Community Health Nurse

Community Health Nurse

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of the Institution]

Community Health Nurse

Introduction

There are certain theories which are designed with definite principles in order to guide some practices. Likewise, General systems theory is one of them. It helps to break a whole thing into different fragments and helps to know how different fragments work together in a system. It was proposed by Ludwig von Bertalanffy, and it is a science of wholeness (Hanson, 2014). Moreover, it is one of the essential theories in constructing nursing theories and doing nursing research. Some of the basic concepts of general systems theory argue that a system consists of different parts and components which perform a function as a whole. Each component plays a role to make a comprehensive and significant whole. All the elements come together to accomplish a specific purpose as a whole which they are unable to perform as a single element.

According to System theory, a system consists of further sub-systems. Using those sub-systems, a general system theory provides examples for the healthcare professionals that how these concepts can help to analyse the complex issues faced in the health care field.

Discussion

There are different types of systems, and it can be of any of the forms. However, the general system offers two types of systems; Open System and Close system. Likewise, being a part of a health care system, a nurse has to play a specific role in the system. There are few applications of general system theory which are applied in the field of nursing.

The first thing it offers is that it provides a guide to study all types of objects required in health sector effectively under the principle of wholeness (Hanson, 2014). Therefore, a nurse has to study the complex matters comprehensively. Secondly, the general theory also speaks of the optimisation principle. A nurse practitioner will have to perform the functions by coordination and association in order to achieve an optimum state in health sector. Moreover, a nurse needs to be more consistent to perform the tasks. Optimisation should be overlooked as a whole course in the functioning of a system. Whenever a nurse is providing care to the patient, he or she should be able to choose on the basis of optimisation while identifying the health problems. There should be determined goals and objectives. Moreover, a proper nursing care plan should be established that will help to implement and evaluate the pursuance of the most extraordinary influence on nursing activities in the probable conditions.

However, sometimes nurses face some complicated issues in the same patient and they feel it difficult to find out a solution. In such cases, they will go for a relative optimisation that satisfies all the requirements. Moreover, general systems theory also helps to maintain a mechanical system. Once an order is established, it will start working smoothly, and nurses need to put some efforts to make it workable at healthcare. When general systems theory is applied in the nursing field, a nurse has to be concerned about all the aspects of a patient's life. Nurses are responsible for guiding patients with different habits in order to improve the health of the patient. They advise the patients to eat a particular diet, a specific exercise and ask them to avoid some unhealthy activities.

A nursing system consists of complicated structures, and sometimes, it is an open system. Sometimes, the nursing profession needs an all-encompassing goal to improve patient care that can be done by using a system theory (Butts & Rich, 2013). For that, all the healthcare professionals need to form a team, and as a team, they would identify an inclusive medical goal for the patient. However, in this process, they might face a challenge regarding the power changing aspects between the different group members of the team. Therefore, each member needs to ignore any of such beliefs that one discipline is superior to others to work effectively in a group.

Healthcare is a practice where people from multiple disciplines work together, and each of the subjects owns a unique set of skills, specialties and knowledge. At the same time, a team is incomplete without any of the professionals from the other field. Each of the members interconnected to make the team as a whole a capable team. Therefore, a nurse being a team member should not only recognise his or her own contributions but also acknowledge the role of other members as a part of the team (Papathanasiou, Sklavou, & Kourkouta, 2013). Furthermore, a nurse should also reflect and understand his or her actions in sustaining the general goal of providing care to the patient.

Moreover, he or should also learn from the mistakes, and each member should also learn the benefits of working together. As a team member, the nurse practitioner also identifies the approaches to overcome the challenges as a part of the team. Moreover, also play a role to make the healthcare organisation as an organisation for learning.

Conclusion

General systems theory is one of the critical approaches. It helps to know how different fragments work together in a system. There are few applications of general system theory which are applied in the field of nursing. It provides a guide to study all types of objects required in health sector effectively under the principle of wholeness. Sometimes nurses face some complicated issues in the same patient, and they feel it difficult to find out a solution. In such cases, they will go for a relative optimisation that satisfies all the requirements. An optimisation is one of the principles; a general system theory offers.

References

Butts, J. B., & Rich, K. L. (2013). Philosophies and theories for advanced nursing practice. Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Hanson, B. (2014). General Systems Theory-Beginning With Wholes: Beginning with Wholes. Taylor & Francis.

Papathanasiou, I., Sklavou, M., & Kourkouta, L. (2013). Holistic nursing care: theories and perspectives. American Journal of Nursing Science, 2(1), 1-5.