Nursing Theories and Professionalism

Nursing Theories

• A nursing model is a conceptual framework that outlines the structure and organization of nursing practice, providing a systematic approach to understanding and delivering nursing care.
• A nursing theory is a systematic explanation/framework that describes, predicts, and prescribes phenomena related to nursing practice, education, and research.
• Components of a theory include concepts, definitions, assumptions, or propositions.

Types of Theories

• Grand Theories: systematic and broad in scope, complex, and require further specification through research (e.g., Neuman Model).
• Middle Range Theories: limited in scope, more abstract, and address specific phenomena, reflecting practice in administration, clinical, and teaching areas.
• Descriptive Theories: do not directly specify nursing activities but help to explain nursing assessment.
• Prescriptive Theories: address nursing interventions for a phenomenon, describe the conditions under which the prescription occurs, and predict the consequences.

Metaparadigms: Four Concepts of Nursing Theory

• Person/Patient: the person receiving care.
• Health: being well and using every power the person has to the fullest extent.
• Environment: the elements external to and affecting the health of the sick and healthy person.
• Nursing: performing tasks for the patient and controlling the patient's environment to enhance recovery.

Critical Thinking

• Components of critical thinking:
  • Competencies: ability to perform nursing skills proficiently.
  • Knowledge: prepares a nurse to better anticipate and identify patient problems.
  • Experience: allows nurses to learn from observing, sensing, talking, and reflecting actively about patient care.
  • Attitudes: based on the assumptions that a rational person is motivated to develop, learn, grow, and be concerned (e.g., confidence, fairness, thinking independently).
  • Standards: intellectual and professional standards for nursing judgment and evaluation.

Aspects of Critical Thinking

• Reflection: purposely thinking back on a situation to discover its meaning.
• Soft Skills:
  • Expanding personal knowledge.
  • Personal and professional growth.
  • Ability to influence others towards positive change.
  • Improving patient outcome.

Models of Reflection

• Kolb's Learning Cycle:
  • Concrete Experience (CE): learning with experience.
  • Reflective Observation (RO): stepping back and reflecting on the experience.
  • Abstract Conceptualization (AC): concluding from the experience.
  • Active Experimentation (AE): applying what has been learned.
• Reflective Framework Gibbs:
  • Description – what happened?
  • Feelings and reaction?
  • Initial evaluation of experience – what was good and bad?
  • Analysis – what sense did you make of the experience?
  • Conclusion – what have you learned from reflecting on this?
  • Final evaluation and action plan – what would you do differently?

Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing

• EBP concept: a method that allows the practitioner to assess the research, clinical guidelines, and other evidence to make informed decisions.
• Steps of EBP:
  • Ask: convert information need into an answerable clinical question.
  • [Steps 2-6 not specified in the provided text].