Use of Psychosocial Theories in Nursing, Essay Example

Introduction

Many of the women who go in for a breast biopsy do not have cancer and breast cancer survival rates are at an all-time high; nonetheless women who have dealt with this scenario are mentally distressed. Several factors affect how a woman may respond to the possibility of a cancer diagnosis. Women who have survived breast cancer often attribute their survival to their faith, family support, and the will to live. Women use psychosocial coping strategies during the diagnostic and recovery phases of battle with breast cancer.

65 Year Old Woman

There are several theories that can be used to help plan the care of this 65 year old female patient, but one of the most effect is the person centered approach. First, the nurse must use a person centered approach by imagining herself in the place of her patient. Often nurses can become blind to the pain and suffering that their patients endure because to a certain degree they must become blind to be able to continue to render tireless services. This particular case must be treated as an individual cancer diagnosis case. The patient needs to feel that she is not just a statistic and that the nurse genuinely cares about her. In most cases, older women are more accepting of a cancer diagnoses than younger women. Older women are able to say they have “lived a good life” while younger women feel they have not “lived at all” (O’Mahony, 2011).

25 Year Old Woman

When dealing with people who are younger, the person centered approach may not be the best because younger people often have a tendency to believe that the world revolves around them. This young lady may feel as if it is impossible for something so tragic to happen to her at such a young age. In this case, the sensory based approach may be more appropriate. The two most common forms are aromatherapy and therapeutic touch (Buckle, 2010). According to studies, aromatherapy has been helpful in reducing pain, decreasing anxiety, and improving overall comfort during medical procedures or office visits (Buckle, 2010). Multi-sensory environments are effective being used in treatment rooms, psychiatric programs, and other medical facilities around the world (Buckle, 2010). These therapies will be more effective in calming this patient until she comes to terms with the diagnosis she has received.

Promoting Breast Cancer Awareness

Over the past few years, breast cancer screenings for women aged 50 and older has increased by more than 56 percent (Zeigler & Fawcett, 2011). This increase may be attributed to the Health Belief Model. Although it was introduced in the 1950s, it has been more widely used in recent years. Health care workers are well aware of the barriers and restraints that people of minority groups face when dealing with their personal health. This model’s main focus is to improve the members of the health care field personal knowledge of cultural perspectives that influence a person’s behavior. For example, some women of different nationalities have religious beliefs against medical practices that require their bodies to be touched by physicians, especially male physicians (Rees & Bath, 2010). Consequently, teaching women how to complete monthly self-breast exams has had an astronomical effect on detecting early cases of breast cancer.

Psychology Theories In My Practice

In my practice, I encounter many women from minority groups-mostly African American women. I have learned that many African American women are very fearful about cancer and death or dying; thus, they are very reluctant to participate in preventative measures (Silva, Crespo, & Canavarro, 2012). The best way to reach women who have this fear is by showing them the importance of early detection and the statistics that support this belief. Showing these women how to do breast self-exam has been crucial. Some minority women even bring their spouses in so that they can be shown how to complete a breast exam. For example, we had one Asian patient who had a severe modesty issue with allowing a physician to touch her breast. She and her husband were taught to complete a self-breast exam. Although self-breast exams are not error proof, it is better than them never checking their breast for abnormalities.

References

Buckle, J. (2010). The role of aromatherapy in nursing care. Nursing Clinics of North America, 36, 57-72.

O’Mahony M. (2011) Women’s lived experience of breast biopsy: a phenomenological study. Journal of Clinical Nursing 10(4), 512-520.

Rees C.E. & Bath P.A. (2010) Information-seeking behaviors of women with breast cancer. Oncology Nursing Forum 28(5), 899-907.

Silva S.M., Crespo C. & Canavarro M.C. (2012) Pathways for psychological adjustment in breast cancer: A longitudinal study on coping strategies and posttraumatic growth.

Psychology and Health DOI: 10.1080/08870446.2012.676644, 1-19.

Zeigler L., Smith P.A. & Fawcett J. (2011) Breast cancer: evaluation of the Common Journey Breast Cancer Support Group. Journal of Clinical Nursing 13(4), 467-478.