1. Critique of Nursing Theories Paper
Critique of Nursing Theories PaperThe nursing profession relies heavily on nursing theories
developed to provide guidelines to nurses on how to provide care to patients. Nursing
theories are theoretical frameworks upon which nursing knowledge and guidelines are
developed to enhance patient health outcomes and increasing nurse's professional
knowledge. Nursing theories should help generate nursing knowledge and the future
direction of the practice with the changing times. These theories are classified as meta,
grand, middle range, and practice theories (George, 2013). This paper will focus on the
grand and middle-range theories. Specifically, the paper will explore the humanistic nursing
theory by Josephine Paterson and Loretta Zderad as a grand theory, and the nursing theory
of comfort by Katherine Kolcaba as the middle-range theory.ORDER A PLAGIARISM - FREE
PAPER HERESelected Theory: The Humanistic TheoryThe humanistic theory of nursing is a
grand nursing theory because it is abstract, broad, complex, and requires additional
research. Josephine Paterson and Loretta Zderad developed the humanistic theory, two
nurses whose core belief in nursing is that nursing education should be built on training and
focus on the nurse's ability to relate with the patient and interact with them in a medical
background (Paterson & Zderad, 2018). According to this theory, a patient is a whole person
as opposed to an illness or injury. It is, therefore, referred to as a holistic approach because
by using this theory, the nurse is involved in fostering the mental and emotional health of
the patient. Critique of Nursing Theories PaperAccording to this theory, the nurse should
emphasize their relationship with patients. The nurse-patient relationship is critical
because of the nurse, and the patient influence the nursing outcomes and interventions
(Roberts, 2015). Under this theory, the nurse is supposed to work in partnership with the
patient and understand that each patient has unique needs. Every nursing situation is
unique. Therefore, there is no intervention effective for all patients. Hence, the nurse must
perceive the patient as a unique human being with unique healthcare needs based on their
personal experience, culture, personality, and beliefs. Additionally, the nurse should take
time to understand the patient, interact with them, so that they understand their unique
needs, and formulate effective interventions that promote positive health outcomes for the
patient. Cultural competence, knowledge, and awareness are, therefore, critical when
practicing this theory on patients.Selected Theory: Theory of ComfortKatherine Kolcaba
developed this theory in the 1990s. This theory posits that comfort should be the desirable
outcome of nursing care. Kolcaba conducted an extensive literature review from medicine,
psychology, nursing, psychiatry, and English, which revealed three different forms of
2. comfort and holistic human experience. The nurse also argued that comfort was a product
of holistic nursing, which refers to practicing nursing to heal the whole individual by
focusing on the interconnectedness of their mind, body, spirit, emotions, environment, and
cultural factors.According to this theory, there are three identifiable forms of comfort that
include relief, transcendence, and ease. When a patient receives pain medication or pain-
relieving massage, they experience relief comfort. When the patient's pain is relieved, they
calm their anxiety and experience transcendence where they can overcome their challenges.
Once they overcome their challenges, they live their lives with ease. Kolcaba also contends
that patient comfort occurs in four contexts, which include psychospiritual, sociocultural,
environmental, and physical.Psychospiritual comfort refers to the internal awareness of the
self, which includes self-esteem, sexuality, identity, and meaning in one's life. The nurse
strives to provide such comfort by talk therapy and offering the patient reassurance in
different ways. For instance, when an obese patient arrives in the nursing station and
exhibits signs of depression from stigmatization, the nurse should engage the patient in talk
therapy and encourage them to adopt healthier lifestyles, which help boost the patient's
self-esteem.Physical comfort refers to physiological relief that the patient receives when
under nursing care. This kind of comfort includes taking pain medication or experiencing a
physiotherapy session that helps relieve joint ache. Sociocultural comfort refers to the
comfort attained through personal and societal relationships, interpersonal relationships,
and healthy relationships with family members and the external background of the
individual (Smith, 2019). Nurses should strive to offer such comfort by referring the patient
to community resources and empowering caregivers with the required knowledge on
patient care, among other actions.Lastly, environmental comfort refers to the background of
the human experience, where the nurse should ensure that the patient's environment is
health-friendly. For instance, the nurse should ensure that patient bedding is cleaned, the
patient has a bedside alarm in case of an emergency, the room color is warm, and there are
sufficient furniture and lighting in a patient's room.The types mentioned above of comfort
are paramount to achieving positive health outcomes for the patient. Therefore, the theory
of comfort places importance and emphasis on these types of comfort, as essential nursing
practice.Critiquing TheoryChinn & Kramer (2018) offer guidelines for theory critique
through theory description and reflection. The authors provide the "Guide for the
Description of Theory" and "Guide for the Critical Reflection of Theory" for theory critique.
The following section is a theory critique based on these guidelines of the two theories of
nursing. Critique of Nursing Theories PaperThe Humanistic TheoryThe humanist theory is
clear about the nursing practices required to achieve positive health outcomes for the
patient. The concepts within this theory are also clearly defined and allow the scholar to
understand the theory better and how to practice it. For instance, one of the concepts within
this theory is existentialism, which is essential for the nurse so that they understand the
reality of a patient's situation. In this case, the concept of existentialism is defined as being
available to one's being and being aware of it (Smith, 2019). This concept is crucial to this
theory because it is founded on existentialist ideas, where nurses should focus on the
patient's being when interacting with them. The human being is comprised of numerous
tenets, all of which the nurse should consider when providing interventions for the patient.
3. Therefore, viewed existentially, all patients and nursing situations are unique. The fact that
the concept of existentialism is explained qualifies the theory as clear, harmonious, and
consistent.There are no coined words for this theory; therefore, there is no need to explain
coined words. While the theory borrows from other psychological and medical theories,
there are no words borrowed from other disciplines within this theory. The amount of
explanation, in theory, is sufficient. However, the number of instances exemplified should
be more for additional clarity and understanding of this theory. However, the examples
used are useful and allow the scholar to develop insights on how to practice the theory.This
theory was formulated to provide patients with holistic care. The theorists, Josephine
Paterson and Loretta Zderad founded the theory based on the belief that nursing should be
based on human experience, and the training of nurses should focus on equipping the
nurses with skills to interact with patients (Smith et al., 2013).ORDER A PLAGIARISM -
FREE PAPER HERE This theory has a hierarchy of purposes, which include building
trust with the patient, promoting a definite form of orientation, promoting control in the
patient, strengths, and setting the health-oriented mutual goals with the patient (Smith et
al., 2013). This hierarchy of purpose is in tandem with the principles of the theory, which
require the nurse to relate existentially with the patient to enable them to develop effective
interventions unique to the patient. The fact that the theory has the first purpose of building
trust between the nurse and the patient shows that the theory is grounded on practical
principles.The purpose of the nurse is to draw close to the patient, understand their needs,
and develop interventions based on the patient's unique needs (Smith et al., 2013). The
person receiving care should also be open to interacting with the nurse for them to share
information useful in developing interventions. The theory does not address the societal
and environmental purposes in providing care for the patient. Critique of Nursing Theories
PaperThe theory has a narrow purpose, which is focused on treating patients as unique
situations. This narrow purpose limits the scope of nursing success because situations are
different for different patients.Theory of Comfort This theory posits that comfort
should be the desirable outcome of nursing care. The theory is clear because its main
concepts, such as comfort and holistic nursing, are defined. These are the two main
concepts in this theory, where comfort is the desirable nursing care outcome, and the
theory borrows heavily from holistic nursing. The definitions of the three types of comfort
are also defined, which makes the theory clearer to the scholar.There are no coined words,
as all words within the theory are in English. However, transcendence is a word used in
philosophy and psychology and is used in this theory with the same meaning, to describe a
form of comfort that is essential to patient health.Comparison of Comfort Theory and
Humanistic Theory of NursingSimilaritiesThe two theories are patient-centered, where the
nurse must strive to develop and foster a positive relationship with the patient.Both
theories include comfort as a paramount need for patient wellness.Both theories are based
on achieving transcendence through comfort and relating with the patient from an
existentialist view.Both theories require nurses to develop cultural competence when
handling patients.DifferencesThe humanistic theory focuses on the nurse-patient
relationship, while the theory of comfort focuses on achieving patient comfort.The
humanistic theory of nursing requires that the nurse treats the patient as an equal human.
4. In contrast, the theory of comfort places the nurse as the primary caregiver whose aim is to
provide the patient with comfort.Theory Application An example of a nursing
situation where a nurse should use the humanistic theory when treating the patient would
be with a patient who is from a non-English speaking country and has unhealthy food
practices such as drinking animal blood as part of cultural ritual. The nurse should find a
translator to communicate with the patient, and learn about the patient culture, and use
culturally sensitive words to discourage the patient from drinking animal blood since it
contributes to their negative health outcome. Cultural knowledge is a humanistic approach
in nursing because the nurse deals with the patient's situation as a unique case (Snowden et
al., 2014). The expected outcome would be for the patient to become friendly to the nurse,
understand why they should avoid rituals that endanger their health, and avoid the habit.
Critique of Nursing Theories PaperProcess of Advanced PracticeAdvanced practice in
nursing entails conducting a nursing diagnosis, performing physical exams, ordering
laboratory tests, developing the differential diagnoses, maintaining patient records,
providing counseling to the families and the patients, and dispensing medication to the
patients, among others.Humanistic TheoryThe advanced practice in this theory is as
follows:Conduct nursing diagnosisConduct a differential diagnosis.Order lab testsEnsure
hospital and clinic compliance in providing healthcare.Develop a rapport with the
patient.Frequently provide counseling to patients and their families while administering
prescribed medication to the patient.Facilitating Outcomes The expected outcomes
from the humanistic theory are for the patient to become friendly to the nurse, understand
why they should avoid rituals that endanger their health, and avoid the habit. To achieve the
same outcome, the following is the advanced practice that the nurse should perform on the
patient in the order provided.Conduct nursing diagnosisConduct a differential diagnosis
(Snowden et al., 2014).Order lab testsEnsure the patient environment is conducive to
healing.Learn patient culture and practices to understand the impact of their practices on
patient health.Visit the patient room daily and engage in conversation with the patient
about their cultural practices such as drinking animal blood.Continuously provide
counseling and talk therapy to patient for emotional and mental comfortRefer the hospital
chaplain to the patient for psychospiritual support and comfort in case the patient requires
spiritual support.Administer medication for physical comfort and to relieve symptoms
Critique of Nursing Theories PaperConclusionThe humanistic and theory of comfort are a
broad range and middle-range theories, respectively. The two theories are patient-centered,
where the nurse must strive to develop and foster a positive relationship with the patient.
However, the former theory focuses on existential and wholesome wellness of the patient,
while the latter theory focuses on enhancing patient comfort to improve their health
outcomes. The advanced nursing practices for both theories require the nurse to conduct
diagnoses, order lab tests and develop a rapport with the patient. After this, depending on
the theory, the nurse either engages in talk therapy or first seeks to understand the
patient's cultural practices that affect their health, then proceed to offer comfort, which
achieves positive health outcomes.ReferencesGeorge, J. (2013). Nursing Theories: Pearson
New International Edition. Pearson.Paterson, J., & Zderad, L. (2018). Humanistic nursing.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.Roberts, D. (2015). Psychosocial nursing
5. care. Open University Press.Smith, M. (2019). Nursing theories and nursing practice. F.A.
Davis.Smith, M., Turkel, M., & Wolf, Z. (2013). Caring in nursing classics. Springer
Pub.Snowden, A., Donnell, A., & Duffy, T. (2014). Critique of Nursing Theories Paper
