Application of Strength based Nursing Principles to Emma Gees Case

This condition made her unable to move, speak and swallow anything, making her a victim of the same medical system she had been working with. Her story started with a mystery by first developing some disturbing symptoms to becoming a mystery when she underwent a brain operation. The operation results showed that Emma had suffered a debilitating stroke, which left her in a coma. She later woke up nine days later, slowly came back to her senses and realized that her life had changed forever. It is something that she was obliged to come to terms with, as no other option was available. 35) argues that “such strengths involve what patients and families do that helps them best towards dealing with problems and minimizing deficits” (Shamian, 2012, p.

In every level of care, starting from healthy patients’ care towards the critical one given to the unconscious ones, strength-based nursing reaffirms the goals of nursing. Such goals involve health promotion, facilitation of healing, as well as alleviating healing through the creation of a conducive environment that bolster the capacities of the patient towards their healing (Shamian, 2012, p. By doing that, strength-based nursing compliments the medical care by providing a language that effectively communicates the contribution of nursing to both the family and patient’s health and healing. Such language also empowers the family and the patient, hence making them gather greater control of their healing and general health. Health is meant to support the ability of the patient towards effectively adapting to the life challenges, and living a life full of support and meaning.

Health coexists with illness. People develop new skills in the general process of healing hence become able to increase and sustain their health (Aiken, 2014, p. Uniqueness, as a second value, is explained in a circumstance where, strength-based nursing fully recognizes that two people are never alike because of the genetic differences (Harmon, 2016, p. Also, the way people respond and experience environmental changes is in unique ways. Collaborative partnership as the other value requires partners to get a common ground where they can jointly set goals and get the right action for specific patients (Iglehart, 2013, p. Therefore, by providing facts that align with the patient, both the patient and the nurse effectively participate as partners (Gordon, 2016, p. Learning, timing as well as readiness in another core value attached to strength-based nursing.

Iglehart (2013, p. 41) argues that learning, which is so crucial to survival and growth entails both psychological, social and biological processes. Nurses with strength-based orientations are well aware that a well fit environment for patients and families affects them in various ways in relation to their healing and development (Browne et al, 2012, p. Lastly, self-determination is the other core value of the strength-based nursing. Strength-based nursing respects the self-knowledge and the self-determination of a person even though limits to the available choices exist. The ability of a person towards acting in their own interests is heavily affected by knowledge and circumstances. Therefore, strength-based nursing views the role of the nurse as that of not deciding for others but attentively listening to the patient so as to explain, clarify and provide relevant information to them so that they may hear their voices and also get heard (Gordon, 2016, p.

Health promotion and healing as the other principle is well fostered in Emma’s case through the way the nurses, her parents, and other occupational therapists attended to Emma. As an occupational therapist and the receiver of the ongoing care, Emma makes attempts of inspiring other service providers towards considering major things when caring for their patients and the support team. She affirms that, through the adoption of a united and collaborative approach, it is possible to improve our relationships with whoever we are working with. Through such understanding, the nurses as health practitioners are able to provide the needful services to the patients and families hence promoting their health and healing (Gordon, 2016, p. However, considering the critical transition point in Emma’s journey, it is easier to conclude that the most specific strength-based nursing principle that is invested in Emma’s case is family and person-centered care.

The environment that surrounded Emma in her condition showed how having a holistic approach is the best in enhancing health and healing. Family, health care professionals other collaborators of Emma acted as unitary beings towards responding to the situation as an integrated whole (Gottlieb, 2013, p. They were well interconnected, offering different services at the needed time thus enhancing the functioning of the whole Emma. For Instance, neuroscientists understood the need for Emma to undergo a brain operation and they successfully did it (Siegel, 2012, p. The nurses and other practitioners who Emma had worked with before, offered exceptional services to Emma when she was in and out of the coma. Through communication, nurses are able to gain a great insight into how to experience their patient’s reality as well as their own (Browne et al, 2012, p.

In conclusion, strength-based nursing is a great opportunity towards enhancing healing, having proper health and achieve the empowerment of the patient and the family. By using Emma’s case, one is able to see how Emma got empowered through the collaboration of all stakeholders involved in her mysterious recovery. She uses such healing to also empower the world and the health caregivers into giving the best to their patients. Implementing the principles of strength-based nursing in Australia will really help achieve quality and safer healthcare practices like Emma. (2012), Better care: an analysis of nursing and health care system outcomes. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Nurses Association; Canadian Health Services Research Foundation; p. 1-3 Gordon S. (2016), Nurses must be clever to careeds.  The complexities of care: nursing reconsidered.