One of the nursing practice areas where Neuman Systems Model would be applied is in the intensive care unit where comprehensive nursing care is vital for the critically ill patients and their family. Nursing, especially in intensive care units, is an occupation that is very involving and as a result, nurses experience high levels of stress, anxiety, and burnout. Both nurses and patients in ICU settings endure stressing moments owing to the specialty and subspecialty care needs and demands of this section. In some, if not many cases, as the nurses respond to the physical and psychological demands of the patients, they may suffer health risks (Khatiban et al., 2016). Stressors may develop from working relations with other nurses and other healthcare workers, heavy workload, urgent nature of response needed, communication with patients and relatives, overwhelming responsibility of caring for patients, and the demands of high-level skill and knowledge in carrying out specialized care and handling technology in ICU. The net effect of these stresses is on the patients, their families, and caregivers’ health (Khatiban et al., 2016). The resulting burnout syndrome causes low self-esteem, adverse attitude towards the work, and communication breakdown between the nurse and the clients, ultimately leading to decreased health care quality.
Betty Neuman’s model is best suited in the control of stressful conditions in therapeutic units, improving patients’ care, increasing ability, reducing families’ stress, and supporting nurses. The model helps the nurse to comprehensively assess caregiving and guides on the use of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention interventions in solving problems associated with stress on both the patients and families otherwise referred to as the client system. The client system refers to an individual, a group, a family, or a society (Khatiban et al., 2016).
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Application to Guide Best Practices
In guiding best practices, the model provides a framework for understanding the environmental stressors that affect the patient system and hence guides the nurse in holistically planning and implementing right interventions that will aid the caregivers or families in coping with the situation (Bademli & Duman, 2017). Therefore, the patient population targeted here includes the critically ill patients. Environmental stressors can attack a patient’s normal defense line and trigger response if their flexible defense line is weak or unprotected. The nurse’ role, in this case, is to ensure the appropriate performance of the patient system so that it remains stable during the interaction with intra-, inter-, and/or extra-personal stressors (Khatiban et al., 2016). The model provides that at the time the normal layer is under attack, the lines of resistance of the patient system are activated to prevent the main response. Each of these lines of defense is attached to the physiological, psychological, socio-cultural, spiritual, and developmental variables.
Moreover, the model guides the nurses to diagnose the potential effects of the internal and external stressors of the patient and initiate interventions that will stabilize and balance the patient system and ensure effective coping. In addition, the nurses are called into action to protect the patient by strengthening lines of defense and resistance thereby improving their health and coping ability (Ahmadi & Sadeghi, 2017).
Determination of Nursing Outcomes
Nursing outcomes as a result of applying the Neuman Systems Model in intensive care units would be measured through various metrics. First, the model facilitates the development of improved and effective patient care plans that lead to the provision of high-quality care. In relation to the improved care plans, therefore, nursing outcomes can be gauged through reduced recovery duration from intensive and critical conditions. Consequently, the results will be reflected in the shortened length of hospitalization in ICU since interventions would cause quicker psychological recovery and wellbeing of the patient. Also, the decline in the level of delirium in clients is a measure of the nursing outcomes. On the other hand, the application of the model on caregivers and nurses will facilitate improved communication among nurses, enhanced interpersonal relationships, and decreased possibility of nurses’ hospital infections (Khatiban et al., 2016).
References
Ahmadi, Z., & Sadeghi, T. (2017). Application of the Betty Neuman systems model in the nursing care of patients/clients with multiple sclerosis. Multiple Sclerosis Journal – Experimental, Translational and Clinical , 3 (3), 1-8. doi:10.1177/2055217317726798
Bademli, K., & Duman, Z. C. (2017). Conceptual framework for nurses in the use of the Neuman systems model on caregivers of people suffering by schizophrenia. International Archives of Nursing and Health Care , 3 (3), 1-5. doi:10.23937/2469-5823/1510079
Khatiban, M., Oshvandi, K., Borzou, S. R., & Moayed, M. S. (2016). Outcomes of applying Neuman system theory in intensive care units: A systematic review. Journal of Critical Care Nursing , 9 (4), e8886. doi:10.17795/ccn-8886
