When was the last time you combed or washed your patient's hair? Is that part of your assessment? How often does a hair make the care plan?
A person's hair provides a lot of information about one's health and blood circulation. Hair also serves a variety of functions, including protection, sensory input, thermoregulation, and communication, for example, hair on the head protects the skull from the sun.
So what happens when a patient is experiencing hair loss or thinning because of their disease process or medical treatments? Shouldn't those symptoms also be managed especially when they start to negatively impact one's body image and mental health?
Dr.Khris Upshaw is a Trichologist, cranial prosthesis specialist, scalp micro-pigmentation practitioner, and custom wig designer joins Nurse Alice to discuss how illness manifests in our hair, medical treatments that cause alopecia, and various options to manage the appearance of hair loss like scalp micro-pigmentation, and even how patients can qualify for a medical cranial prosthesis through insurance.
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