How Lenz Colleagues Theory Of Unpleasant Symptoms (...

Abstract Heart failure (HF) is one of the leading public health concerns in America (USA), as well as, globally, with an occurrence of over 23 million worldwide, 5.8 million in the USA and increasing. HF causes extensive debility and deaths and poses a heavy burden on the healthcare system, costing USA, over $32 billion in treatment and management annually (Bui, Horwich, Fonarow, 2011). The aim of this paper is to evaluate how Lenz Colleagues’ Theory of Unpleasant Symptoms (TOUS) can be utilized in the nursing practice to enhance HF patients and home care-givers’ knowledge on early symptom identification and management. The goal is to reduce hospital re-admission, morbidity and death rates in the HF population. Literatures have illustrated how improvement of HF self-management through receipt of adequate education may have a positive effect on morbidity, reduce hospital re-admission rates and increase better health outcomes (Vincent, Mutsch, 2015). Therefore, the nurses†™ responsibility is to provide current, and evidence based (EB) HF self-management teachings or educational materials for home use to patients and families. An overview of the state science was conducted using four pertinent and current articles. Lenz’s TOUS is the theoretical underpinning applied in this project. Keywords: Heart failure symptoms, heart failure management, adults and heart failure, Lenz’s Theory of Unpleasant Symptoms, heart failure outcomes. Caring for Patients with Heart Failure