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NR222 Week One: Fundamental Health Concepts

Chamberlain Care Model

  • Central commitment: delivering holistic, compassionate support across five stakeholder groups
    • Facility (institutional well-being & culture)
    • Students (learning environment & success)
    • Partners (inter-professional collaboration)
    • Patients (safe, quality, person-centered care)
    • Community (public health outreach & advocacy)
  • Embedded expectation that nurses first "care for self" so they can effectively care for others (mirrors the airline “oxygen mask” metaphor)

Self-Care Domains

  • Physical
    • Exercise (e.g., brisk walking 30\;\text{minutes/day})
    • Balanced diet (high grains/fiber, low caffeine)
    • Adequate sleep 8\;\text{hours/night} (+ restorative naps)
    • Hydration (~2{\text{–}}3\,L water)
    • Stress-reduction activities (stretching, leisure)
  • Mental
    • Mind-clearing breaks
    • Guided imagery, meditation, yoga
    • Reading or learning in calming environments
  • Emotional
    • Psychotherapy or counseling
    • Socializing with supportive peers/family
    • Engaging hobbies for joy & resilience
  • Spiritual
    • Faith practices (church, prayer)
    • Nature immersion
    • Mind-body techniques (yoga, meditation)

Stress Typology & Compassion Fatigue

  • Situational Stress – discrete events in a setting
    • Job loss, workplace environment, high patient acuity
  • Maturational Stress – life-stage transitions
    • Divorce, death of a child, losing a patient (for nurses)
  • Sociocultural Stress – inequities & social context
    • Homelessness, abuse, cultural dissonance
  • Compassion Fatigue
    • Blend of burnout + secondary traumatic stress
    • Manifestations: emotional exhaustion, decreased empathy, errors
    • May fuel “lateral violence” (nurse-to-nurse hostility)
    • Risk climbs with repeated exposure to grief/loss—necessitates proactive self-care & organizational support

Foundational Health Concepts

  • Health – “state of complete physical, mental & social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO)
  • Wellness – dynamic, positive condition of continual growth; active participation is required (awareness ➜ choice ➜ change)
  • Illness/Disease/Sickness—three viewpoints
    • Illness: subjective symptom experience (patient view)
    • Disease: underlying pathophysiology (provider view)
    • Sickness: societal & cultural framing of the condition

Health Behaviors & Influencing Variables

  • Health behaviors = any actions directly altering health outcomes (smoking, screenings, exercise)
  • Internal Variables
    • Intellectual background/health literacy
    • Emotional state
    • Developmental stage
    • Spirituality
    • Personal perception of functioning
  • External Variables
    • Family structure & role expectations
    • Socioeconomic & psychosocial context
    • Cultural norms
    • Physical environment (rural v. urban, pollution)

Health Promotion Strategies

  • Active: individual must intentionally act (e.g., jogging, balanced meal prep)
  • Passive: population benefits without direct effort (e.g., community water fluoridation, vitamin D–fortified milk)

Levels of Prevention (Pyramid: bottom ➜ top)

  1. Primordial – maintain baseline health; eliminate emergent risks
    • Healthy weight, diet, nonsmoking norms, activity in childhood
  2. Primary – remove existing risk factors BEFORE disease manifests
    • Antihypertensive or lipid-lowering drugs; smoking cessation programs
  3. Secondary – early detection & prompt treatment to limit severity
    • Screening tests, diagnostic imaging, routine check-ups
  4. Tertiary – reduce impact of established disease, prevent complications
    • Surgery, prosthetics, rehabilitative therapy
  • Mnemonic: “Pre” (Primordial ➜ Primary) prevents, “Sec” searches, “Ter” treats.

Major Theoretical Health Models

  • Health Belief Model (HBM – Pender)
    • Behavior driven by perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, barriers, cues to act, self-efficacy
  • Health Promotion Model (HPM)
    • Focus on positive motivators; commitment to a plan ➜ sustained healthy behaviors
  • Holistic Health Model
    • Integrates mind, body, spirit; utilizes complementary therapies (prayer, music, guided imagery)
  • Transtheoretical Model of Change (TTM)
    • Stages: Pre-contemplation ➜ Contemplation ➜ Preparation ➜ Action ➜ Maintenance
    • Relapse recognized as non-linear possibility

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

  1. Physiological (foundation) – air, water, food, sleep, shelter, clothing, reproduction
  2. Safety/Security – stability, protection, freedom from fear
  3. Social/Love & Belonging – friendships, intimacy, family, affection
  4. Esteem – self-respect, recognition, achievement
  5. Self-Actualization (apex) – personal growth, fulfillment, truth seeking
  • Nursing triage often aligns needs with ABCs (Airway, Breathing, Circulation) before Maslow progression.

Nursing Self-Care Practices

  • Proper Body Mechanics
    • Back straight, bend at knees, wide base of support
    • Keep load close to waist level
    • Use lift teams or mechanical devices for patient transfers
  • Nutrition Guidelines
    • Emphasize whole grains, fiber-rich foods
    • Hydration: water over caffeine; limit stimulants
  • Sleep Hygiene
    • Target 8 uninterrupted hours; plan micro-naps on long shifts
  • Exercise Prescription
    • Light/moderate activity ≈ 30\;\text{min} daily (e.g., dog-walking)

Expanded Self-Care Strategies (4-Domain Review)

  • Physical: hydration, nutrient-dense meals, regular movement
  • Mental: scheduled downtimes, creative outlets, learning new skills
  • Emotional: counseling, peer debriefs, journaling, art therapy
  • Spiritual: yoga, meditation, nature walks, faith rituals, relaxation breathing

Nursing Process (5 Steps of Clinical Judgment)

  1. Assessment – collect & verify data (subjective + objective)
  2. Analysis / Nursing Diagnosis – interpret data, identify problems
  3. Planning – prioritize diagnoses, set SMART goals, choose interventions
  4. Implementation – execute interventions, coordinate care
  5. Evaluation – review outcomes, modify plan as needed
  • Continuous, cyclical; underpins evidence-based practice and NCLEX decision making.