Nursing Assistant Roles, Responsibilities, and Care Models
Article 74 & 75: Nursing Assistant Roles and Responsibilities
Article 74: Nursing assistants provide exercise and complementary healthcare services within their scope of practice.
Article 75: Functions of the nursing assistant in nursing services include:
- Making patient beds.
- Performing cleaning and hygiene tasks.
- Bringing and removing urinals for patients.
- Cleaning carts.
- Welcoming patients.
- Serving food to patients.
- Feeding patients.
- Classifying and ordering linens.
- Assisting in medication administration as directed by a Registered Nurse (RN) or other qualified healthcare professional.
- Assisting in collecting temperature data.
- Assisting in shaving patients.
- Moving objects and documents.
Nursing Models: Key Theories and Philosophies
Florence Nightingale’s Model
Florence Nightingale, a founder of modern nursing, proposed a theoretical model in the mid-nineteenth century. She defined nursing as a profession distinct from medicine, emphasizing the importance of a healthy environment to positively influence patients. Her primary role focused on providing fresh air and a calming environment to aid the natural healing process.
Virginia Henderson’s Model
Virginia Henderson’s early sketches, published in 1995, are considered more of a philosophy than a strict model. Her definition of the nursing profession is widespread and influential, particularly in hospitals. Henderson believed that individuals have essential needs to sustain life and ensure well-being, similar to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. She emphasized that individuals should be able to perform activities independently when possible.
Henderson’s Necessities of Human Being:
- Wearing appropriate clothing.
- Keeping skin clean and healthy.
- Living according to personal values and beliefs.
- Engaging in meaningful work.
- Playing and having fun.
- Learning and satisfying curiosity.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs:
- Self-Actualization: Achieving one’s full potential.
- Self-Esteem: Feeling valued and respected.
- Safety: Feeling secure and protected.
- Belonging: Having social connections and love.
- Basic Physiological Needs: Food, water, shelter, etc.
20th Century Nursing Models
Self-Care Model (Dorothea Orem)
Emphasizes self-reliance and independence.
Interpersonal Relations Model (Hildegard Peplau)
Focuses on the relationship between the nurse and the patient, involving other professions.
Conservation Model (Myra Levine)
Focuses on energy conservation and adaptation.
Unitary Human Model (Martha Rogers)
Addresses the psychosocial aspects of the individual.
Open Systems and Goal Achievement Model (Imogene King)
Focuses on the client as a whole within an open system.
Care System Model (Betty Neuman)
Addresses stress prevention and maintaining wellness.
Adaptation Model (Callista Roy)
Promotes adaptation to changes in health status.
System Behavior Model (Dorothy Johnson)
Focuses on maintaining or restoring balance in the patient’s behavioral system.
Definitions of Nursing
Transitive Definition: The occupation and qualifications of individuals dedicated to caring for the sick and wounded.
American Nurses Association (ANA): The protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities; prevention of illness and injury.
Virginia Henderson: Assisting the patient or healthy individual in activities that contribute to their health or recovery, facilitating their independence as quickly as possible.
Martha Rogers: A humanistic science dedicated to maintaining and promoting health, preventing disease, and rehabilitating the sick and disabled.
Betty Neuman: Addressing variables that affect an individual’s response to stressors; the function of nursing is to prevent stress and maintain a maximum level of wellness.