Anorexia nervosa: functional patterns and the helping relationship. A case report

Abstract

We present the clinical case of a 14-year-old adolescent admitted for the first time to the child and adolescent psychiatric hospitalization unit for food restriction, compensatory behaviours and associated self-harm. The aim is to develop an individualized care plan for a person with anorexia nervosa through Marjory Gordon’s functional health patterns and based on Hildegard Peplau’s helping relationship. A nursing assessment was carried out following Marjory Gordon’s functional health patterns, thus identifying the nursing diagnoses “disturbed body image [00118]”, “imbalanced nutrition: less than body requirements [00002]”, “insomnia [00095]” and “anxiety [00146]”, which are addressed and used to develop an individualized care plan by means of the NANDA taxonomy, the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC).