Theory on Identifying Personal Needs of Patients, Essay Example

Florence Nightingale identified personal needs of patients through the development of her environment theory. Her needs assumption was based on five criteria. Patients need pure fresh air; pure water supply; effective drainage; cleanliness and light, especially, sunlight. Today the need for air has emerged into air condition units and fans as well as outdoor activities.

Pure water supply was a challenge in Europe at the time Florence Nightingale practiced in England where there were outbreaks of Cholera and dysentery; diseases directly related to pure water supply. Therefore, in her quest to deliver society from disease she saw this as being essential, in the same way was proper sewage disposal related to effective drainage and garbage disposal. These have all been linked to cleanliness. Essentially, sunlight provided natural vitamins and sterilization from harmful organism. She was convinced that these were basic human needs if addressed appropriately could be a cure for all diseases plaguing Europe at the time (Nightingale, 1860)

Role of nurses in meeting these needs

In this context Florence Nightingale interpreted the role of nurses to be consistent with utilizing the environment for enhancing recovery. Specifically, it meant giving of one’s self totally towards effectual healing of the entire being from healthy environmental practices. At the time there were no distinctions among nursing categories. As such, the nurse was expected to influence interventions in and out of hospital. Many documentaries of Florence Nightingale testified that she lived the roles she believed in portraying them by filling the theoretical perspective outlined in her environmental theory. First she went out and met patients where they were in the battle field and homes. Next she took a message of hope which helped her patients to heal physically, emotionally and mentally. Therefore, in executing her task as caregiver and need supplier it became inevitable that an attachment occurred, which modern nursing practice guard against during dispensation of care. She forged the path for modern nursing practice to revisit roles of nurses in meeting her typology of basic nursing needs.

Established standards for hospital management

Apart from organized staffing patterns supplying wards with proper ventilation was a major hospital management requirement. She advocated open window nursing, especially, at nights for the lungs to be infused with air from outside. This she believed assisted the body in healing itself. A team of nurses had to be responsible for ensuring that this practice was managed with safety guidelines for preventing patients trying to throw themselves out windows. She considered well water to be every impure, domestically, much more to be used in hospital situations. Hence, water purification for hospitals was highly advocated since when infected people use infected water there was no possibility of healing, simply more outbreaks and death when they are admitted to hospital. Sewage disposal in hospitals was one of her major concerns since she realized that improper sewage disposal within the community was responsible for typhoid and all the other infectious diseases. When patients arrive for treatment in an isolated environment that is infected with the bacteria/ viruses and fungus already present in their communities healing is impossible. Therefore, in the presence of bacterial sensitivity, cleanliness and sunlight were vital elements of established standards for hospital management. Precisely, it was based on disease prevention and control for patients and staff.

Reference

Nightingale, F (1860).Notes on nursing: what it is and what it is not. New York: D.Appleton And Company.