Nursing Theory Analysis Paper PDF

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The theory of Interpersonal Relations developed by Hildegard Elizabeth Peplau is among the major theories that family nurse practitioners are expected to apply in their practice. The theory is applicable in various nursing practices and entails the concepts of proper engagement between the patients ...

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Running head: NURSING THEORY ANALYSIS PAPER

Nursing Theory Analysis Paper Student Name University Affiliation

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Introduction Nursing is based on theories that are essential in the provision of care for the patients. The application of these theories may depend on the situation the nurse is dealing with, the overall scope of their practice and even the patients they are dealing with. The theory of Interpersonal Relations developed by Hildegard Elizabeth Peplau is among the major theories that family nurse practitioners are expected to apply in their practice. The theory is applicable in various nursing practices and entails the concepts of proper engagement between the patients and the nurses. Therefore, there is a need for interpersonal human relations between the nurse and the patients for better identification of the challenges the patient has, health defects and gain of trust for improved efficiency in obtaining solutions and better treatment. Background Theorist’s Background The selected theory to analyze is Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations, which is a nursing theory that aims at improving the nursing undertakings through the incorporation of the aspect of human relationships. Peplau’s Theory is categorized under the mid-range theories, and it provides various concepts that are applicable in many nursing situations. According to Smith, & Liehr, (2014), Hildegard Elizabeth Peplau is the author of the theory and she served as a nurse during World War II in the Army. Peplau’s argument in her theory is that proper interaction between the patient and the nurse is important as it helps the patients to provide sufficient valid information concerning their health and lifestyle. The information is useful in developing a good therapeutic environment and thus helps in meeting the treatment goals for specific patients. The theorist was born on September 1, 1909, in Reading, Pennsylvania and was the first to publish nursing theories since Florence Nightingale especially creating the middle-range nursing theory.

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Her theory helped to revolutionize the scholarly nursing work and contributed to various law reforms aimed at helping patients with various issues. She later died on March 17, 1999, after having many achieve in her life. Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations was highly influenced by her career as a nurse in World War II, which motivated her towards the formulation of the various concepts she discusses in the patient-nurse relationship and how vital it is. Moreover, according to McKenna, Pankhihar, & Murphy, (2014), the theory was also influenced by Harry Stack Sullivan’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations,” which argue that people are well understood depending on the network of relationship they are involved in”. As a result, Pelpau saw the opportunity to agitate nurses in enhancing their interaction and relationships with their respective patients. According to Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations, it is only through the interpersonal interactions and relations between the nurse and their respective patients that vital information to help in creating a better therapeutic environment for the patient can be obtained, hence expediting on the recovery of the patient. Phenomenon of Concern The Interpersonal Relations Theory of Nursing by Pelpau was aimed at sensitizing the nurses of the importance of applying the concepts of human relations in dealing with the various health-related issues for better and faster treatment and recovery of the patients. According to Taylor, & Renpenning, (2011),”Pelpau’s theory was also keen on insisting on the importance of having healthy nurse-patient interactions and thus developing the meta-paradigm environment of nursing”. Other essential concerns presented by the theory circulate around the need for having vast information about the patient which will help in their treatment for better outcomes. In addition to the information, the provision of a proper therapeutic environment in which the

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patient feels is conducive to share personal information is required for the vital information to be discovered. As a result, Pelpau focused on ensuring that the nurses would provide a proper therapeutic environment that would aid them to better help their patients in finding and solving their problems. Theory Description Concepts The primary concept presented by Pelpau’s theory is that nursing is responsible for helping people in defining and solving their problems. According to McKenna, Pankhihar, & Murphy, (2014), “the Interpersonal Relations Nursing Theory by Pelpau calls for the reconciliation of one’s self to better serve other patients.” Additionally, another concept shown by the theory is that human relation aspects are essential for nurses in ensuring high-quality care especially for a family nurse that has to interact with all family members. This is further explained by Stimpfel, Sloane, McHugh, & Aiken, (2016), suggesting that nursing has a common goal of meeting the patient needs, hence depends on the exchanges between the patient and the nurse. Also, Pelpau’s theory argues that both the nurse and the patient engage in a learning process as they work together in the process of solving the problems affecting the patient, thus gaining knowledge over time. These concepts are based on the level of the engagement by a nurse, thus are dependent on actions were taken by the nurse in the care process. For instance, a family nurse practitioner will need to understand the concepts of human relations and engage with every single family patient differently while practicing the nursing concepts (Smith, and Liehr, 2014). These elements are discussed explicitly, showing what the nurses are expected to do and the overall interaction goals that need to be achieved. Pelpau shows consistency in how she demonstrates

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the steps involved in making nursing an interactional practice for better intervention. The concepts are laid out explicitly and in a proper manner such that they are easy to understand and implement in a nurse environment. Diagram Figure 1 below depicts the center position of Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations in the process of nurse-patient communication and interaction. The figure shows that the theory has a central role in ensuring that the patient interactions with the nurse is efficient and that the patient can provide proper information for better diagnosis and treatment.

Interaction/Communication

Interaction/Communication

Peplau’s Theory of Patient Interpersonal Relations

Healthcare Practitioners

Figure 1: Nurse-Patient Communication with Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations

Assumption Pelpau’s theory consists of three assumptions. The first assumption is that what the patient learns throughout any illness depends on the kind of nurse they are involved with. The second assumption is that nurses have the mandate of ensuring to develop a personality capable of handling the daily challenges thus serving others better and more efficiently (Wolosin, Ayala, and Fulton, 2012). The third assumption in the theory is that various illnesses that affect a given patient serve as a platform for learning and development for both the patient and the nurse. Met paradigm

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Pelpau’s theory ensures to incorporate the four nursing meta-paradigm, which is namely the nursing, environment, person, and health. Pelpau’s theory perceives nursing as a process that entails both therapeutic and interpersonal relationship between the nurse and the patient for better outcomes. According to McKenna, Pankhihar, & Murphy, (2014), Pelpau’s theory views the environment in which the nurse and a patient are involved as a series of forces which act towards influencing the overall interaction of the patient and the nurse, such as their culture. The person is taken as an organism that has the ability to engage in actions that are geared towards the reduction of tension and to meet the overall patient needs. Finally, health is regarded as the positive movement in both the human process and personality in terms of community living, creativity, productiveness, and constructiveness. Evaluation Clarity Pelpau’s theory is simple and very clear. It explicitly advocates for the development of better human relations in nursing as an approach towards ensuring that patient needs are effectively met. The theorist, Pelpau, has ensured to provide in-depth insights on how the interpersonal relationships should be developed to ensure better understanding between the nurse and the patient. Furthermore, the theorist’s background as a nurse services to provide her with the best knowledge base for developing the theory, thus enough proof of its importance in nursing and especially in a family setup. The concepts of the theory are also coherent such that all ideas are interlinked and their benefits outlined. This is especially important because it helps to identify the common goal of meeting the patient needs and the objective of the theory to develop better interpersonal human relations in nursing. According to Smith, & Liehr, (2014), the simplicity and singular demand of the theory in nursing make it easier for the nurses and patients

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to identify the common goals they have and achieve them properly. Congruence The theory ensures to intertwine the codes of human relations and interaction properly in the process of developing sustainable engagement between the nurse and the patients. The aspect of helping the patients through the definition and understanding of their problems is closely associated with the concept of developing continued interpersonal relations in the engagement process (Taylor, and Renpenning, 2011). With a strong relationship between the nurse and a patient, it is possible for the patient to confide even personal information and problems they are facing to the nurse. On the other hand, the human relations along with interpersonal interactions are utilized in developing a better therapeutic environment that helps patients to feel more comfortable, thus better treatment process. These examples present the congruence evident among the principals involved in Pelpau’s theory. Application Level Pelpau’s theory provides various concepts that are helpful in guiding the nursing actions to meet the overall goals of the patient and the care they need. Nurses are urged to apply the principles of human relations in their practice when handling the cases of any patient to improve on the information they obtain from these patients. For instance, for patient diagnosis, it is vitally important that a patient will need to provide various information regarding their health and mental status, medication and even overall feeding habits before the diagnosis is conducted. From such information, nurses can make informed decisions on the best professional assistance they can provide to the patient. Also, taking the cases of an emergency, patient information is vital as it will help the nurses in the ER in conducting proper checkups in a prompt manner, thus

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saving the life of the patient. Ties created between the patient and the nurse are also important in helping the patient to feel comfortable to the point of opening up and informing the nurse of their problems. The development of such trust basis enables the nurse to understand a lot of information about their patient, thus giving them a backbone on prevailing problems that they are facing and how they can be handled. This shows that, if the nurse is able to apply the concepts presented in the theory, then it is possible for their relationships with the patients to improve and increase their efficiency in dealing with the patient issues. The applicability, therefore, of Pelpau’s theory in nursing at all levels is important and very helpful since it provides insights to how nurses can consult with their patients for better interventions. Use The Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) has the mandate of providing healthcare services to the family members of a given family over time. As a result, it becomes challenging to ensure that the relationship between the nurse and the patients in the family is based on trust. The application of Pelpau’s theory, in this case, helps in ensuring that the undertakings of the FNP are based on human relations to build the required trust level with their patients. The continued interaction between the family members and their nurse results in extended interactions between them, hence the nurse is able to understand a lot of information about the patient. The information obtained by the FNP, therefore, plays a vital role in the process of the nurse delivering care to the specific patients. It is the mandate of the FNP to ensure they provide a conductive and engaging environment whereby all the family members will be free to consult the nurse concerning any issues. This calls for the nurse to utilize the principals of Pelpau’s theory and ensure the

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environment in which they interact with the patients is conducive. According to McKenna, Pankhihar, & Murphy, (2014), enabling a good environment for the patients will increase the overall information that the patient can deliver while improving the recovery process for the patient. Lifestyle challenges inclusive of medical issues, diet and overall health status of the patients in the family are expected to be addressed by the FNP. As a result, it is important that the nurse has a good relationship with the family that is based on trust for such information to be discussed. Pelpau’s theory entails that the nurse has the responsibility of helping the patient to identify their challenges and potential solutions to these problems, hence requiring the better interaction between them. Through the application of such principals, the nurse will be at a better point in helping the family of their needs, hence meeting the goals of nursing intervention in the family setting. Weaknesses One of the weaknesses of the theory is that it primarily focuses on the interaction between the nurse and the patient without considering the type of interaction and language used. While nurses are expected to apply the ethical principles of conduct in their practice, advising some of them especially on a family setting to be fully connected with their patients and to learn a lot about them may raise issues of abuse. For instance, Smith, & Liehr, (2014) note that nurses who abuse drugs and engage in private conversations with their patients may be influenced by the drugs to act abusively, which is against the principles of the nursing practice. Future With most of the evidence pointing towards the benefits and better patient outcomes from the use of Pelpau’s theory in nursing, its application in the future is on a very high note. The

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development in technology has led to the ease of communication, thereby ensuring that an FNP is able to associate with their family patients remotely, more information can be conveyed for better therapeutic practices. Furthermore, the digital recording of the patient information in the Electronic Medical Recording System, it will be easier for the nurses in providing their care and intervention to the patient’s thus better health outcomes. Therefore, the application of Pelpau’s theory in the future will be relatively high and it will help the nurses in meeting patient outcomes. Conclusion Being a mid-range theory, Pelpau’s theory of Interpersonal Relations provides sufficient details on the need for an engaging relationship between the nurse and the patient towards meeting the health needs of the patient. The theorist is coherent in developing the various concepts she presents in the theory, making it easy to understand and follow. The theory is applicable in various specialties of nursing, and it should be utilized in all of them for better intervention and relations with the patients. The theory ensures that the nurse focuses specifically on what the patient needs, thereby providing the specific solution based on the patient requirements. The future of the theory is bright since it is applicable in many fields and, with technological advancements, nurse-patient interactions will improve for better outcomes.

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McKenna, H. P., Pankhihar, M., & Murphy, F. (2014). Fundamentals of nursing models, theories, and practice. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley Blackwell Smith, M. J., & Liehr, P. R. (2014). Middle range theory for nursing. New York: Springer Stimpfel, A. W., Sloane, D. M., McHugh, M. D., & Aiken, L. H. (2016). Hospitals are known for nursing excellence associated with better hospital experiences for patients. Health Services Research, 51, 1120-1134. From Taylor, S. G., & Renpenning, K. M. L. (2011). Self-care science, nursing theory, and evidencebased practice. New York: Springer Pub. Wolosin, R., Ayala, L., & Fulton, B. R. (2012). Nursing care, inpatient satisfaction, and valuebased purchasing. The Journal of Nursing Administration, 42, 321-325...