THEORETICAL

FOUNDATIONS
OF NURSING (TFN)

MARIA LUISA T. UAYAN

Doctor of Health Sciences and Nursing
 INTRODUCTION

 Course Code : TFN

 Descriptive Title: Theoretical Foundations of Nursing
 Prerequisites: None
 Credit Units: 3 units
 Contact Hours per Session: 3 Hours
 Schedule: Tuesdays (8am – 11am) Room 203 A
 COURSE DESCRIPTION

 This course deals with the meta-concepts of PERSON,

HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT and NURSING as viewed by the
different theorists. Likewise, it included non-nursing
theories such as system, developmental and change
theories. It presents how these concepts and theories
serve as guide to nursing practice. It further deals with
health as a multi-factorial phenomenon and the core
competencies that the nurse needs to develop.
 COURSE EXPECTED OUTCOMES (CEOS)
After successful completion of the course the learner will be able to:
1. Differentiate views given by various nursing theories on Person, Health,
Environment and Nursing;
2. Describe the various non-nursing theories as applied to nursing;
3. Utilize selected nursing theories and non-nursing theories in the care of
clients;
4. Demonstrate selected competencies under the 14 Program Outcomes
pertinent to nursing.
COURSE OUTLINE

 Week 1 – Course Orientation

 Week 2 – Nursing as an Art and Science
 Week 3 – Era in Nursing
 Week 4 – Evolution of Nursing
 Week 5 – Ethico-moral-legal aspect of Nursing
 Week 6 – PRELIM
 COURSE OUTLINE
 Week 7 – Concept of Nursing (Nursing PARADIGM)
 Week 8 – 11 – Different Nursing theories and Nurse theorists
 Week 12 – MIDTERM
 Week 13 – Non-nursing theories
 Week 14 – Intro to Hospital Environment
 Week 15 – 16 - Most common Procedures ( Vital signs, IV therapy, Gastric gavage/
lavage, Enema, Perineal care, Post-mortem, Catheterization)

 Week 17 Communication
 Week 18 - FINAL
R ELEVANT TERMINOLOGIES

What is a
CONCEPT
 is a symbolic statement describing a phenomenon or group of
phenomena.

 Are formulated in words to be able to communicate meanings

about realities in the world or give meaning to phenomena that
can be directly seen or indirectly seen, heard, tasted, smelled or
touched (Faucett, 1999).
 Concepts are:
Types

Abstract Concrete
(Hope, love, desire) (Airplane, temperature,
weight)
Concepts can be formulated:
 A WORD - grief, empathy, pain

 TWO WORDS - patient’s satisfaction, caring nurse, excellent

performance

 PHRASE - mother-child bonding, health promoting practices, core

competency standards, advance nursing practice
 Concepts can be categorized as:

VARIABLE NON -VARIABLE

(Continuous) (Discrete)
1. Variable (Continuous)

 Concepts that describe phenomena according to some dimensions,

permits, classification or graduation of a phenomena.
Ex. Blood Pressure (B.P.), Pain

 Variable concepts include sex-role orientation, level of well being

and degree of cultural identity. Concepts of hope, quality of life,
need fulfillment and grief are defined operationally and measured
by tools or scales to show where the respondents level of variable
fell.
2. Non- variable (Discrete)

 Concept that identifies categories or classes of phenomena.

Ex. Gender, Ethnic background, religion and marital status

 Discrete variables can be single variable categories that can be

answered by Yes or No.
Ex. One is pregnant or Not pregnant
One is smoker or Not
One is a nurse or Not
SOURCES OF CONCEPTS

Research Based
Naturalistic Concept Concept
SOURCES OF CONCEPTS
 Naturalistic Concepts
-seen in nature or in nursing practice such as body weight,
thermoregulation, hematologic complications, depression, pain and
spirituality.

- Research – based Concepts

- are the result of conceptual development that is grounded in research
processes through qualitative, phenomenological or grounded theory
approaches. The researcher may run over meanings of phenomena of
interest and theoretical relationships.
CONCEPT OF NURSING

Is it OCCUPATION or PROFESSION ?

Job or Career Learned vocation or an

occupation with a knowledge-
base, has a status of superiority
within a division of work
 All Professions are
Occupations BUT not all
Occupations are
considered Profession

Hon. Carmelita C. Divinagracia, PhD,RN

PRC - BON
CHARACTERISTICS OF PROFESSION
 Power with authority over
teaching and occupation

 Registration (PRC)

 Autonomy

 Code of Ethics

 Lengthy socialization
 R ELEVANT TERMINOLOGIES

What is a
THEORY
 A systematic explanation of an event in which constructs
and concepts are identified and relationships are
proposed and predictions are made (Streubert and
Capenter, 1999).
 System of interrelated propositions used to predict,
explain, understand and control a part of empirical world
(Adam, 1985).
 Comprised of concepts, propositions, laws and set of
proposition that can be verbalized and communicated.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THEORY DEVELOPMENT
• Nursing theory has been a prevalent theme in
nursing literature for the past 30 years

• It was F.N. who envisioned nurses as a body of

educated nurse

• Her vision- establishment of home of nursing at St.

Thomas hospital in London Start of Modern
Nursing

• 20th Century- nursing began with strong emphasis

on practice
HISTORICAL SKETCH
Graduate Education Era

Research Era

Curriculum Era

Theory Era
 HISTORICAL SKETCH
 Theory Era
- Contemporary phase where the emphasis is
on theory-based nursing practice and theory
development. Awareness that nursing is a
profession.
- In mid 1800, F.N. expressed firm conviction
that nursing knowledge was distinct from
medical knowledge. Her concept of nursing
function is putting the patient in best condition
for nature to act upon him and that nursing is
based on persons and environment.
HISTORICAL SKETCH
 Curriculum Era
- Focuses on what must be studied and learned
to become a nurse from hospital- based diploma
program into college and university. More and more
nurses sought for higher degree. From vocational
heritage to an academic discipline (profession).
HISTORICAL SKETCH

 Graduate Education Era

From Bachelor of science in nursing (BSN)

Masters Program
(Nursing models and Nursing theory course)
HISTORICAL SKETCH
 Research Era
- Nurses started to participate in scientific
works. This course started to be introduced and
integrated in the nursing curriculum.
 EXAMPLES OF THEORIES

Non- Nursing Nursing

NON- NURSING THEORIES
EXAMPLES OF NON-NURSING THEORIES (CONT.)
A. Theories from Sociologic Sciences
1. General Systems Theory (GST) (Von Bertalanffy, 1968)
- grandest of grand theory because of universal
relevancy and applicability.

- In GST, the systems are composed of both structural

and functional components that has the capability to
exchange with environment.
THE ELEMENTS OF THE SYSTEM
THROUGHPUT
INPUT OUTPUT
PROCESS

FEEDBACK
THE ELEMENTS OF THE SYSTEM (CONT.)
 Input- matter, energy, and information received from
environment.
 Throughput- matter, energy, and information that is
modified or transformed within the system.
 Output- matter, energy and information released from
the system into the environment.
 Feedback- information regarding environmental
responses used by the system (either – or + or natural).
 NON- NURSING THEORY (CONT.)

2. Role Theory- attached to positions (status) and social

organizations (family, corporation, society).
3. Conflict Theory
 Conflict in organizations
 Social problems

4. Feminist Theory
 Gender differences (Gender Sensitive)
 Exploitation of women
 NON- NURSING THEORY (CONT.)
B. Theories from the Behavioural Sciences
1. Psychoanalytic Theory (FREUD- Id, Ego, Superego)
ID- original system of personality that matrix in which ego and
superego differentiate.
EGO- follow reality principle
- has control behavior
- control over cognitive functions
SUPEREGO- strive for perfection
- focuses on moral issues (“What is right and What is wrong”)
 NON- NURSING THEORY (CONT.)
2. Interpersonal Theory
 Individuals cannot exists in isolation; has to interact.

3. Stress Theories
 Stress is inevitable, one has to adapt through coping.

4. General Adaptation Theory (GAS) (SELYE)

 3 stages ( Alarm, Resistance and Exhaustion)
 NON- NURSING THEORY (CONT.)

4. General Adaptation Theory (GAS) (SELYE)

 3 stages ( Alarm, Resistance and Exhaustion)
 Alarm- mobilizes body defenses and activates fight or flight
response/syndrome.
 Resistance- focuses on the body’s physiologic responses to regain
homeostasis.
 Exhaustion- the body has used to maximum all resources in the
body, disease can occur.
NURSING THEORIES
NURSING THEORIES

MICRO MID RANGE

MACRO
GRAND
 NURSING THEORY

Major Concepts:
Key Nursing
Person, Health, Concepts Theory
Nursing, Environment
IMPORTANCE OF THEORY IN NURSING
 Offers structure and organization to nursing knowledge and provides a systematic
means of collecting data to :
- Describe
- Explain
- Predict nursing practice
 Promotes rational and systematic practice by challenging and validating intuition.
 Makes nursing practice more overtly purposeful by stating not only the focus of
practice but specific goals and structure.
 Defines and clarify nursing and the purpose of nursing practice different from other
caring profession.
 Leads to coordinated and less fragmented care.