Welcome to Guest Contributor Christine Platt, NP-C*,
PhD Student at the University of Arizona College of Nursing
This week I asked, why does nursing theory matter to me? Can I see it directly affect my practice? As a nurse practitioner I see, on average, 26 patients each clinic day. Nursing theory helps define who I am as a nurse and what my goals are as a professional. It also can be evident in the way I give care at the bedside or even the way I influence health policies and practices of my community.
To begin, let’s look at what nursing is not. When discussing primary care, it is easy to think about making a diagnosis and then prescribing medication or a procedure to fix the disease. While these aspects may play a role in nurse practitioner practice, they don’t encompass the professional advanced practice of nursing. Without theory, the focus of our practice could easily become too narrow or lack the direction to influence and promote well-being. For example, let’s take the act of treating acne in a clinic. Without a disciplinary perspective, a nurse practitioner (NP) could easily look at the papules and pustules and determine an antibiotic, retinoid, hormonal control (such as spironolactone or oral birth control) will decrease the papules. If the acne is recalcitrant or scarring, the NP may decide isotretinoin is the best course of action. Without theory, we treat diseases instead of the patient and our communities.
Now, let’s contrast the same situation using our unique disciplinary perspective in our practice. Looking holistically, the NP notes that the patient won’t look them in the eyes very often, they seem withdrawn, which could be due to the embarrassment that the acne is causing. As the NP listens and learns more about the patient, they realize that the patient is depressed, has recently had suicidal ideation, and the patient’s current living conditions are stressful with a poor diet. Moreover, the acne flares significantly during weather inversions that increase pollution and aggregate the patient’s asthma. Nursing is not simply writing a prescription for isotretinoin.
Nursing has helped define our profession as a wholistic one that considers the person, environment, and nursing care to improve health (Fawcett, 1984). Nursing is further assessing the patient’s safety, linking them to the right mental health provider, improving diet, while simultaneously developing a relationship of trust. It does involve treating the acne, but it is so much more than the ability to write a prescription or plan of care. It involves understanding the patient’s culture, their beliefs, and the barriers to improved care. As more and more nurses are prepared at the PhD and DNP levels, they have a great opportunity to conduct research and implement change in practice. They continue to evolve the discipline from the original metaparadigm concepts toward the development and use of middle range theories, which are more specific to the problems they are investigating to guide their work. With their specialized knowledge, they influence change at community, state, national, and even global levels. The broad influence of theory translating into practice is evident when browsing over any national nursing conference program. With the case of the acne patient, NPs may take their experiences and develop studies with PhD and DNP nurses who focus on research and quality improvement projects. They can present their findings to legislators on asthma, acne, pollution, and poor nutrition, as a means of decreasing all of these in the community. They develop algorithms for treating acne combined with depression or other diseases.
Next time you come into contact with a patient, reflect on your nursing perspective in addition to all the specialized knowledge you have. Then think about how more specific theories could facilitate your practice, or maybe they are already embedded in your practice, ready to be articulated more explicitly, tested, and further refined. One of my favorite nursing theorist noted, “Nursing is not only a professional practice, it is a scientific practice as well (Reed, 2019).” Theory-based practice is essential and should be included in how we provide and deliver care on a daily basis. However, it is also time to consider how our professional practice can influence and improve our theories. If you have had an experience similar to mine, please share in the comments. I am excited to take part in this process and look forward to hearing how other nurse practitioners translate theory into practice and their practice into theory.
References
Fawcett, J. (1984). The Metaparadigm of Nursing: Present Status and Future Refinements. Image: the Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 16(3), 84-87. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.1984.tb01393.x
Reed, G. P. (2019). Intermodernism: A Philosophical Perspective for Development of Scientific Nursing Theory. Advances in Nursing Science, 42(1), 17-27. https://doi.org/10.1097/ANS.0000000000000249
About Christine Platt
Christine Platt, MSN, PHN, FNP-C began her career in nursing as a registered public health nurse and hospital staff nurse in St. Paul, MN. She became a critical care RN working in both cardiac and neuro intensive care units and received her CCRN certification after moving to Utah in 2006. She took on the role of house supervisor before returning to graduate school at Brigham Young University, where she received her MSN degree to become a family nurse practitioner. Currently, she sees patients in dermatology and also volunteers in the evenings to serve the community’s under- or un-insured population. Her family is a licensed foster family, caring for medically fragile children over the last decade. As a second-year PhD student at the University of Arizona, she has two areas of research, which span her clinical practice of dermatology and her passion for helping children with disabilities in the U.S. foster care system.