assigned disease process in Janessa. What could the results of these tests look like in your assigned disease process?
Compare and contrast your response with a peer who was assigned a different condition. Does their condition fit Janessaâ€s case? Why or why not?
2. Integration of Evidence: Integrate relevant scholarly sources as defined by program expectations:
Cite a scholarly source in the initial post.
Cite a scholarly source in one faculty response post.
Cite a scholarly source in one peer post.
Accurately analyze, synthesize, and/or apply principles from evidence with no more than one short quote (15 words or less) for the week.
Include a minimum of two different scholarly sources per week. Cite all references and provide references for all citations.
3. Engagement in Meaningful Dialogue: Engage peers and faculty by asking questions and offering new insights, applications, perspectives, information, or implications for practice.
Peer Response: Respond to at least one peer on a topic other than the initially assigned topic.
Faculty Response: Respond to at least one faculty post.
Communicate using respectful, collegial language and terminology appropriate to advanced nursing practice.
4. Professionalism in Communication: Communicate with minimal errors in English grammar, spelling, syntax, and punctuation. 
5. Reference Citation: Use current APA format to format citations and references free of errors. 
. Total Participation Requirement: Provide at least three substantive posts (one to the initial question or topic, one to a student peer, and one to a faculty question) on two different days during the week.    
