Friedman Family Assessment
May 2010
University of Phoenix
NUR/405
Amy Weaver

A nursing assessment of a family is the basis of nursing interventions. Stanhope and Lancaster (2008) state, “By using a systematic process, family problem areas are identified and family strengths are emphasized as the building blocks for interventions and to facilitate family resiliency (p. 567). The following paragraphs will describe a typical family. The family consists of a mother, a father, a 10 year old daughter, and a six year old son. The family chosen was interviewed individually and as a family. This family consists of SM, CM, daughter EM, and son DM. The family lives in a three bedroom brick house, with three entrances, nine steps to enter the front of their home, 8 steps to enter from the garage and four steps to enter the back door. The back yard is fences with a four foot wood privacy fence. Their home is in a quiet neighborhood with an elementary school across the street where DM attends. Mom can watch DM play on the play ground at school from their back deck. Their daughter, EM, attends middle school. The family’s neighbors are all young couples with ten children ranging from age four to thirteen. Their mortgage is $998.00/month. They have city water and sewage. They gas heat, gas logs and a heat pump. Their house is kept clean and well maintained since CM only works part-time at a local physician’s office. CM’s, part-time position allows her to stay home when the children are ill or school is out. When you walk in the front entrance it is a split level home. You can either go up six steps up to the bedrooms or walk straight in to the main level or go down eight steps to the garage and down eight steps to the basement. On the main level you enter the great room which is carpeted floors and consists of a couch, love seat, and an oversized chair, television