Culture Care Theory and Application
Nursing theory is foundational to nursing practice; however, there exists a reciprocal relationship between practice and theory. Through examining nursing theory, the nurse can make better-informed decisions about the patient’s care. In addition, the theory will influence the care for future patients as well. One theorist that changed the landscape of nursing is Madeleine Leininger. Her culture care theory changed the dialogue of healthcare regarding care. This paper will discuss the importance of theory in nursing theory. Next, a summary of Leininger’s theory will precede a discussion about how the theory will be applied in a nursing context. Finally, the correlation between Leininger’s theory and the practice of a nurse practitioner will ensue. Her culture care theory will inform the practice of a nurse practitioner and how culturally competent care will be given.
Importance of Nursing Theory “Nursing theory aims to describe, predict and explain the phenomenon of nursing” (Colley, 2003, p. 33); therefore, nursing theory is the scaffolding on which nurses stand to build and remodel nursing practice. This is a symbiotic relationship because nursing theory builds the nursing practice and as practice expands the scaffolding must, in turn, grow as well. As such, the investigation into practice and research keep informing the practice and profession of nursing. Ultimately this leads to more effective patient care utilizing evidenced-based
The use of the theoretical framework known as Leininger’s Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality is emphasized in the nurse practitioner’s role. The theory’s 3 modes of care: culture care preservation and-or maintenance, culture care accommodation and-or negotiation, and culture care restructuring and-or repatterning are the basic components in providing culturally congruent care (51). The authors discuss being able to see the patient as a whole person, known as the Sunrise Enabler, assessing their situation, and other
“Theory-based nursing practice has demonstrated a capacity to structure professional care, unify and simplify communication, save time, clarify decision-making, and reduce nurse staff turnover saving thousands of dollars” (Alligood, 2011, p. 982). Although theory is present in my workplace, it is rarely discussed. This is a shame because it is apparent that theory is essential to the nursing profession and should be at the forefront. Nursing theory helps define and verify
Nursing was, for my sixteen year old self, taking care of the sick. Little did I know the complexities of that definition. Still, taking care of the sick was interesting enough to make nursing my major. I started practicing nursing years ago. However, I still struggle defining and explaining my profession to others. I usually start by differentiating nursing from medicine. Nurses see patients as humans rather than a disease that needs treatment (Zaccagnini & White, 2014, p. 15). However, as I advance my career, I must actively incorporate nursing theory into my practice. Nursing theory gives a foundation to understand patients and their health problems better. The use of nursing theory provides a framework to evaluate nurses’ interventions on a higher standard (Zaccagnini & White, 2014). Kenney described five steps to follow once the decision to include nursing theory has being made. This paper will explore the process of applying the Kenney’s five steps into my practice.
The United States is a diverse accumulation of cultural backgrounds which can often set the stage for feelings of confusion, anger, mistrust, and a host of other emotions when dissimilar cultures disagree. Cultural competence in nursing can help eliminate these barriers and provide a platform for nursing to follow in the quest to understand a patient's culture and background. When a nurse takes the time to learn about a given culture prior to providing care, it conveys she respects the patient's right to their beliefs, customs, and culture. It does not necessarily mean the nurse agrees with their practices but
My research paper on Madeleine Leininger provides me with a good foundation on how to deal with different situations especially when involves different cultures. A major strength of Leininger 's theory is the recognition of the importance of culture and its influence on patients and providers of nursing care. In this paper, Leininger’s
Using nursing theories in nursing practice is a vital tool in the delivery of health care. The
For example, Madeleine Leininger’s culture care theory has been developed as a nursing theory relevant in a changing world as the nurse works to discover the health, illness, and care needs of patients, members, families, groups, and institutions from similar and diverse cultures (McFarland & Wehbe-Alamah, 2014). Furthermore, utilizing this culture care theory in nursing can improve care, reduce health risks, and influence the economy.
Madeleine Leininger’s cultural care theory is one of the most influential modern day theories in nursing. Leininger describes her theory as one that is cultural sensitive that is tailored to address patients of different cultures, backgrounds, or origins. Leininger develops the cultural care theory due to the fact that she believes that nurses are caring for their patients as a one hat fits all, and not taking into consideration the patient 's background or their culture.
The profession of nursing has, in recent years, been trying to further develop, test and use proposed nursing theory. To utilize theory appropriately, in all domains of practice, education and research, it is important to know how to describe, analyze and evaluate
The premise of Madeleine Leininger ‘s Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality is that one must regard his or her patient both holistically and with respect to the patient’s given cultural background. Leininger aims to establish a nurse-patient relationship in which communication and collaboration are culturally congruent. Via such interactions, a nurse can hypothetically deliver individualized, culturally competent care. However, while Leininger’s theory has many benefits and clear applicability in a multicultural society, its execution may fall short due to the predominating social norms and values held by larger society.
Providing culturally competent nursing care begins with having basic principle knowledge and effective training us a nursing student. Madeleine Leininger’s Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality defines nursing as a learned scientific and humanistic profession that focuses on patient care, experiences and creative thinking relevant to nursing and health care system. As nurse student in today’s society you will come in contact with a lot of cultural differences, but having basic knowledge of cultural diversity will be an advantage, and it’s significant for a nurse to understand the interaction of these cultural systems which enables nurses to become more effective in doing nursing assessment and serving as client advocates. The focus of the theory is toward developing new practices for nursing to meet diverse cultural needs and to provide culturally congruent nursing care. The research will discuss and provide brief examples as a reference evidences of the theory which focuses on obtaining in-depth knowledge of care and culture diversity.
The process of envisioning an idea that proves beneficial in explaining and predicting nursing care is known as a nursing theory (Perry 2013). A nursing theory is used as a platform to make decisions and interpret data in order to effectively care for patients. “Nurses need a theoretical base to demonstrate knowledge about the science and art of the profession when they promote health and wellness for their patients” (Perry, 2013, p. 40). Madeline Leininger’s nursing theory focuses on transcultural care and the idea that nurses should tailor to a patient’s cultural needs. Leininger’s theory emphasizes the idea that the culture of a patient influences every aspect of their life so it is equally as important to incorporate it in their care plan (Perry, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to outline the components of the transcultural theory as well as its importance in the nursing profession.
Care and culture are the key constructs that make up the Culture Care Theory. This theory differed from other nurses’ work or mindset because nurse leaders relied heavily up on the four metaparadigm concepts of person, environment, health, and nursing to explain nursing (McFarland and Wehbe-Alamah, 2015). Leininger realized that those four metaparadigm concepts were to limited in its scope regarding nursing and culture and care ideologies. Interestingly, care and culture were excluded from the metaparadigm. “It is not logical to use nursing to explain nursing” (McFarland and Wehbe-Alamah, 2015). That is definitely a contradiction in terms and represents scholarly research
Leininger presented a general theory statement in 1985, “with the theory, I predict that different cultures perceive, know, and practice care in different ways, yet there are some commonalities about care among all the cultures in the world (Reynolds & Leininger, pg 11).” Leininger states the theory can help to show how culture affects nursing care and the way humans care for themselves. Leininger holds to the idea that care is the central concept for nursing theory and research.
I found Madeleine Leininger nursing Theory of Cultural care very helpful and valuable. A major strength of Leininger 's theory is the recognition of the importance of cultures and its influence on patients and providers of nursing care. This research paper provides me with a good foundation on how to deal with different situations especially when it comes to different cultures. Making the patient part of the care allows us to be more successful in our effort.