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St Thomas University W6 Theory Development and Evaluation in Nursing Discussion

 

I’m working on a nursing discussion question and need an explanation to help me understand better.

Natacha Pascal -Milfort

Discussion

Art, Science, Theory Development and Evaluation in Nursing

Nursing is a science and art that involves caring for the sick and people with health conditions to help them either recover or live comfortably with their conditions. In the process of professional nursing, nurses find themselves applying developed theories and evaluating situations and knowledge. Therefore, while being able to care for patients should be the main role of nurses, playing the role may be very hard unless nurses understand the scientific, artistic, theoretical, and evaluation concepts that affect their work.

The scientific aspects of nursing involve the application of evidence-based knowledge to perform nursing roles, such as treating patients with drugs or caring. Nurses have to administer drugs that work on scientific principles. It is important that nurses understand how such drugs interact with body systems of people to help them. It is also important to make comparisons using available data and statistics to make decisions that are supported by the available evidence (Dendasck, Oliveira & Oliveira, 2017). For instance, when choosing between pain medications, a nurse may have to know whether or not the drugs are applicable for the particular patients and how the drugs function to avoid harming the patients.

Nurses apply arts in the early parts of the development of theories. Nurses have to work with statements and propositions that people come up with based on reason and then test those using scientific methods to apply them in practice. For instance, before proving that the environment played an important role in the recovery of patients, a person had to come up with the proposition. The development of theories takes long and usually involves assumptions, prepositions, and scientific facts. In some cases, the theories may be original. In other cases, the theories may be borrowed from other fields. The proposition had to be proven using scientific principles to ensure it is a fact and not just an assumption. Nurses also apply art in their practice of nursing (Dendasck, Oliveira & Oliveira, 2017). For instance, nurses have to interact with many people from diverse backgrounds, and therefore, they have to learn the art of communication. Therefore, nurses have to understand interpersonal skills that will help them build rapport and confidence between themselves and their patients.

After theory development, it is important that the theory is evaluated. The evaluation of theories requires that experimental methods of science are applied. For example, in a theory that seeks to explain how genes are transferred from parents to their offspring, it is impo0rtantb that experiments that involve relevant variables are used to establish how real the theory is and whether or not it can be applied in practice (Alligood, 2017). The aim of using scientific methods is to ensure that the elements of the theory can be applied within nursing settings while respecting the principles of bioethics.

In conclusion, nursing involves the application of science and art in practice, the development of theories, and the evaluation of the theories. While arts may be more pronounced in coming up with theories, they have to be tested using science to ensure that they are applicable in real-life situations.

References

Alligood, M. R. (2017). Nursing Theorists and Their Work-E-Book. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Dendasck, C., Oliveira, M., & Oliveira, E. (2017). The Art and Science of Nursing. Scientific Journal Nucleus of Knowledge. https://www. nucleodoconhecimento. com. br/health/the-art-and-science-of-nursing.