Family and Egalitarian Partnership with a Family Nurse - Essay Example

? Family and egalitarian partnership with a family nurse Family and egalitarian partnership with a family nurse Introduction In today’s century, the modern family has resulted to preferring family therapy, which is normally offered by a selected nurse as opposed to the general provision of care. In the words of Friedman, Bowden & Jones (2003), family therapy works on the basics that every household unit is unique and requires specialized forms of care. The disparities in the structures and communication models also add to the variations of the attitudes and norms each family has. The family also comprises of various individuals with dissimilar personalities; hence, uniqueness of each household. In the research study compiled by Bell (2009), family therapy by an egalitarian nurse is one that is aimed at sustaining and promoting health to those suffering from particular infections. This is an suggestion that family therapy is one that makes sure the broad well being of the family is put under examination as well as proviso of maintenance skills on a long term basis. On another viewpoint, it would be reasonable to indicate that some family conditions may be a simpler sign of what the entire family goes through. Dealing with the infection on an individual perspective, in this case, is an indication that the syndrome is dealt with on behalf of the family, which is not obliging. This explains why there is need to deal with the infection on the family level not the person, which is only possible through the help of an egalitarian family nurse. Services offered by a family nurse can, therefore, be indicated to break the sequence of recurrence of various conditions in the individuals. As a result, family nurses offer proper assessment and handling of family infections, a feature which reduces the effects of an individual affecting the entire family. A good example would be psychotherapy on one person in the family who is diabetic. Certainly, the whole family benefits if therapy is administered effectively by the family nurse. This essay shall aim at emphasizing that families are in the best position to decide their own health goals and to accomplish them through identifying and further developing their potency as an egalitarian partner with a family nurse. This means that the family members are free and are not restricted to inquire or interact with the nurse regarding their medical condition. Fundamentally, this work shall focus on bringing out the view that family nurses have been of huge benefit in dealing with family infections. Body In the argument by Bell (2009), family nurses have a chance to proficiently assess the family as a unit. The care offered at the family level has been termed as one that targets all the participants in the family unit, which is inclusive of the members of the family, the whole family and the cultural systems that surround the relations (Bomar, 2004). An analysis of these structural systems that surround the family, a democratic relationship between the family and the family nurse allows for open interaction in the course of offering medical help; and consequently, possibility for appropriate health interventions. The family, can in this instance, be interpreted as a complex unit that needs long-term intervention. On another point of view, Bell (2009) emphasizes that the relationship between the family nurse and the family members becomes a collaborative one, since the nurse believes in the legitimacy of the structural component of the family. The kind of therapy that is being offered by this clinician at this moment is one that is directed towards ensuring the family becomes competent in administering the therapy proposed, as opposed to the general care that is more directed to pathology (Bell, 2009). Additionally, the family members feel that the nurse and the family members believe that information on the family is in safe hands, hence respect between the two parties (Bell, 2009). Confidence in the family nurse is reinstated as the family members can consult, and always seek advice- an important aspect in promotion and provision of healthcare. The family also feels that the nurse is willing and competent enough to address the family illness, which is not offered by a general clinician. In the long run, family healing is achieved. Family nursing, as can be depicted from the thoughts brought forward by Friedman, Bowden & Jones (2003), is a form of counseling or therapy that nurtures development and growth within families. This change is visualized in the context of the forms of interactions between the members of the family. The type of relationship between families determines the emotional health of the family. Despite the kind of problem that may befall the family, the origin of the issue and the involved members, studies indicate that involving the whole family in dealing with the problem has proven to be exceedingly valuable (Bell, 2009). This emanates from the direct involvement of persons in the therapy session. In these sessions, the family nurse is better placed to initiate conversations that influence the general perception of the entire family. For instance, if the health problem touches on lifestyle change, the family members can be influenced to change for the better. It is of great essence to understand the family unit has evolved greatly from the archaic conception of a traditional nuclear family (Bomar, 2004). In the contemporary world, the family involves other ties apart from blood which include marriage. Family, in this context, has allowed for a wider understanding of human character and how their health can be improved. A form of chain is evident from the current family, which calls for an inclusiveness in offering health care. In this case, the family nurse is the best alternative to provision of quality and comprehensive family nursing to such large chains of persons. According to Bell (2009), the sessions held by the family nurse are held in groups, in that the nurse meets a certain group of people in the family or some sections of the family at the same time. Egalitarian partnership in relation to the family nurse is one that sees the patients enjoy the visits and sessions of the nurse at the set time. Though at times the nurses do not attend all the sessions at the right time, adherence to the program has yielded positive results (Leahey & Wright, 2009). The code of ethics indicates that the nurse perform their duties by attending to all the sessions, as well as make sure the medical information of the family members is private and confidential (Leahey & Wright, 2009).The family members are also entitled to openness about their health status, and medical guidance on how to deal with the same. The code of ethics, however, ensures that the family nurse plays their roles as expected of them. The meetings between the family members and the nurse are very advantageous since the family nurse or therapist is able to boost mutual relations and interactive segments between the therapist and the family members. Through these interactive sessions, the family therapist or the nurse becomes part and a confidant of the family in one way or another (Friedman, Bowden & Jones, 2003). It is easier to acquire information on a patient through such interactive sessions, as opposed to the general doctor. The family members feel free to consult, an indication of the fact that the interactions are vital tools for successful therapy on patients. However, this is only possible through family nursing. As opposed to provision of general medical care, family nursing is based on review of cases of the patients, then coming up with tangible solution. In the work by Friedman, Bowden & Jones (2003) family nurses are helpful in preventing worse implications of a particular infection in the family members, or finding a lasting solution for the same. It is a normal occurrence in the general clinical care that the nurses are mostly involved in an attempt to find the cause of a particular problem diagnosed in the patients. The family nurse, however, is keener on the solution to the problem. Through the process of analyzing the causes and emphasizing on the solution to the problem, the family is trained to detect certain types of behaviour that depict danger or signs of infection. Generally, the family acts as a unit, all in an attempt to improve their current situations. Family nursing, in relation to the journal compilation by Bell (2009), it is only through family nursing that previous conflicts in the family can be analyzed. Past incidences are reviewed and the family members are involved in finding the alternatives to the conflicts. Various responses by different members are also discussed in nursing sessions, and their perceptions on the sources of the conflicts. The family is given a chance to review their reactions regarding a medical issue in the family on an abstract viewpoint, which is not possible through general medical care by a general doctor. Family nursing, therefore, acts both as a therapeutic and counseling tool to the family unit. Though family nursing has been linked with challenges such as aggravating situations if the nurse or therapist is not experienced, family therapy has been of assistance to curbing problems before their inception. Bell (2009) indicates that family nursing deals with these problems at an early point, instead of facing them when they are at their climax. For example, a diabetic patient might be motivated on how to live positively in spite of the challenges of diabetics. It is also cautioned that at times, few members of the family may decline to unite in the joint effort towards behaviour transformation. This harbors the achievement and appliance of family nursing techniques to the relations. Continuity of family nursing is also suggested, since long term appliance of this kind of treatment helps in the resolution of family issues that may be solved on a short term basis, for instance substance and drug abuse cases. Successful application of family therapy is only promising if all the members of the family work towards a common objective, which involves attendance to family therapy meetings, obstinately and consistently. Conclusion Conclusively, it is acceptable to argue that family nursing has valid validation groundwork, particularly from the two works incorporated in the essay. More significantly, family treatment by nurses has been verified by facts, that it offers much more than general care does in the hospitals. Families have been brought together to assess the family infections as a unit; therefore, a proper dialogue of the way forward to their medical and behavioral state of affairs. Family therapists or nurses have also been indicated to be ardent on the implications of various medical conditions on the health of the family members as opposed to the source. This is an indication of the wholesomeness of the care and services provided by the family nurse, both on short and long term basis. Inclusion of the nurse into the family unit reduces them to ‘yet another member of the family’ who in this instance plays the role of advisor, mentor and information provider. It is, therefore, of essence to indicate that families are in the best position to determine their own health goals and to attain them through identifying and further developing their strengths as an egalitarian partner with a family nurse. References Bell, J. (2009). Family Systems Nursing: Re-examined. Journal of Family Nursing, 15,123-129. Bomar, P. (2004). Promoting Health in Families: Applying Family Research and Theory to Nursing Practice. New York: Elsevier Health Sciences. Friedman, M., Bowden, V., & Jones, E. (2003). Family nursing: Research, theory and practice (5th ed.). Stamford, CT: Appleton & Lange.  Leahey, M. & Wright, L. (2009). Nurses and Families: A Guide to Family Assessment and Intervention. Pennsylvania: F.A. Davis. Read More