Types of Grand Nursing Theorists

Although nursing changes as new knowledge and theories emerge, what I believe to be the core, a commitment to care, remains intact. That commitment to care is the underlying premise that enables me, as a nurse, to set nursing goals.

I define my philosophy of nursing within the three nursing domains of person, health, and environment. My goal is to communicate the importance of nursing as a knowledge-based career, depending not only on the nurse fulfilling her role but also on the patient’s compliance. A patient must learn to provide self-care at home in the same capacity as the nurse would provide care in the clinical setting. I discuss various subjects within nursing. I explain why I want to be a nurse, what I believe a nurse’s role is, the different domains of nursing, and where I believe nursing will be in the future. My philosophy demonstrates the interdependence of the nursing domains. You cannot fully evaluate a person without evaluating their health,

The caring, supportive, sympathetic features of nursing, is immeasurable. Theories are essential to have. They provide a description of what nurses do and give meaning and purpose. When nursing theories are developed this new knowledge can greatly impact the future of nursing practice (McCrae, 2012).

The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast nursing theorists from the four categories which are identified by Meleis as: Needs, Interaction, Outcome and Caring. (Meleis, 2012, Chapter 9) I have chosen Faye Abdellah, Imogene King, Myra Levine and Jean Watson as the grand theorists that I would like to explore for this study in contrast and comparison. This decision was made, in part, due to the fact that all of these theorists were born and educated in the twentieth century and I felt that their theories might be more applicable to my nursing practice. The information contained in the tables was obtained from several sources in an

Provides comprehensive safe, quality practice to achieve agreed goals and outcomes that are responsive to the nursing needs of people

Dorothy Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory and Sister Callista Roy’s Adaptation Model are considered as grand nursing theories. The grand nursing theories are a

themselves. I feel a sense of fulfillment when the family members coach the patient on some of

As the professional world of nursing has progressed in many ways and made its mark in today’s society, without nursing theories we could easily regress to the place that nursing existed before WWII, under the umbrella of medicine. Theories tend to ‘direct or guide the thinking of a nurse as tasks are performed with some type of rationale as to why these tasks are performed instead of just taking orders from physicians’ (McEwen & Willis, 2014). However, just

Kristen M. Swanson’s Caring Theory is the solution in bridging the gap between nursing practice and theory. It offers an explanation of the links between patient well-being and the caring process (Tonges & Ray, 2011). Swanson explained that nurses should be able to demonstrate that they care about their patients, and that caring about their wellbeing is as important as their patients’ current medical problem (Tonges & Ray, 2011).

My approaches to caring include compassion, grace, service, presence, love, empowerment, partnership, justice and advocacy. I believe that an effective nurse thinks critically, communicates effectively, feels deeply, interacts meaningfully, assumes responsibility, acts morally, approaches clients within a partnering framework, understands that people’s needs vary with developmental stage and cultural background, and views people holistically, recognizing that health encompasses both wellness and illness. I believe that I believe the nature of nursing is rooted in commitment to public service and the undeniable desire to help those in need. Nursing is more than treating an illness; rather it is focused on delivering quality patient care that is individualized to

Nursing theories are theoretical frameworks that aim to explain the nursing profession. They are typically divided into three categories: Grand theories, mid-range theories and micro-range theories. These look at nursing from a broad perspective and are applicable to all areas of the profession (Blais & Hayes, 2016). They can provide useful insights into nursing practice, but are not designed for empirical testing. The second type of theory is middle range theory.

American Nurses Association defines nursing as “the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and population”( Potter,P.,& Perry, A. 2005,1-5). Thus making nursing dynamic and ever changing. However, when nursing

Nursing theory is relatively new and as such, it continues to evolve as new knowledge is gained. There are numerous theories of nursing, each of which took years to develop and most of which continue to evolve and adapt. There are commonalities between and among the existing theories although each may focus more heavily on different aspects of responsibilities. It has to do with the philosophical foundations for each theory.

This theory explains, describes, guides, and supports nursing practice. It gives language to the unspoken beliefs and perspectives of the nursing profession. This allows the nursing professionals to better envision, realize, and articulate their unique role in healthcare (Green & Robichaux, 2009). Human caring is the basis of therapeutic relationships between human beings (Wade & Kasper, 2006)

PART 1 What is nursing theory? How does nursing theory differ from theories of other disciplines? How does nursing theory relate to nursing practice?