Scabies is a common illness due to lack of?

RUHS, Jaipur, PB B.Sc Nursing Entrance-2021

Medical Surgical Nursing

Easy

Appeared in: RUHS, Jaipur, PB B.Sc Nursing Entrance-2021

Explanation

Scabies is a skin infestation caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei.
Transmission is facilitated by factors such as crowding and poor personal hygiene, which allow for the close physical contact needed for the mite to spread from person to person.
While not a direct cause, a lack of personal hygiene creates conditions that are conducive to the spread of the infestation within families and communities.

Option A: Less observation is a failure in the nursing process. It might lead to a missed or delayed diagnosis but is not a cause of the disease.
Option C: Assessing the patient is a fundamental nursing action required for diagnosis and care planning. A lack of assessment does not cause the initial infestation.
Option D: Eating habits have no direct causal relationship with contracting scabies, which is a parasitic infestation of the skin.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Risk factors and transmission of Scabies as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses are crucial in educating patients, families, and communities about scabies prevention, focusing on personal hygiene, laundering of linens and clothing in hot water, and the importance of treating all close contacts simultaneously to prevent re-infestation.
In institutional settings like nursing homes or hospitals, an outbreak of scabies requires prompt identification, implementation of contact precautions, and coordinated treatment to prevent widespread transmission.
What if? If the patient is immunocompromised or elderly and presents with thick, crusted lesions, the diagnosis is likely crusted (Norwegian) scabies. This form is a hyper-infestation with thousands of mites, is extremely contagious, and requires more aggressive treatment with both topical and oral medications, along with strict isolation protocols.

How to Approach the Question

Read the question carefully to understand what it's asking: the cause or a major contributing factor for scabies.
Analyze the nature of scabies. It is a parasitic skin disease.
Evaluate each option based on this understanding.
Options A ('Less observation') and C ('Assessing patient') are related to the process of care, not the cause of an illness. Eliminate them.
Option D ('Eating all the time') is a lifestyle/dietary factor unrelated to a skin parasite. Eliminate it.
Option B ('Personal hygiene') is a known factor that influences the transmission and prevalence of many infectious and parasitic diseases. A lack of hygiene in crowded settings facilitates the spread of scabies, making it the most logical answer.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Medicine Harrison 22e Part 2 p. 1633-1635

E6 Comprehensive Textbook of Community Health Nursing for BSc Nursing Students Part 2 — Subpart A (pp 1-275 of 550) p. 62-64