Running Head: FAMILY ASSESSMENT

Family Assessment
Mollie Morrissey
Ferris State University

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FAMILY ASSESSMENT
Family Composition
The family that I have chosen to assess has a family household of 3 people which
include; dad, mom, and one daughter. Dad is 33 years old, mom is 28 years old and the daughter
is 2 years old. Mothers parents are both involved in this families life. Grandma is 48 years old
and grandpa is 51 years old. This family is my best friends sister, brother-in-law and niece. I
have kept in contact with this family and have stayed very close to them for a long time. They
are a happy, loving, and caring family that has showed me a good example of what true
happiness in a marriage and a family is like.
Stage of Development
This family would be categorized in Duvalls Developmental Stage under Stage II:
Families with Infants. Three developmental tasks done by the family in this stage would be
adjusting to increased family size, caring for an infant, and providing a positive developmental
environment. Using Ericksons developmental tasks, the daughter will be balancing
independence over doubt and shame and should be developing a sense of trust. According to
Erickson the grandparents would be developing integrity vs. despair, allowing acceptance.
(Taylor, Lillis, LeMone & Lynn, 2011)
Home and Community Environment
This family lives in a gated neighborhood called The Hamptons to get to the gate you
have to drive a few miles through another neighborhood allowing the residents to feel safe and
secure. They are the first owners of this home which was built four years ago. Its a two story
home which includes an underground pool in the backyard. This family has hired a cleaning
crew to come clean every week, so the house is kept clean and neat. Gates are put up on every
stairwell and hallway and child safety locks are on all the cupboards and doors so the daughter

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FAMILY ASSESSMENT
cant get a hold of anything she isnt supposed to. There are five bedrooms, three full baths and
one half bath, a kitchen, play room, living room and basement. The neighborhood has two
playgrounds that the children play together in. Speed bumps are throughout the neighborhood
streets so that the traffic is slow for the kids safety. Grandma and grandpa live about 5 miles
away north of the families residence. The grandparents live in a ranch style house that has three
bedrooms, three bathrooms, a living room, a kitchen, a family room, and also a basement that is
full of toys for the granddaughter to play with. The grandparents neighborhood includes families
with children, so when the granddaughter comes over to the grandparents house, she has kids to
play with. The amount of income that dad makes, puts this family in a high socioeconomic class.
He makes enough money for them to live a life where expenses are not an issue. They can go on
vacations, go shopping, spend money, drive nice cars, live in a nice house and do not have to
worry about not being financially stable. Dad making this amount of money allows mom to stay
at home and take care of the daughter full time. Dad works for a company called Seadrill, which
is a drilling company for oil rigs. His schedule allows for him to spend 28-30 days anywhere
around the world, working and then 28-30 days with mom and daughter. He works every other
month, but could be placed in China or Africa. Mom graduated from Michigan State University
with a bachelor degree, but has chose not to use her college degree to work, but to stay at home
and take care of the daughter full time. Mom has just been recently diagnosed with Multiple
Sclerosis, a nervous system disease, which has made her decision about not working something
that will be permanent. Grandma is a registered nurse who works part time so she can spend time
with her grandchildren and grandpa is work in a Human Resource Department. They make an
average amount of income, which puts them in a middle class. The grandparents work less hours
during the week so that they can spend time with the granddaughter and mother. The

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FAMILY ASSESSMENT
grandparents are in the process of going through a divorce right now, but know how important it
is to stay friends and civil for the granddaughters life and for their own kids life.
The family is Catholic and practices the Catholic faith. Dad, mom and daughter all go to
church every Sunday; if dad is gone for work mom and daughter will still go. Mom and dad
make it an important part of daughters life to pray every night before she goes to bed and to pray
before she eats her meals. Although she is only two years old and does not understand prayer yet,
they make sure she is paying attention to them and making the sign of cross with them Mom
went to a Catholic school her whole life so was taught by grandma and grandpa her Catholic
beliefs. Nothing with mom and dads faith practices changes the healthcare provided for them or
the daughter. They are a traditional Catholic family who believe in God and share the Catholic
beliefs and values with those around them.
Family Functions
When dad is gone for the month working, mom takes care of the daughter every day by
herself, but when he is home from work for the month they both take care of her together. She
spends more of her time with her mom, but when he dad is gone they Skype or face time
multiple times during the day, so that daughter stays in contact with her dad. Both of the
grandparents know how important it is to keep the family close together especially while they are
going through a divorce. They keep their granddaughter the center of attention by making sure
that she is kept healthy and that in the future the divorce will not affect her in any way. It has
been emotional during the past couple of months because of the grandparents splitting and the
mother getting diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, but they know that by acting sad, depressed or
angry, especially around the daughter, that it will cause a lot of stress on the family. At this age
the daughter is too young to understand any of it, but by staying positive and happy it will affect

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how the daughter acts towards others. She seems to be living a happy life. She is always
welcoming, smiling and uses her manners very well. She loves to clean around the house,
keeping all of her toys in neat in one spot, she loves helping mother whenever she is doing
laundry or cooking. The whole family eats healthy and exercises daily, keeping wellness an
important part of their life.
Role Strain
For some mothers, I would say it is difficult to raise a child on your own, even every
other month. With the dad leaving every other month that puts stress on the mother having to
take care of the daughter. This schedule for dad is something that the family agreed on so that
they could live the life they have right now, but with mother getting diagnosed with Multiple
Sclerosis, she gets tired easily. The grandparents play an important role in this families life right
now, which helps mom cope with her stress. When she gets tired and wore out with taking care
of the daughter on her own, the grandparents are always there to help take care of her. Every
other month they have to say good bye to dad, it is an emotional time. He could be going to
China or he could be doing to South America. There is always that fear that mother has when he
leaves which does not get any easier as months go on. Her symptoms with Multiple Sclerosis
have increased in the past couple months which has put a postponement on baby number two that
they were hoping by Christmas of 2013 they could start trying.
Communication
During the assessment with this family I noticed how they communicated with each other
and with the daughter. When mom had something to say or wanted to voice her opinion on
something, dad made sure to listen and did not interrupt her. He knows that mom is going
through a hard time with her medical conditions right now and was able to stay patient with her

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when she made any kind of remark that showed she was tried or stressed. They didnt raise their
voices when talking to the daughter. When she did something wrong, like throwing her toy, they
told her no and explained why she can not do that. The grandparents have a strong relationship
with the family so they communicate well with each other. If they want to spend time with the
granddaughter they call and make sure they are able to come over.

Discipline
If the daughter needs to be disciplined they tell her what she did wrong and why she cant
do what she is doing or act the way she is acting. Usually mom will discipline daughter because
she works so well with her and the daughter really listens to mom when she tells her no, but she
also respects her dad and the grandparents. She listens very well when she is being talked to by
anyone.
Strengths
The strength and support that this family has with each other is admired by so many
people. Mom and dad were brought up by families that have shaped them into the people that
they are today and now they can set an example of this to their daughter. They have been faced
with a few tough battles in the past couple years, but are able to stay positive and get through
these all together, as a family. With the grandparents divorce, the traveling dad, and the mom
being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, they are able to wake up every day and be thankful
with what they have. Currently they are on a two week trip to Europe. Dad wants mom to be able
to experience all that she can with their daughter because her Multiple Sclerosis could take over
her physically and limit her to doing certain things in the future as a family. They plan activities
when dad is home for the month so they can stay busy, making memories with each other as a

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family. They include the grandparents in a lot of these activities so they can have bonding time.
Whether its going to the movies or on a vacation, they are able to spend quality time together.
They all know how important the daughter/granddaughter is to each other and keep her their
main focus every day. They want her to live a healthy happy life and by staying supportive,
loving and caring of each other they are able build a special relationship with her.
Potential Problems
Dad being gone so often causes a problem with the family. Now that mom has been
diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis it will cause problems in the future. If her medical
complication causes her to lose strength and physical activity, dad might not be able to leave
every other month. Mom is already under a lot of pressure with raising the daughter on her own
when he is gone, but now her mind is always on her recent diagnosis. Dad is under a lot of
pressure because he knows that he needs to be able to financially support his family, but he
always wants to be home helping mom during this hard time. Mom doesnt intentionally mean to
put this pressure or stress on dad, but raising the daughter on her own every other month and
getting weak is not easy for her to deal with. If this is a continuing battle with this family dad
will have to make the decision on staying with this job or look for other options. With the
grandparents divorcing, even though they are saying they will get a long for the family, you can
not predict something like that. If something goes wrong with their divorce it could have
negative effects on the family. They are a strong and supportive family, but these problems that
are now arising could cause complications in the future for this family.

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References
Bullock, Janis. (2008). Loneliness in young children. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Loneliness_Young
Cohen, G. (2002). Helping children and families deal with divorce and separation. Retrieved
from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/110/5/1019.full
Ladwig, G., & Ackley, B. (2011). Mosbys guide to nursing diagnosis (3rd ed.). Maryland
Heights, MO: Elsevier.
Reade, J. W., Russell, C. S., White, C. P., & White, M. B. (2012, February). What would you
say? Expressing the difficulties of living with multiple sclerosis. Journal of Neuroscience
Nursing, 44(1), 54+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA278760443&v=2.1&u=lom_ferrissu&it
=r&p=ITOF&sw=w&asid=36bd6aa99729efb6561a152bc8c7cf73
Taylor, C., Lillis, C., LeMone, P., & Lynn, P. (2011). Fundamentals of nursing: The art and
science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

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FAMILY ASSESSMENT

Nursing Diagnoses

For Daughter: Risk for

Loneliness related to absence
of a parent

Necessary
Assessments/Interventions
1. Advocate and
encourage healthy,
growth producing
relationships with
family
2. Evaluate relationship
with father and
daughter
3. Consider the use of
pets to cope with
(Ackley & Ladwig, 2011, p.
489)

Rationale
A child can feel and be lonely
and act on it or hide it within
themselves. When someone is
out of there life for an amount
of time the child can develop
feelings of loneliness. It is
something that can be
assessed at an early age and
can be seen as they grow up.
Its important to diagnose
early so future problems can
be decreased.
(Bullock, 2008)

Nursing Diagnoses

For Grandparents:
Relationship readiness for
enhanced related to separation
of marriage

Necessary
Assessments/Interventions
1. Support relationship
talk between the
couple
2. Assess the couple in
regulating negative
emotions
3. Encourage
collaborative coping
among older adults

Rationale
2. Relationships arent always
perfect and even if its not an
immediate parent/child,
anyone can be affected and its
important for everyone
involved to be aware of
everyones feelings and how
its affecting them.
Encouraging positive
atmospheres around those

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(Ackley & Ladwig,
2011, p. 612)

who are hurt will help in the

whole process.
(Cohen, 2002)

Nursing Diagnoses

For Family: Stress overload

related to intense stressors

Necessary
Assessments/Interventions

Rationale

Its important for the family to

1. Listen actively to
understand that acting as a an
descriptors of stressors emotional support system for
and the stress response mom during this time of
2. Help child manage
having so much stress,
feelings related change especially with MS will help
3. Provide information as the family cope with the
needed to reduce stress disease. Even though daughter
responses to acute or
is only two and doesnt
chronic illness
understand what is going on,
the atmosphere around her
will affect her if they arent
supporting each other. They
(Ackley & Ladwig, 2011, p.
are a close family and
705)
receiving social support from
their loved ones can be an
integral part of a patient's
illness journey. That will help
eliminate the stress level on
each other.
(Reade, Russell, White &
White 2012)