Title: The Importance of Nursing Theory in Nursing Education | Ohio University
Headings: The Importance of Nursing Theory in Nursing Education
The Importance of Nursing Theory in Nursing Education
The Importance of Nursing Theory for Nurse Education
A Look at Grand Nursing Theories
Ohio University’s Online Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Program
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Content: Ohio University’s online MSN program offers a robust curriculum that can enable nurse educators to assimilate nursing theory and evidence-based practice into their efforts to prepare the next generation of nursing professionals. The Importance of Nursing Theory for Nurse Education
Prior to the development of nursing theories, nursing was seen as a task-oriented occupation, and nurses were trained by doctors. Today, nursing theory serves as the foundation of nursing. It is shaping the field in important ways, according to NurseLabs.com, because it: Helps nurses to understand their purpose and role in the healthcare setting
Guides knowledge development
Directs education, research, and practice
Recognizes what should set the foundation of practice by explicitly describing nursing
Serves as a rationale or scientific reason for nursing interventions and give nurses the knowledge base necessary for acting and responding appropriately in nursing care situations
Provides the foundations of nursing practice
Indicates in which direction nursing should develop in the future
Gives nurses a sense of identity
Helps patients, managers, and other healthcare professionals to acknowledge and understand the unique contribution that nurses make to healthcare service
Prepares the nurses to reflect on the assumptions and question the values in nursing, thus further defining nursing and increasing knowledge base
Allows the nursing profession to maintain and preserve its professional limits and boundaries
A Look at Grand Nursing Theories
A grand theory is just what it sounds like: compared to middle-range and practical theories, grand theories offer a sweeping overview of the nature and goals of professional nursing. As CareerTrend.com notes, grand theories “are general concepts that pertain to the overall nature and goals of professional nursing. A grand theory, and there are many, is a synthesis of scholarly research, professional experience, and insights from theoretical pioneers (such as Florence Nightingale).” One well-known grand nursing theory was formulated by Dorothea Orem in the 1950s, which centers around the individual’s ability to practice self-care. Orem’s theory is divided into self-care, self-care deficit, and nursing systems.