Question

Discuss why it is important for advanced practice nurses to integrate conceptual and theoretical frameworks when working with families (whether geriatric, young adult, or pediatric patients)?

Why do you think it is critical for the advanced practice registered nurse to agree on what the health issue is for the family?

Answer 1

APRNs include nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, and nurse midwives, and all play a pivotal role in the future of health care. APRNs are often primary care providers and are at the forefront of providing preventive care services to the public.

Importance of integration of conceptual and theoretical framework when working with families:

In times of stress or crisis for families, nurses can use the conceptual as well as the theoretical framework of family strengths as a mechanism to promote strong, healthy relationships. The family strengths perspective identifies and builds on positive attributes in family functioning. Family strengths qualities are (a) commitment, (b) appreciation and affection, (c) positive communication, (d) time together, (e) a sense of spiritual well-being, and (f) the ability to cope with stress and crisis. With the family strengths approach, nurses help families define their visions and hopes for the future instead of looking at what factors contribute to family problems. Family strengths assessment can be used in nursing practice, nursing education, and everyday life.

The theoretical and conceptual framework explains the path of research and grounds it firmly in theoretical constructs. The overall aim of the two frameworks is to make research findings more meaningful, acceptable to the theoretical constructs in the research field, and ensures generalizability. They assist in stimulating research while ensuring the extension of knowledge by providing both direction and impetus to the research inquiry. They also enhance the empiricism and rigor of research.

Conceptual frameworks of nursing provide a means to look at nursing in relation to external factors, thereby assigning meaning to the practice. Graduate-level nursing education in the preparation of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) specifically and Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) in general, is significantly compromised by the tendency to conceptualize the learning in these complex programs as being primarily related to skills-based tasks and competencies alone.

A theoretical framework consists of concepts and, together with their definitions and reference to relevant scholarly literature, existing theory that is used for your particular study. The theoretical framework must demonstrate an understanding of theories and concepts that are relevant to the topic of your research paper and that relate to the broader areas of knowledge being considered.

The theoretical framework helps in the following ways:

1. An explicit statement of theoretical assumptions permits the reader to evaluate them critically.

2. The theoretical framework connects the researcher to existing knowledge. Guided by a relevant theory, you are given a basis for your hypotheses and choice of research methods.

3. Articulating the theoretical assumptions of a research study forces you to address questions of why and how. It permits you to intellectually transition from simply describing a phenomenon you have observed to generalizing about various aspects of that phenomenon.

4. Having a theory helps you identify the limits to those generalizations. A theoretical framework specifies which key variables influence a phenomenon of interest and highlights the need to examine how those key variables might differ and under what circumstances.

Advanced practice registered nurse to agree on what the health issue is for the family:

Nurses have unique access to a patient's family from their position at the bedside. Family-centered care recognizes the importance of caring for and integrating a patient's family as part of the care process, as their involvement and opinions often guide the patient. High-quality family Communication is the backbone of the art and science of nursing. It has a significant impact on patient well-being as well as the quality and outcome of nursing care and is related to the patient’s family overall satisfaction with their care. The maintenance of high nurse- patient’s family communication also depends on the nurse and patient's family. Since the relationship between a nurse and a patients’ family is an essential and effective prerequisite on the successful care results; therefore, this issue was not yet evaluated and the elements of relation in its interactive, psychic, intellectual, and dynamic components were ignored. By considering the lack of standard pattern for patients’ family -nurse relationship and its different communicating methods, study about the interactions of patients’ family -the nurse can increase the knowledge of nurses toward how to communicate with the patients, especial during an interaction with them, and how to understand the patients via communication between patient family and nurse.

Family-centred care recognizes the importance of caring for and integrating a patient’s family as part of the care process, as their involvement and opinions often guides the patient. It’s composed of four major concepts:

1. Respect and dignity: Actively listening to the patient and family members and using knowledge about values, beliefs and cultural background to improve the delivery of care and corresponding plans.

2. Information sharing: Timely communication of complete and unbiased information to patients and families that allows them to play an active role in care and decision-making.

3. Participation: Encouragement and support for patients and families in the care and decision-making process at a level they’re comfortable with.

4. Collaboration: On an institution-wide level, patients and families are invited to work alongside healthcare leaders to partake in everything from the development and implementation of programs to the delivery of care.