DorotheaE.Orems Nursing Theory
ABSTRACT
Orem’s nursing theory has been applied widely in the nursing department. If well implemented, the clients levels of intellectual disability are assessed, the main disabilities affecting the individual are outlined and objectives to be attained are designed. At the end of the implementation process, the goals are evaluated to check the degree to which the deficits have been satisfied. The reason why I preferred this theory was, it is the most effective theory that can eliminate self care deficits and the language used in the theory is medically oriented.

The theory has proved to be relevant to the nurses because it provides an entire explanation for common human responses and a patient is involved in the entire process. Lastly, the theory helps the nurse to understand better the intellectual disability context and the need of establishing a developmental environment. Hence, the theory should be introduced in the hospital as the best mode of tackling any intellectual disability.

Orem’s nursing theory entails a central theme termed as self care deficit and believes that people are in need of some care if only their abilities do not allow them to take care of themselves. TheOrem’s nursing theory can be implemented into the current inpatient psychiatric practice through the following steps.

The first step is assessment and diagnosis. Under the assessment, investigations are established in order to accumulate some facts about the individuals self -care abilities and demands. It is done to the people to close to him or her and the individual. After gathering the facts, nursing diagnosis is done. Then, nursing care plan becomes the second step, which entails the specific goals and the nursing actions. Each problem of the patient is listed down followed by the goals that are made to be attained and the nursing actions to be applied are listed down. A system is established under the nursing care plan whose job is to provide some care to the patients. The nursing system is categorized into three types namely: wholly compensatory systems, partly and supportive-educative.

When wholly compensatory system is implemented, the nurses take all the responsibilities for carrying all the activities which help in meeting the self care abilities. While in partly, the nurses perform only some activities but not all of them and in supportive-educative system, the nurses provide the activities when the individual is capable of meeting all his or her self- care abilities.

The last step is the evaluation of goals and at this step, some monitoring and evaluation is done to check how far the nurses and the patient have gone in terms of the attainments of the goals and the objectives.

Orem’s nursing theory is well known for its contributions towards the elimination of self-care deficits. During the implementation process, assessment is done thoroughly and the patients’ problems are listed down. After the assessment, goals and objectives to be attained are designed. The systematic procedure formulated in this theory made me to be attracted to it thus choosing it. The theory tries to dig deeply on its sections by listing down each problem and goals to be attained. Also, the nursing actions to be applied are listed down and both the patient and the nurse make sure they take daily records in the care plan progress notes.

Orem’s nursing theory appeals to me because of the language it mostly uses. It is well medically oriented and it uses such terms patient and diagnosis which qualify to be medical terms. Also, the theory alone defines its scope clearly and makes its specific to the nursing department and the nurses. The framework alone was extra valid which made the process of identifying and assessing the patient easy and thus appropriate nursing intervention were achieved. It is categorized among the most reliable theories because of its systematic formulated procedures.

The relevance of this theory in nursing can be seen when it clearly provides a detailed explanation on the common human responses to health problems. This is experienced when similar healthy problems are presented and from the responses or the goals attained, a conclusion can be done .this helps the nurses to have a clear understanding of the causes of any disability and thus helping them to tackle the problem with a lot of professionalism.

The relevance of the theory in the nursing department is exhibited when it acted as a proof towards a useful framework thus making it valid. This is well understood because an individual is involved totally in the entire process until she or he becomes aware of the issues which have brought up the problem he or she is facing.Thus helping the nurses to enhance individuals own self-care abilities and be able to acknowledge any deficit that comes up and thus helping in prevention of any problems that may crop up in the future. After going through the process, the nurses are confident that any individual knows when, how to make any intervention step and how to take care of herself.

Lastly, the theory relevance is experienced in nursing because of its compilations with ethical standards. The standards helped by benefiting the client by heightening the need for intervention due to self care deficits. This mostly made the work of the nurses easier.

As a nurse, the theory helps me to understand better the intellectual disability context. The acts of human rights, suggest that, the entire lot of individual who are above the teenage stage have the rights to take care of themselves and if they happen to have some intellectual disability, the nurses and other peoples around should take care of them. Hence, this theory enables nurses to empower the people with the intellectual disability to achieve some rights which they could not have if they were left and neglected by the society.

Also, the theory helps nurse to maintain a developmental environment for the people with intellectual disability because it helps in reducing the challenging behaviors and brings improvement in health of the patients. in the Orem’s theory, environmental factors are viewed as having a dynamic relationship between what happens in the physical and psychological matters. Thus concluding that, environment plays as very important role in the development of an individual and if neglected it can lead to intellectual disability.

TheOrem’s model helps the nurses to check at those peoples problems consciously and give assistance when required. The models views nursing as the department which deals which self-care needs of individuals globally. The model shows clearly that, it is the responsibility of the nurses to provide to the patient what they need and give them enough support.

The model helps the nurses to understand deeply the efforts they have applied while dealing with various people with different intellectual disabilities, those with severe intellectual disability needs high levels of safe-care deficits, while with mild are made to given less. This is because, every individual has his level of disability and require varying levels of self-care need.

Lastly, the theory helps in setting the curriculum of the nurse students by helping in teaching them about any similarities that may arise between the nursing models and contemporary philosophies .Also the nurses who are supposed to work under the department of intellectual disability should apply the theory in order for them to be conversant with the stages and the ways to deal with people who are brought to the hospital.

In conclusion, the Orem’s nursing model has been of help to different people who implement it well and thus its application will be of great help to the hospitals globally.

REFERENCES

Paul Horan, Learning Disability Practice: Exploring Orem’s Self –Care Model in Learning Disability Nursing: Practical Application Paper: Part 2 Learning Disability Practice: RCN Publishing Company, May 2004, vol.7, issue4, page 33-37, 4p

Orem D. (2001) Nursing: Concepts of Practice (6th edition),London, Mosby

Learning Disability Practice: ExploringOrem’s Self- Care Deficits Nursing Theory in Learning Disability Nursing: Philosophical Party Paper: Party 1 Learning Disability Practice: RCN Publishing Company, May 2004, vol.7 issue 4, pg 28-33,6p

Comley A.A Comparative Analysis ofOrem’s self-Care Model and Peplaus Interpersonal Theory, Blackwell Publishing, October 2002, vol.20 issue 4, pgs 755-760 6p