Task 1 C304
WGU C304 Professional Roles and Values
A. NURSING THEORY
Nursing theories help to guide nurses in their daily practices. Florence Nightingales environmental theory helps to guide my daily nursing practice. Nightingales environmental theory in summary, states that, the patients environment effects their healing while in the hospital. (Cherry and Jacob, n.d.). A patient with a clean room, clean linens, and bathed daily, has a better chance at a more positive outcome.
A1. EXCELLENT NURSING PRACTICES
According to the environmental theory, a patient has a better chance to heal in an environment that promotes healing. The factors in this environment are: clean rooms, clean linens, clean body, quiet environment, and natural lighting (Cherry and Jacob, n.d.).
With this theory, the nurse should promote a quiet and healing environment, and refrain from unnecessary noise and whispering in the patients room. The theory encourages natural sunlight and discourages the use of curtains or dark windows to encourage light in the patients room. Most of the Nightingales theory focuses on cleanliness. She encourages the cleaning of the rooms, linens, patient, and walls. (Cherry and Jacob, n.d.).
A2. PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE NURSING THEORY
I use this practice daily with my patients. One of the most important parts of this practice that I utilize is daily bathing of my patients as well as fresh linens. Most of the population of patients I work with have central lines, so they are at a higher risk for infections. To prevent an infection, I ensure all my patients have a shower, or sponge bath. It is also a requirement that their linens be changed daily. The unit I work also has what we call quiet time, during the day shift and quiet at night, during the night shift. This helps to promote patients having a quiet environment to sleep at night and a quiet period during the day to promote rest. Although, the hospital I work has a policy against patients going outside, we do encourage patients to open the curtains in their rooms, and to enjoy the sunlight. The Oncology population can be depressing at times, and the patients are often going through difficult times, so we promote the sunlight in the rooms and try to prevent from patients sitting in the dark.
B. CONTRIBUTIONS OF 19TH OR 20TH CENTURY HISTORICAL NURSING FIGURES
One of the most influential nursing figures, is probably the on all nurse hear about when they begin nursing school. That is Florence Nightingale. She is known as The Mother of Nursing, and The Lady with the Lamp. One of Nightingales most know contributions is her environment theory. With majority of this theory focusing on cleanliness, she set the expectation for the nurses to come. Nightingale went on to write a book on her theory (Cherry and Jacob, n.d.). She is an inspiration to me, as a nurse, because she is proof that nurses have so much potential to improve healthcare. Nightingale set the framework for the care provi...
