Dorothea Orem Theory Assessment

The purpose of this paper will be to explain the components of Dorothea Orem’s self-care deficit theory, the current significance of the theory, and the application of this particular nursing theory. A nursing theory is an explanation of a division of nursing that “describes, explains, predicts, or prescribes” that particular division. (Perry, Potter, Stockert, & Hall, 2013, p. 41). Orem developed her personal theory, the self-care deficit theory, to assess a patient’s ability to perform vital daily tasks and how it affected the patient’s. (Hartweg & Pickens, 2016). This theory is a grand theory, which means it can be used in almost all areas of nursing. There are five components or methods that compose this theory that nurses will practice when working with a patient who needs to reach the self-care deficit. (Edney, Jaime, & Young, 2016). It is used today and has been included in several studies that have proven it to be effective in shortening hospital visits when used on critically ill patients. (Hohdorf, 2010). This particular theory has helped advance nursing practice since Orem’s first publication.

One article defined self-care as “the care of oneself without medical, professional or other assisntance or oversight.” (Godfey, CM et al, 2011). While reviewing different articles the conclusion was that the definition of self-care could

Dorthea E. Orem’s self-care model emphasizes both a patient 's ability and responsibility to care for themselves. Self-care as defined by Orem as “the practice of activities that individuals initiate and perform on their own behalf to maintain life, health, and well-being” (Catalano, 2015, p. 58). Since individuals function at varying levels, Orem has identified three levels of nursing care: wholly compensated care, partially compensated care, and supportive developmental care. This theories goal is to help each individual reach his or her maximum level of function and to take responsibility for his or her health (Catalano, 2015). Self-reliance is also core value in my own personal life. I believe that a person who is capable of performing any part of their own self-care should be encouraged to do so because it will help them become independent, improve their psychosocial status, and promote self worth at a time when they rely so heavily on other people for their care. Orem’s theory matches my own belief of the importance of independence and self-reliance because the main goal is to help patients become as self-reliant as possible in their healthcare. This theory emphasizes the important role of education in nursing in order to enable them to take control of their own health. Because of health deficits, some individuals may require more assistance from care providers. However, even these patients should be encouraged and allowed to do whatever they are able to do for

The theory focuses on the ability of a person to meet his or her own needs. Developed in the year 1970, Orem’s theory focused on the three various concepts, namely self-care, self-care deficit, and the nursing system. Self-care is a group of activities or processes that a person performs to maintain health, life, and wellbeing (Orem, 2001). For instance, self-care is being demonstrated when a chronic heart failure patient checks his or her weight daily, takes prescribes medications, and avoids salty foods. Self-care deficit happens when an individual is not able to provide effective self-care (Orem, 2011). Nurses are able to assist patients in this state by educating them with their disease condition and treatment compliance. A nursing

According to Petiprin (2015), Dorothea Orem’s theory is used to encourage a person to become more independent. Petiprin (2015) further states that it is true of rehabilitation settings, (Such as,)for example HealthSouth Sunrise Rehabilitation Hospital in which patients are transitioning out of being cared for by physicians and nurses and to exclusive self-care at home. According to George (2011), Dorothea Orem has developed three connecting theories: the theory of self-care, the theory of self-care deficit and the theory of the nurse system. George defines the term metaparadigm as the core content of a discipline (2011). George further states that the metaparadigm of the discipline of nursing comprises of four major concepts: person, health, environment and nursing (2011). At HealthSouth Sunrise Rehabilitation Hospital, the mission of our operations is the delivery of quality healthcare in the most appropriate, safe, patient-centered environment (HealthSouth, 2015). The purpose of this paper is to discuss Dorothea Orem theory, metaparadigm and how it relates to nursing practice at HealthSouth Sunrise Rehabilitation Hospital.

Nursing theories play an integral role in guiding practice, education, and research. Many different theoretical perspectives are maintained in the field of nursing due to the diversity of the field, no single theory is able to account for all nursing knowledge. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast two nursing theories that have produced a profound impact on nursing practice. The theories being compared are Dorothea Orem’s Self Care Deficit Nursing Theory (SCDNT) and Sister Callista Roy’s Adaptation Model (RAM). Both theorists have profoundly influenced nursing science, research, practice, and education. Similarly, both of these theories fall into the category of Grand nursing theories which are the most complex theory level and explain broad areas of the discipline, as well as being the broadest in scope (McEwen & Wills, 2014).

RLT identified twelve activities as the core of the model of living (Holland, 2008). I learned the medical terminology. In a group, we identified the patient Jim’s physical factors according to RLT. RLT helps nurses to individualize the patients (Williams, B. C. (2015), and facilitate the first four elements of CRC as a guide for holistic patient assessment( . First, I was excited to learn the medical terminology. It sounds like an alien language and it was fun to decrypt the medical passwords. However, I was overwhelmed by the twelve activities of living, and how it interrelates in many ways (Holland, 2008). I wish, at the end of year three, I could be more confident of RLT. Medical terminology was easier than I expected, once you know the elements, it is easy to understand. On the other hand, finding biological concerns for Jim was challenging. For example, biological factors associated with an aging body was difficult to identify because, I have lack of understanding of older people’s physical changes. I am not familiar with aging, because, I never witness the aging pross fully. Therefore, Understanding the lifespan linked to age and identifying the needs of care could be the challenge for me. However, visualizing the model of nursing, checking dependence and independence of activities of living, dividing in to twelve elements, gave me few guidelines to

In the following table, describe each of your choices and explain their functions and roles within the health care field. Your responses should total at least 50–75 words for each choice.

ability of patients and assist them if needed to ensure the quality and hygiene of all patients. With

In essence, the role played by the nurse is to increase and facilitate the self-care abilities and level of the individual patient (Smith & Parker, 2015). As such, self-care is neither reflexive nor instinctive. Instead, it is either performed rationally or intentionally in response to an already known need. Based on this Orem's theory, rational response is learned through communication and interpersonal relations. Orem asserts that self-care agency can also be defined as the power to take action (Caruso, Cisar & Pipe, 2008). It is a complex capability developed to enable maturing adolescents and adults to recognize, identify, and understand various factors to be managed or controlled so as to decide about, develop, and perform realistic care measures. The capability discussed above is strongly dependent on culture-related values and lifelong experiences.

Orem identified the requirements of self-care divided into three groups of requisites. The universal requisites are the basic needs of people: air, food, water, elimination/excretion, activity and rest, solitude/social interaction, functioning/well-being, normalcy. The developmental self-care requisites refer to both maturational and situational requirements for growth associated with developmental processes, derived from a condition, or associated with an event. Lastly, the health deviation requisites are associated with genetic, human and functional deviations arising from illness, injury, defects, physical or mental disability, or from the medical treatment. Effectively meeting both the universal and developmental self-care requisites is essential when dealing with the health deviations.

Dorthea E. Orem is a well recognized and a very well educated nursing theorist. She had a lot of experience as a nurse, and this greatly helped her provide insight into her views of nursing practice, education, and science. “The question that directed Orem’s thinking was, “What condition exists in a person when judgments are made that a nurse(s) should be brought into the situation?”” (Berbiglia & Banfield, 2014) Her biggest focus was the Self- Care Deficit Nursing Theory.

In order to find the patients baseline an assessment of functionality is needed for comparison. When assessing a patient it is important to pay attention to the abilities of activities of daily living regularly. An assumption of Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory is that a person’s knowledge of potential health problems is needed for promoting self- care behaviors (Nursingtheory.org, 2013).

Orem’s theory of self care deficit specifies when nursing is needed. “Nursing is required when an adult (or in the case of a dependent, the parent) is incapable or limited in the provision of continuous effective self care” (Current Nursing, 2010, para. 16). Orem’s created five methods of helping; which are acting for and doing for others, guiding others, supporting one another, providing an environment that promotes personal development, and teaching one another.

Dorothea Orem's self-care deficit theory was born while Dorothea Orem (1917-2007) was working in the Department of Health Education and Welfare (HEW) as a curriculum consultant. At this time in the history of the profession, nursing was just emerging as a unique academic discipline. Orem's theory was designed to answer the fundamental question: What is nursing? Orem defined nursing as a way of realizing every patient's desire to engage in self-care in a manner to "sustain life and health, recover from disease or injury and cope" with the consequences of major health events and daily life (El-Kader n.d.). Major assumptions of the theory include that "people should be self-reliant and responsible for their own care and others in their family needing care" (Dorothea Orem's self-care deficit theory, 2012, Current Nursing). Fundamentally, nursing and the nursing process is designed to enhance self-care and to address deficits in self-care.