Skilled nurses use their philosophies to meet the changing health needs of their patients. They also base their ideas and models on existing theories. However, effective practice will encompass numerous concepts from non-nursing models. This paper explains how adult-gerontology primary care nurse practitioners can use Kurt Lewin’s change theory to improve practice and deal with emerging issues.
Future Nursing Practice Area
My future nursing practice area will be that of adult-gerontology primary care. This means that I will have to partner with other professionals to provide exemplary support to different patients across the lifespan. The beneficiaries will include aging members of the population and those with chronic conditions. All family members will also receive high-quality care (Batras, Duff, & Smith, 2016). This role will also encompass monitoring and analyzing potential social determinants of health to ensure that they meet the medical needs of the greatest number of people.
Non-Nursing Theory: Issue
The use of borrowed theories in medical practice is an idea that many practitioners continue to take seriously. Nursing is a process whereby caregivers apply emerging knowledge or evidence to deliver exemplary services and care to different patients. In an adult-gerontology setting, nurse practitioners (NPs) can use Kurt Lewin’s change theory to introduce superior clinical guidelines, practices, and care delivery models that can improve the health outcomes of the targeted individuals.
The model can be applied efficiently to deal with different issues. The identified challenge is the presence of ineffective practices or behaviors in a given setting. A nurse leader (NL) will implement a new change aimed at introducing a better organization culture (Batras et al., 2016). This move will address obstacles such as reduced levels of coordination, disempowerment, or inability to meet patients’ health needs. The introduced culture in the unit or setting will empower and make it possible for all nurses to embrace superior care delivery practices, improve their philosophies, and relate with each other positively.
Example
Kurt Lewin’s change model is a non-nursing theory that NPs can consider to influence practice change in an adult-gerontology setting. A good example is whereby the NL in a unit identifies the best evidence and knowledge that is capable of improving the health outcomes of older adults and their respective family members. The professional will follow these three steps to implement the intended practice change: freeze, change, refreeze (Cummings, Bridgman, & Brown, 2015). The first stage is informing all followers about the existing problems and the importance of addressing them.
The second stage introducing adequate resources, training caregivers, and guiding all practitioners to embrace superior procedures for improving practice. Those in charge will collaborate with stakeholders to transform care delivery procedures, promote the idea of lifelong learning, and address existing issues that affect nursing practice. With the application of such a theory, it can be possible to introduce superior procedures, behaviors, and cultural attributes that will streamline existing nursing practices. The final step is to make the implemented practice change part of the adult-gerontology unit or facility (Cummings et al., 2015). The approach will also empower the elderly and those with chronic conditions to achieve their potential.
Conclusion
The above discussion has revealed that the competent nurses should identify and apply borrowed theories in their respective settings. This strategy will equip them with superior ideas, evidence, and knowledge for enhancing different practice areas. The use of different theories from other fields is a strategy that can address the health issues many people face and eventually make it possible for them to achieve their aims.
References
Batras, D., Duff, C., & Smith, B. J. (2016). Organizational change theory: Implications for health promotion practice. Health Promotion International, 31(1), 231-241. Web.
Cummings, S., Bridgman, T., & Brown, K. G. (2015). Unfreezing change as three steps: Rethinking Kurt Lewin’s legacy for change management. Human Relations, 69(1), 33-60. Web.