READING GUIDE
,1. Nursing definition (ANA)
• American Nurses Association: "Nursing is the protection, promotion, and
optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation
of suffering through diagnosis and treatment of human response, and
advocacy in care of individuals, families, communities, and populations"
• Focuses on human response to health problems
• Includes advocacy as core role
2. Roles of the professional nurse
• Caregiver: direct
practice patient
care
• Advocate: protect
patient rights and
wishes
• Educator: teach
patients and
families
• Leader: delegate,
manage,
coordinate care
• Researcher: apply
evidence-based
3. Scope of practice
• Defines what a nurse can and cannot do legally
• Determined by state Nurse Practice Act
• Varies by license (RN, LPN, APRN)
• RN scope includes assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation,
evaluation
4. Standards of care
• Legal guidelines for nursing practice
• Established by professional organizations (ANA, specialty groups)
• Used in court to determine negligence
, • "What a reasonably prudent nurse would do in same circumstances"
5. Nurse Practice Act
• State law that governs nursing practice
• Defines licensure requirements, scope, disciplinary actions
• Varies by state – must know your state's act
• Enforced by State Board of Nursing
6. Licensure
• NCLEX-RN: national exam for RN licensure
• Required to practice as a registered nurse
• Maintained through continuing education and renewal fees
• Compact state licensure allows practice across participating states
7. Historical nursing figures – Florence Nightingale
• Founder of modern nursing
• Identified link between sanitation and patient outcomes
• Established first nursing school (St. Thomas' Hospital, London)
• Developed statistical methods to track mortality
8. Historical nursing figures – Clara Barton
• Founded American Red Cross
• Cared for soldiers on battlefields during Civil War
• Advocated for missing soldiers
9. Historical nursing figures – Dorothea Dix
• Superintendent of Army Nurses during Civil War
• Advocated for mentally ill and prison reform
• Established first mental health hospitals
10. Historical nursing figures – Mary Mahoney
• First African American professional nurse
• Advocated for diversity in nursing
• Co-founded National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses
11. Historical nursing figures – Lillian Wald
• Founder of public health nursing
• Established Henry Street Settlement (NYC)
• Advocated for school nursing and child labor laws
, 12. Historical nursing figures – Virginia Henderson
• Developed definition of nursing (1955)
• Created 14 basic needs of patient
• Known as "First Lady of Nursing"
13. Theory – Definition
• Set of concepts and propositions that explain a phenomenon
• Guides nursing practice and research
• Provides framework for decision making
14. Grand theories
• Broad, abstract, comprehensive
• Example: Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory
• Example: Roy's Adaptation Model
• Not easily tested; guides philosophy
15. Middle-range theories
• More specific than grand theories
• Testable through research
• Example: Pender's Health Promotion Model
• Example: Mishel's Uncertainty in Illness Theory
16. Practice-level theories
• Narrowest focus, situation-specific
• Used for specific patient populations or settings
• Example: Theory of Pain Management in Older Adults
• Directly applicable to bedside nursing
17. Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory
• Patients need to perform self-care activities
• Nursing is needed when patient cannot meet self-care needs
• Three systems: wholly compensatory, partly compensatory, supportive-
educative
18. Roy's Adaptation Model
• Patient adapts to environmental stimuli
• Four modes: physiological, self-concept, role function, interdependence
• Nursing promotes adaptation
,1. Nursing definition (ANA)
• American Nurses Association: "Nursing is the protection, promotion, and
optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation
of suffering through diagnosis and treatment of human response, and
advocacy in care of individuals, families, communities, and populations"
• Focuses on human response to health problems
• Includes advocacy as core role
2. Roles of the professional nurse
• Caregiver: direct
practice patient
care
• Advocate: protect
patient rights and
wishes
• Educator: teach
patients and
families
• Leader: delegate,
manage,
coordinate care
• Researcher: apply
evidence-based
3. Scope of practice
• Defines what a nurse can and cannot do legally
• Determined by state Nurse Practice Act
• Varies by license (RN, LPN, APRN)
• RN scope includes assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation,
evaluation
4. Standards of care
• Legal guidelines for nursing practice
• Established by professional organizations (ANA, specialty groups)
• Used in court to determine negligence
, • "What a reasonably prudent nurse would do in same circumstances"
5. Nurse Practice Act
• State law that governs nursing practice
• Defines licensure requirements, scope, disciplinary actions
• Varies by state – must know your state's act
• Enforced by State Board of Nursing
6. Licensure
• NCLEX-RN: national exam for RN licensure
• Required to practice as a registered nurse
• Maintained through continuing education and renewal fees
• Compact state licensure allows practice across participating states
7. Historical nursing figures – Florence Nightingale
• Founder of modern nursing
• Identified link between sanitation and patient outcomes
• Established first nursing school (St. Thomas' Hospital, London)
• Developed statistical methods to track mortality
8. Historical nursing figures – Clara Barton
• Founded American Red Cross
• Cared for soldiers on battlefields during Civil War
• Advocated for missing soldiers
9. Historical nursing figures – Dorothea Dix
• Superintendent of Army Nurses during Civil War
• Advocated for mentally ill and prison reform
• Established first mental health hospitals
10. Historical nursing figures – Mary Mahoney
• First African American professional nurse
• Advocated for diversity in nursing
• Co-founded National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses
11. Historical nursing figures – Lillian Wald
• Founder of public health nursing
• Established Henry Street Settlement (NYC)
• Advocated for school nursing and child labor laws
, 12. Historical nursing figures – Virginia Henderson
• Developed definition of nursing (1955)
• Created 14 basic needs of patient
• Known as "First Lady of Nursing"
13. Theory – Definition
• Set of concepts and propositions that explain a phenomenon
• Guides nursing practice and research
• Provides framework for decision making
14. Grand theories
• Broad, abstract, comprehensive
• Example: Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory
• Example: Roy's Adaptation Model
• Not easily tested; guides philosophy
15. Middle-range theories
• More specific than grand theories
• Testable through research
• Example: Pender's Health Promotion Model
• Example: Mishel's Uncertainty in Illness Theory
16. Practice-level theories
• Narrowest focus, situation-specific
• Used for specific patient populations or settings
• Example: Theory of Pain Management in Older Adults
• Directly applicable to bedside nursing
17. Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory
• Patients need to perform self-care activities
• Nursing is needed when patient cannot meet self-care needs
• Three systems: wholly compensatory, partly compensatory, supportive-
educative
18. Roy's Adaptation Model
• Patient adapts to environmental stimuli
• Four modes: physiological, self-concept, role function, interdependence
• Nursing promotes adaptation
