| Course | NU684 Obstetrical Care |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 3 |
| Paper type | Psychosocial care plan |
| Length | About 870 words, 6 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | MSN |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NU684 Unit 3
The Arteries Are Switched: A Unit 3 Psychosocial Care Plan for Parents After a Prenatal Diagnosis of Transposition
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
NU684: Obstetrical Care
Unit 3 Psychosocial Care Plan
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The family is composite and illustrative; the sources cited are real.
The Family After the Scan
Mrs. Haddad is 24, in her first pregnancy, and her husband drives for a parcel service. The sonographer went quiet during the heart views, and the maternal-fetal medicine physician then explained that the scan suggested transposition of the great arteries. Mrs. Haddad cried through the rest of the visit and later told the nurse she remembered nothing after the word "heart." That evening she searched the condition online and read about open-heart surgery on newborns. Her husband wants to "get every test there is." They live forty minutes from the regional children's hospital.
Why Psychosocial Care Is Part of the Plan
Learning of a fetal anomaly is a recognized source of acute distress. In a Norwegian study of women assessed soon after a structural anomaly was found, distress, social dysfunction and intrusive thoughts were higher than in women with normal scans, and distress was greater when the diagnosis or outlook was uncertain (Kaasen et al., 2010). Distress affects how much information parents can take in and how they make decisions, which is why the plan treats it as clinical work rather than an extra.
A systematic review of prenatal counseling for congenital anomalies found that the few studies measuring parental anxiety reported a decrease after counseling, and that parents wanted information about all aspects of the anomaly as soon as possible, along with written and visual resources and contact with support groups (Marokakis et al., 2016).
The family will remember little from the first conversation, so the plan cannot rely on one.
Screening for Distress
At the follow-up visit three days after the scan, both parents are offered a brief screen. Mrs. Haddad completes the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, which is validated in pregnancy, and a short anxiety screen; her husband completes the anxiety screen. Her Edinburgh score is 15 and her anxiety score is high. Neither reports thoughts of self-harm. She is referred to the perinatal mental health clinician embedded in the maternal-fetal medicine practice, with a first visit within one week, and the screen will be repeated monthly.
Sequencing the Information
The plan sequences visits so each one answers the questions the previous one raised.
Fetal echocardiography within one week. A pediatric cardiologist confirms the diagnosis, checks whether the opening between the upper chambers is adequate and looks for associated defects. The American Heart Association's statement on fetal cardiac disease describes this confirmation and the use of findings to plan delivery, and classifies transposition with a restrictive atrial opening among the lesions that need immediate intervention after birth (Donofrio et al., 2014).
A cardiology and surgical consultation. The family meets the cardiologist and a cardiac surgeon to hear what the arterial switch operation involves, its outcomes and what the first days will look like. They are encouraged to bring their written questions.
Genetic counseling. Transposition is less often associated with genetic syndromes than some heart defects, but counseling explains what testing is offered and allows the parents to decide.
A tour of the cardiac intensive care unit, if they wish, in the third trimester.
At each visit they receive a written summary, and the nurse coordinator gives them one phone number for questions between visits.
Planning the Birth
The most important practical decision is where their son is born. Newborns with transposition depend on mixing of blood through openings that can close after birth, and some need an urgent balloon atrial septostomy within hours. Delivery is therefore planned at the regional center with pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery on site, rather than at the community hospital near their home. Labor and vaginal birth remain possible; the location, not the method, is what changes. Because they live forty minutes away, the plan includes a scheduled induction around 39 weeks if they prefer, or clear instructions for when to travel if labor begins on its own.
Supporting Both Parents
Mr. Haddad's wish for every test is treated as his way of coping, not as a problem. He is given a role in organizing the written questions and the travel plan. The couple is put in touch with other parents whose babies had heart surgery as newborns, and the social worker reviews leave from work, insurance coverage for the children's hospital and lodging near the hospital for the weeks after birth.
Follow-Up
The distress screen is repeated monthly and at 36 weeks. The nurse coordinator calls one week after each specialist visit. If Mrs. Haddad's mood worsens, or if she reports panic or inability to sleep for several nights, she is seen sooner by the perinatal mental health clinician.
Conclusion
A prenatal diagnosis of transposition sets two clocks running: the medical one that leads to a birth at the right hospital, and the emotional one that begins with shock. This plan addresses both, with distress screening and support, information delivered in stages with written summaries, and a delivery plan built around the treatment their son will need.
References
Donofrio, M. T., Moon-Grady, A. J., Hornberger, L. K., Copel, J. A., Sklansky, M. S., Abuhamad, A., Cuneo, B. F., Huhta, J. C., Jonas, R. A., Krishnan, A., Lacey, S., Lee, W., Michelfelder, E. C., Rempel, G. R., Silverman, N. H., Spray, T. L., Strasburger, J. F., Tworetzky, W., & Rychik, J. (2014). Diagnosis and treatment of fetal cardiac disease: A scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation, 129(21), 2183-2242. https://doi.org/10.1161/01.cir.0000437597.44550.5d
Kaasen, A., Helbig, A., Malt, U., Naes, T., Skari, H., & Haugen, G. (2010). Acute maternal social dysfunction, health perception and psychological distress after ultrasonographic detection of a fetal structural anomaly. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 117(9), 1127-1138. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2010.02622.x
Marokakis, S., Kasparian, N. A., & Kennedy, S. E. (2016). Prenatal counselling for congenital anomalies: A systematic review. Prenatal Diagnosis, 36(7), 662-671. https://doi.org/10.1002/pd.4836
Reading the NU 684 Unit 3 instructions
The third unit commonly asks for a plan that supports a family after a fetal anomaly is found, combining psychosocial care with the clinical steps that follow. Prompts usually expect distress screening, a sequence of specialist visits, the information the family needs and when, delivery planning shaped by the diagnosis, and practical support. Instructors reward plans that treat distress as part of clinical care and that recognize each parent may cope differently. Evidence on parental distress and on counseling preferences is expected, along with a condition-specific source for delivery planning, such as a cardiology statement for heart defects. The strongest plans give the family one point of contact between visits and show how written information compensates for what parents cannot absorb in the first conversation.
Inside the NU684 Unit 3 example
The Haddad plan begins with the scan, the mother's memory gap and the father's urge to test everything. A section explains why psychosocial care belongs in the plan, using Kaasen and colleagues' distress findings and Marokakis and colleagues' review, under a highlighted line that one conversation cannot carry the family, with a margin note on written materials. Screening results for both parents lead to a perinatal mental health referral. The information sequence moves from fetal echocardiography, which the American Heart Association statement uses to plan delivery, to the surgeon, genetics and an optional unit tour. Birth planning explains why the location changes but vaginal birth remains possible, which a second margin note highlights. The father is given a role. Social work covers leave, insurance and lodging, and follow-up repeats the distress screen monthly.
Reading the NU684 Unit 3 grading rubric
For the Haddad family's plan, NU684 rubrics weigh distress assessment, sequencing of information and referrals, clinical accuracy about the anomaly, delivery planning, family-centered support and writing. Assessment credit requires a named screening approach for each parent and a referral path when scores are high. Sequencing earns marks when each visit answers questions raised by the previous one, with written summaries. Clinical accuracy means the plan states what the anomaly requires at birth, here immediate cardiac care, without overstating or minimizing prognosis. Delivery planning is scored on location and timing and on how travel and labor onset are handled. Support for both parents, including practical help, distinguishes strong plans. Repeated screening at follow-up rounds out the clinical marks, while correct citations of the distress study, the counseling review and the cardiology statement finish the writing criterion.
NU684 Unit 3 help: mistakes that cost points
Plans lose marks most often when they focus entirely on the anomaly's medical management and leave the family's distress to a single sentence. The reverse problem, a plan full of emotional support with no delivery location or specialist sequence, also costs points. Some plans give a grim prognosis for a condition that is highly treatable, or promise outcomes no one can guarantee. Others overlook the partner or treat his coping style as a problem to manage. Forgetting that the birth may need to happen far from home, and planning for that travel, is a common practical gap. Start by writing what the anomaly requires in the first hours of life, then work backward to where birth must happen and which visits come first. A custom plan for your own case starts from the diagnosis and your section's prompt.
Get an NU684 Unit 3 example written to your instructions
Send the case, the diagnosis and the plan instructions with the rubric. A custom plan screens for distress, organizes counseling and specialist visits and supports the family through the decisions ahead. The first is free, back within 24-48h. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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NU684 Unit 3 questions, answered
Why screen for distress after a fetal anomaly diagnosis?
Parents often experience acute distress after an unexpected finding, and it can affect how they take in information and make decisions. Screening identifies who needs more support.
Who should be involved after a prenatal diagnosis?
Maternal-fetal medicine, the relevant pediatric specialists such as cardiology, genetic counseling and social work or perinatal mental health support. A plan should sequence these visits.
Should the plan include delivery planning?
Usually, yes. Many anomalies change where and when the baby should be born, and families benefit from knowing early.
Where can I find a free NU684 Unit 3 sample paper?
You can read the complete NU684 Unit 3 psychosocial care plan on this page. It supports composite parents after a prenatal diagnosis of transposition of the great arteries, with distress screening, sequenced specialist visits and a birth planned at a cardiac center.
Why must the NU684 Unit 3 baby be born at the regional center?
Babies with transposition depend on openings between heart chambers that can close after birth, and some need an urgent catheter procedure within hours. The regional center has pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery on site.