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Nadia Siddiqi

Mrs. Andrea Zehetner

ISM-A4

16 October 2023

Project Introduction and Purpose Paper

Throughout my mentorship, I have observed a rotating staff of Emergency Room (E.R.)

nurses handle countless patients from various backgrounds. The common thread through all

these patient-nurse interactions was the abundance of adolescents who struggle with obesity and

the effective nurse-patient communication that is implemented with all patients, especially those

who deal with obesity.

When I was a child, my main aspiration was to work in the healthcare industry--I

dreamed of helping people using medicine and technologies that intrigued me even from that

age. As the years passed, my interest in the healthcare industry deteriorated as I grew interested

in psychology, fascinated by the functions of the brain. Now, as a senior applying to colleges,

there is tremendous pressure to prepare for the rest of my future—including my future college,

my major, and my career. Due to this, I made it my goal this semester to exit my comfort zone

and experience a career medical field that still interests me to determine if I am well fit for this

career.

Through my observations at East Houston Medical Center (EHMCT), I discovered the

epidemic of obesity in Houston, especially among adolescents. Having family members who

struggle with borderline obesity, I know the detrimental short- and long-term effects that extreme

weight gain causes, significantly lowering quality of life. In addition, from the first week at my
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mentorship, I noticed the excellent patient care that the nurses implemented at EHMCT using the

principles of AIDET (Acknowledge, Introduce, Duration, Explanation, and Thank you). This

sparked an interest in me to create a final product that brings awareness to those who struggle

with obesity in a considerate, emphatic manner, using the nurse-patient communication

principles of AIDET.

There are huge stigmas against those who struggle with obesity, and most “treatment

plans” are skewed and unrealistic. So, for my final product, I am creating a website that brings

awareness to adolescents who struggle with obesity, detailing the inferior quality of life that it

causes, and manageable short-term goals to start getting weight under control. Additionally, I

will take the five pillars of AIDET and implement them into my categories, dialogue, and word

choice on the website to help invalidate any negative internalized stereotypes that those who

struggle with obesity believe, and instead promote healthy self-acceptance and empathy.

To create my website, I will first need to continue my observations at EHMCT to

examine how effective nurse-patient dialogue is conducted so I can structure the dialogue in my

website accordingly. Next, I will conduct my own research on what obesity is, the poor impacts

on quality of life, next steps for those who struggle with obesity, and other obesity experiences

and facts. I will obtain my information from verifiable sources, such as the World Health

Organization (WHO) and Legacy Community Health, along with blog websites that detail

firsthand experiences of people who struggle with obesity to understand different perspectives.

Then, I will organize my research into a Weebly domain with six tabs: Home, What is Obesity,

How Does This Concern Me, What Do I Do Now, You Are Not Alone, and References. Lastly, I

will utilize the principles of AIDET into the dialogue so my website will be a welcoming place

to adolescents who struggle with obesity.

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With my final product, I hope to begin breaking the negative stigmas against those who struggle

with obesity by bringing unbiased awareness to the issue and creating a safe space for obese

adolescents by utilizing the effective intrapersonal communication skills incorporated at

EHMCT.