Bipolar Disorder Role of Nursing Profession in Care

Bipolar Disorder Role of Nursing Profession in Care With the increasing incidence and prevalence of mental disabilities like bipolar disorders in Australia (Geller. B, DelBello. M, 2008). the nursing profession will have to attain the knowledge and skills required to care for individuals who have bipolar disorder via a multidisciplinary approach across all nursing settings; acute care, aged care, specialist mental health and community settings. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines disability as â€Å"The inability to engage in any substantial, gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death, or has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months† (World Health Organization, 2010). The term disability is such a broad term, where generally an individual suffering from a disability is known to suffer either mentally or physically. Bipolar disorder is a mental disorder that affects an individual’s psyc hological or behavioural patterns and is known to have a long-term affect upon an individual. The Australian Psychology Society, a leader in providing information in regards to mental health issues to the public, defines â€Å"Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, [as] a mental illness that seriously affects the way a person acts, thinks and feels. It is generally characterised by a cycle of mood swings between elation and depression, varying from mild to extreme. Extreme elation is called ‘mania’ † (The Australian Psychology Society, 2010). Bipolar is the sixth leading cause of disability among illnesses and is associated with both high mortality and morbidity costs (Geller. B, DelBello. M, 2008). It affects one in fifty Australians, where gender and age characteristics do not influence the disorder to predominantly affect one of these specific groups (Better Health Channel, 2010). There are a range of factors that contribute to the disorder, w here genetics, biology, lifestyle and environmental factors can all play a role in the development of the disorder (The Australian Psychology Society, 2010). Some of which are explored below: Although the underlying mechanisms have not been extensively researched and proven, research has identified that there is a strong genetic predisposition (Better Health Channel, 2010). Research has shown that â€Å"relatives of people suffering from bipolar illness are 10 to 20 times more likely to develop either depression or manic-depressive illness than the general population† (Bipolar Genetics Collaboration, 2005). One biological theory that has originated suggests that â€Å"brain chemicals (neurotransmitters) that help regulate mood, called serotonin and nor-epinephrine are thrown out of balance†, therefore it can trigger and cause an episode of mania followed by depression (Better Health Channel, 2010). Research has shown that environmental factors can also have an impact o n an individual’s susceptibility of developing the disorder. Some evidence suggests that â€Å"this disorder varies seasonally, with mania being more common in spring and depression more prevalent in winter† (The Australian Psychology Society, 2010). Other literature suggests that childhood trauma can contribute to an individual obtaining bipolar disorder (Etain et al, 2008). Lifestyle factors can also exacerbate bipolar disorder and cause an individual to be more susceptible to developing it later in life. Bipolar disorder events of mania and depression can be triggered by the stressors in one’s life where each individual has their own triggers for such events (The Australian Psychology Society, 2010)