Hildegard Peplau

Psychodynamic Nursing

The ability to understand one's own behavior to help others identify felt difficulties and apply principles of human relations to the problems that arise at all levels of experience.

Four Psychobiological Experiences

Needs, Frustrations, Conflicts, and Anxiety are the experiences that compel destructive or constructive patient responses.

Orientation (Phase 1)

The first phase of the helping relationship where the patient has a felt need.

Identification (Phase 2)

A phase where the patient begins to identify with the nurse, utilizing their help.

Exploitation (Phase 3)

The phase where the patient can project new goals to be achieved through personal effort, and power shifts from the nurse to the patient as the patient delays gratification.

Resolution (Phase 4)

The process where the patient gradually puts aside old goals, formulates new ones, and frees himself or herself for identification with the nurse. The patient earns independence over his or her care, and the experience leaves a lasting impression.

Interpersonal Therapeutic Process

Often referred to as "Psychological Mothering", it is useful in making the psychiatric patient receptive to therapy. Steps include accepting the patient unconditionally and recognizing and responding to the patient's readiness for growth as his initiative.

Stranger Role (The Nurse's Role)

The nurse provides health information, advice, and simple explanations of the healthcare team's course of care. The nurse is responsible for appropriately changing her responses to the patient's level of understanding.

Resource Person Role (The Nurse's Role)

The nurse provides specific health information that the patient needs to understand a health problem, condition, or plan of care, and answers questions related to the patient's health situation.

Teaching Role (The Nurse's Role)

Assumed as interaction progresses. The nurse helps the patient understand the therapeutic plan and the importance of self-care, adapting discussion to the patient's interest and ability to use the information.

Counseling Role (The Nurse's Role)

The nurse helps the patient understand and integrate their current health experience into their life and helps them resolve emotional issues to move toward constructive, productive living.

Leadership (The Nurse's Role)

Involves the democratic process, where the nurse helps the patient meet the tasks at hand through a relationship of cooperation and active participation.

Surrogate (The Nurse's Role)

The patient's dependency for his care gives the nurse this temporary care giver role. It creates an atmosphere wherein feelings previously felt (e.g., toward his mother) are reactivated and nurtured.

A significant, therapeutic, interpersonal process that functions cooperatively with other human processes that make health possible for individuals in communities. It is an educative instrument and a maturing force that aims to promote forward movement of personality in the direction of creative, constructive, productive, personal, and community living.

Peplau: Nursing

Defined as a man who is an organism that lives in an unstable balance of a given system.

Peplau: Person

Symbolizes the movement of the personality and other ongoing processes that direct the person towards creative, constructive, productive, and community living. It is achieved and maintained when one's needs must be met.

Peplau: Health

Forces outside the organism.

Peplau: Environment