There are several theories in the nursing field that are aimed towards enabling nurses to understand their surrounding as well as their role in the society. Nursing makes use of both nursing and non-nursing theories. However, this paper will discuss nursing theories by Florence Nightingale and Virginia Henderson and their applicability in the nursing field today.
Florence was a nurse theorist who stated that nursing makes use of a patient’s environment to come up with ways of speeding up his or her recovery. Nightingale indicated that unsanitary conditions surrounding patients were likely to pose a health hazard (Medeiros, Enders and Lira, 2015). Some of the concepts that Florence brought forward were those regarding a person, health, nursing, health and environment.
According to Florence, a person is a patient who requires the services of a nurse can be affected by his or her environment and has reparative ability. Florence addressed nursing as a crucial part of a patient’s recovery process. Hence, Florence offered clean air, warm conditions, clean and quiet living place and good food to her patients to facilitate their recovery. Florence’ concept of the environment was that it is anything physical, mental or even social that affected her patients. The environment was the foundation of her theory. Regarding health, Florence believed that it was possible to control the environment to ensure good health in patients. Florence also asserted that nurses had the power to maintain the wellbeing of their patients. Illness according to Nightingale is caused by unsanitary conditions near a patient (“Nursing Theorists”, 2017). All the above concepts are the ones that have made Florence Nightingale among the best environmental theorists in the world.
Florence’ theory is still applicable in the nursing field today because just as she indicated, the environment in which one lives is still a cause of ailments. For instance, dirt is a cause for diseases such as cholera. Additionally, today nurses still ensure that they provide conditions such as clean air, water and clean place for patients to recover from their illnesses.
Virginia Henderson was the other nursing theorists who came up with a need theory to solve difficulties nurses came across in their day-to-day activities. Virginia believed that a nurse had the role of ensuring a patient is independent on their own before discharge from hospital in order to ensure speedy recovery after discharge (Ahtisham and Jacoline, 2015). Henderson categorized nursing into psychological, physiological, social and spiritual components that fulfilled the needs of human beings.
Henderson addressed a person as one who has basic needs including that of independence after hospitalization and decides on a peaceful death. The mind and body of an individual are viewed as inseparable. Henderson also believed that a person values biological, physiological, sociological and spiritual components. The concept of the environment according to Virginia is that it’s a surrounding in which a person learns the patterns of living. Also, the environment is regarded as one that can provide conditions for a person to enjoy the independence of their needs (“Nursing Theorists”, 2017). Basically, Virginia portrays the environment as one that provides conditions that affect life and development.
Health is addressed by Virginia as the ability of a patient to perform and achieve the basic needs independently which according to her is a challenge. Nursing according to Virginia’s need theory involves the act of assisting patients to acquire their basic needs independently. Nurses should have knowledge to perform their tasks which are substitutive, complementary and supplementary. Illness according to Henderson is any condition that deters a person from acquiring his or her needs independently without the help of a nurse (“Nursing Theorists”, 2017). Virginia Henderson asserts her theory based on the basic human needs and thus forms a basis for needs theory.
Henderson’s theory is applicable to the nursing profession in the sense that even today; the role of a nurse is to assist a patient to function independently in the case of an illness that has incapacitated them. The basic needs of a patient such as breathing and ability to pass out waste products as stated by Virginia are still used as a guide for nurses to know what a patient requires at each time.
In summary, Florence and Henderson are among the main contributors towards theories in the nursing field. Florence is associated with the environmental theory that states that the environment in which a patient is in is likely to cause ailments. Henderson on the other hand, came up with the need theory that identifies the basic needs of a human being in which she premises her theory.