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As nursing expands its scientific base and moves into more qualitative approaches, it is important that nursing students have the opportunity to know more about the nurse theorists that offer qualitative theories and methods. One such theorist is Margaret Newman. In Margaret Newman, Joanne Marchione offers an exceptional discussion on this preeminent nursing theorist. Marchione skillfully describes the origin of Newman's theory, the assumptions underlying the theory, the major concepts of meta-paradigm of nursing–including the nursing process–and propositions of the conceptual model itself. Also included are examples for application to practice and research (based on the author's years of continuous experimentation and application of Newman's theory), a bibliography of classic works, critiques and research, and a glossary of important terms. locked icon Sign in to access this contentSign in Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL
sign up today! Newman’s Health as Expanding Consciousness arose from Rogers’ Theory of Unitary Human Beings. It was stimulated by concern for those for whom health as the absence of disease or disability is simply not possible. The model has progressed to include the health of all people, regardless of the presence or absence of disease. Newman’s theory asserts that every person in every situation, no matter how disordered and hopeless it seems, is part of the universal process of expanding consciousness. This is a process of becoming more of oneself, of finding greater meaning in life, and of reaching new dimensions of connectedness with other people, as well as the world. Margaret A. Newman was influenced by Martha Rogers’ Theory of Unitary Human Beings, Itzhak Bentov’s Concept of the Evolution of Consciousness, Arthur Young’s Theory of Process, and David Bohm’s Theory of Implicate as she developed her model of nursing. The Health as Expanding Consciousness theory makes the following assumptions:
According to Newman, “the theory of health as expanding consciousness was stimulated by concern for those for whom health as the absence of disease or disability is not possible. Nurses often relate to such people: people facing the uncertainty, debilitation, loss and eventual death associated with chronic illness. The theory has progressed to include the health of all persons regardless of the presence or absence of disease. The theory asserts that every person in every situation, no matter how disordered and hopeless it may seem, is part of the universal process of expanding consciousness – a process of becoming more of oneself, of finding greater meaning in life, and of reaching new dimensions of connectedness with other people and the world.” Patients are open to the whole energy system of the universe, as well as constantly interacting with the energy. This process of interaction allows people to evolve their individual patterns of whole. According to Newman, understanding the patient’s pattern is essential. The pattern recognition is the expanding consciousness. The manifestation of disease depends on the pattern of the patient, so the pathology of the diseases exists before the symptoms begin to appear. Because of this, removal of the disease symptoms does not change the individual structure. Newman redefines nursing according to her nursing process of recognizing the individual in relation to the environment, and it is a process of the understanding of consciousness. The nurse’s understanding of people helps them use the power within to develop the higher level of consciousness. Therefore, it helps to realize the disease process, its recovery, and its prevention. She also explains the interrelatedness of time, space, and movement. Time and space are the temporal pattern of the patient, and they have a complementary relationship. People are constantly changing through time and space, and it shows a unique pattern The theory explains that health and illness are synthesized as health. That is, the fusion of one state of being (disease) with its opposite (non-disease) results in what can be considered health. In this model, the human is unitary. He or she cannot be divided into parts, and is inseparable from the larger unitary field. People are individuals, and human beings are, as a species, identified by their patterns of consciousness. The person does not possess consciousness. Instead, the person is consciousness. People are centers of consciousness with an overall pattern of expanding consciousness. The environment is described as a “universe of open systems.” In this model, nursing is “caring in the human health experience.” It is seen as a partnership between the nurse and patient, with both growing in the “sense of higher levels of consciousness.” Newman’s theory is considered a grand nursing theory. She states that people cannot be divided into parts. Health is central to the theory, and is seen as a process of a developing awareness of the individual self and the person’s environment. She also states that “consciousness is a manifestation of an evolving pattern of person-environment interaction.” Newman’s Health as Expanding Consciousness Theory is beneficial because it can be applied in any setting and “generates caring interventions.” However, its drawbacks are that it is abstract, multidimensional, and qualitative, and there is little
discussion What is the major concept in Newman's theory?The basic concepts of Newman's theory of health are consciousness, movement, space, and time.
What is Margaret Newman nursing theory?Newman's theory proposed that: Health is not lack of illness, or a process to become healthy from being ill, but it instead the expansion of consciousness as a result of choices made within the context of patterns of behavior. Methodology: This mini review was an evolving emergent design.
What are the two main concepts underlying Newman's model?The major concepts of Neuman's theory are content, which is the variables of the person in interaction with the environment; basic structure or central core; degree to reaction; entropy, which is a process of energy depletion and disorganization moving the client toward illness; flexible line of defense; normal line of ...
What are the importance of Newman's health as expanding consciousness theory to the nursing practice?The theory of health as expanding consciousness was stimulated by concern for those for whom health as the absence of disease or disability is not possible. Nurses often relate to such people: people facing the uncertainty, debilitation, loss and eventual death associated with chronic illness.
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