Theoretical Basis For Advanced Nursing: Concept Analysis Of Holism

Concept Analysis of Holism

Dena Taylor

Chamberlain College of Nursing

NR 501: Theoretical Basis for Advanced Nursing

July 2016

Concept Analysis of Holism Concept analysis is crucial to nursing theory as it is the basic building blocks that guide knowledge to nursing practice. Concept analysis is a vehicle used to demonstrate key components while providing direction to the nursing profession within the theory (CCN, 2016). The use of a theory aims at formulating ideas about nursing, providing a foundation to further expand our knowledge and by analyzing and correlating concepts this helps create different ways of looking at a particular phenomenon within our nursing practice.

Walker and Avant’s eight steps of concept analysis will assist

The American Holistic Nurses Association (2016) defines holistic nursing as “all nursing practice that has healing the whole person as its goal”. Florence Nightingale is well known for her introduction of holism into nursing care, she strongly emphasized caring for the individual as a “whole”, incorporating mind, body, spirit, and environment into perspective. Nightingale expressed an emphasis on the connection between the patient and their surroundings. Holism is more than an action but rather an attitude, a philosophy, and a way of being. Merriam-Webster originally defines holism as “a theory that the universe and especially living nature is correctly seen in terms of interacting wholes (as of living organisms) that are more than the mere sum of elementary particles” Holism can easily be viewed as a complex concept due to the original nature of the definition. The purpose of the article is based on obtaining a greater understanding of Florence Nightingale’s views on holistic nursing as it pertains to her theory, by identifying attributable characteristics, and incorporation of the concept into nursing

Holism is not necessarily a key concept of environmental theory but because this is a patient-care theory it focuses on the patient as a whole rather than the nursing or disease process, and the relationship between patient and nurse. As with most of Nightingale’s theories environmental adaptation remains the basis of holistic care, she believes that nature will act on a patient, if put in the best conditions (Current Nursing, 2016).

Literature Review The data collecting process was conducted using CINAHL, Medline, and OVID as my primary research sources. The literature review includes six articles expressing how holistic nursing care affects individuals in different settings, with different disease processes, and responses to both positive and negative aspects of holism.

Povlsen and Borup explore how holism aspects were related to nursing and health promotion (2011). A qualitative analysis identified minor differences in the way holism aspects were related to nursing and health promotion. There is a chance that due to a patients’ perspective of holism in nursing, the practice may not reach particular groups of patients, the most vulnerable individuals, and especially those with chronic diseases and mental health problems (Povlsen and Borup,