Family Transition Theory

Introduction

To facilitate this learning experience, an extended family will be featured, namely the Brown . The family consist of a mother, (Lillian, who is recently widowed), her three children and six grandchildren. This family was chosen due to their current transitional phase and the intricacy of the crisis that they are enduring. It is the writer’s determination to glean insight into the complex duties of a home care nurse in addition to enhancing one’s skill as a competent nurse.

Family Developmental Stage

The family is currently moving through the family life cycle stage of aging families. This stage comprises of elderly family members “adjusting to retirement, grandparent roles, death of a spouse and living alone” (2015). Lillian

Both theories focus on the family as a unit and how their influence contributes to the success of the individual. By using these theories when working with the family will help everyone to be a support system for the other which aids in coping with their current changes.

The difference between the both will complement the nursing process as it helps to give a full evaluation of the nursing unit. Focusing on the strength of the family stress theory will “analysis how families experience and cope with stressful events [where as the transition theory will help the nurse to] understand and predict the transitions families experience over time by combining role theory, family development theory and life course theory” (Kaakinen, 2015, p.70).

Family

This model incorporated the environmental aspect to aid in the transition of change. It takes into consideration “influence of individual, interpersonal, organizational, community and public policy shaped by the social policy” (Glanz). The concept behind the social ecological model is to create an environment that is inductive to change that will result in health behaviors A normal response to loosing a love one and adjusting to living alone is to become a recluse, which is not a health response to the change. By getting the family and by extension Lillian involved in community activity will be a big help as the family transit though this change. Another intervention that has proved effective is talk therapy. According to Brat et al (2016), there is an increased risk of “neuroticism and conscientiousness” among older adults with the lost of a love one, which could increase their mortality risk due to “Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy” (a broken heart). The lost of a spouse is such a stressful ordeal second only to that of the loss of a child. “shows how emotional and stressful events can cause severe and painful physical conditions” (p.