The Concept of Resilience in Nursing - Essay Example

Perspectives on Nursing Name Student Number Institution Course Code Instructor Date Resilience: Concept Analysis in Nursing Introduction Resilience in nursing practice is critical in enhancing an individual’s capacity to cope with different situations during practice. This concept has been identified and critically analysed in line with improving nursing professionalism and promoting quality of care. This essay evaluates the concept of resilience in nursing and comes up with a definition of resilience that is contextually independent among nurses in the health care systems. The fact that resilience has been extensively studied among diverse populations having a definite and acceptable definition of resilience among nurses is crucial for the practice. The concept involves a general idea of what is or how it works. Analysing a concept involves the definition of terms or variables, as well as to clarify its meanings to portray similar understanding among readers and writers (McAllister & Lowe, 2011). Coming up with critical analysis and conceptual clarity is of significant importance in nursing practice. This essay identifies perspectives of nursing in respect to stress during their practice by utilizing Walker and Avant (2011) eight (8) step concept analysis method. The eight steps as identified by Walker and Avant are: select a concept; determine the aims or purpose of analysis; identify all uses of the concept; determine the defining attributes; construct a model case; construct borderline, related, contrary, invented, and illegitimate cases; identify antecedents and consequences; define empirical referents. Significance of Resilience in Nursing Practice Nursing practice is an emotionally demanding profession and nurses face various cases of patients and their relatives in definite emotionally challenging moments almost every day of practice (Lin, Rong & Lee, 2013). Nurses support patients and their relatives in their pain, anxiety, loss and fear as well as when they get excited, and joy overwhelms them after recovery. This places nurses as professionals in critical and strategic points whereby, their engagement with the clients and relatives have to be in a flexible and understanding nature (McAllister & Lowe, 2011). The emotional aspect of nursing practice is majorly ignored and unrecognised in health care systems. Further, this attribute contributes greatly to the core elements of nursing who find themselves working in extremely busy and stressful environments with patients in critical states or having greater social and physical needs with the lack of sufficient individuals to cater for their needs. Hardiness and resilience in nursing practice enhance the psychological capacity of a person in working professionally. Positive hardiness directly relates to work support, as well as enhances professional practice (Atkinson, Martin & Rankin, 2009). In nursing, embracing resilience in practice enables practitioners to cope effectively with diverse situations involving critical cases, mental health crises, physical and emotional fatigue, as well as helping relatives cope with their kin’s health problem. The concept of resilience has been of great interest in various professional groups for decades (McCann et al., 2013). The nursing practice has identified the potential entrenched in this concept due to the diversity of clinical contexts. This study follows Walker and Avant (2011) approach to concept analysis resulting in critical evaluation of the attribute of resilience. Thus, it is evident from this study that resilience proposes that the attributes of self-efficacy, coping and hope are key defining factors as far as resilience is concerned. Professionals can embrace resilience as an attribute a process that can be developed or learned by individuals within their professional practice to promote efficiency and performance (McAlister & McKinnon, 2009). Subsequently, the development of resilience is based on the synergy that is shared among individuals and their environments, as well as experiences. Uses and Definition of Resilience Resilience is critical in helping nurses come back to their former and composed self even after tackling stressful or traumatising cases in their practice. Hunter and Warren (2013) define resilience as the ability of an individual to cope and adapt positively to adverse situations. The concept in nursing can be equated to the ability to bounce back or cope successfully irrespective of the adversity at hand or the attention given from various domains with a professional practice scope. The concept comprises of various attributes of personality like optimism, self-efficacy, and hardiness that enable every person to cope with increased diversity (). From a critical perspective, resilience can be termed as involving both internal and external factors within a dynamic process that gradually evolves and can also be leaned by individuals (Ungar, 2012). With a view that resilience is a concept that can be learned and embraced effectively among nurses, it is palatable to note that there is need to consider where the responsibility of facilitating the learning rests. The increasingly complex nursing practice with greater needs for care and critical practice among diverse cases and chronic illnesses, resilience among nurses is inevitable. This is a concept that will ensure the realisation of quality care and promotes nursing practice effectiveness. Case Studies A number of case studies are reviewed to highlight the components in respect to the contents of this analysis. The cases are critical in helping identify attributes, antecedents, as well as consequences of nurses’ resilience. Model Case According to Walter and Avant (2011), a pure case of the concept and a paradigmatic example demonstrates all the defining attributes of a concept. Subsequently, the resilience of an individual determines the self-realisation and treasure of life after a chronic condition. The model case below indicates the model scenario of the concept. A ten (10) year old girl was diagnosed with diabetes type 1, and the doctor told the parents that for the rest of the life, Sally had to receive injections for insulin. This made the parents to despair and full of anxiety, but decided to take a step of seeking more information to manage the situation and mitigate the stress they were going through. Both the father and mother asserted that they had to be strong for their daughter, and this idea enhances the notion of empowerment. The spirit by the parents was great and irrepressible that after a short while they were well equipped to manage their son’s conditions and lived life normally. They not only become well conversant with the condition, but became advocates for enlightening others of wellness about diabetes. The case presents various traits of effective communications, flexibility, and enhanced self-esteem among the parents to care for their daughter. Borderline, Related and Contrary Case Creating borderline, related, invented, contrary and illegitimate cases enables one to have clarification of what the concept is like or its similarity. Borderline Case A borderline case gives an example of the utilisation of concept in which some of, but not all, the defining attributes are present. The following case shows an instance of resilience among nurses for chronic conditions. Some years back, Vera was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus type 1 and embraced an open minded approach to coping with the situation. Her nurse was very helpful in supporting her to understand the condition, as well as get a confident trait in addressing her condition. She had discussions with her husband and children of the condition, as well as close friends and relatives. Although some talked behind her back and though she would die soon, she soldiered on with flexibility and disregarded negative comments in her life. The support she received from her immediate family made her get the strength to move on with life, taking care of her health, as well as seeking medication continuously. Her medical check-ups were prompt, and this promoted her well-being. The support by the nurse and other clinicians also helped her cope with the situation appropriately with good advice making her more comfortable. From the analysis of this case, it is evident that effective health management can be hampered by a patient’s perception, responsibility, and interests in the condition affecting them. Related case This involves a situation similar to the concept at hand but has different critical attributes. Hardiness has been utilised in this case to indicate resilience. The attribute shows firmness and persistence in the practice with unwavering determination and steadfast will. Being resilient involves coping effectively with stressors in one’s situation and not letting them affect their psychological well-being. By confronting a prevailing situation, the attitude presented involves having the attribute of hardiness, with resilience in facing challenging situations, enduring medication and disregarding any talks from the surrounding that may negatively affect the psychological well-being of the person. The evidence from the case below indicates that resilience is critical in helping nurses, and patients change their situations positively by overcoming their adversity deliberately. John grew up as a cerebral palsy child, and his mother showed great strength and determination to manage the situation. Ever since John was diagnosed with the disorder, she asserted herself not to cry or be stressed and championed her priority of caring for her son amid all odds. She had to stop managing her tailoring shop to look after her son and had to employ someone to manage her business. She made sure to take care of her son herself, even when close relatives offered help. Although her resilience is evident, John’s mother refused any form social support even from nurses and arranged for intervention measures to look after her son. The result was that John was isolated from others and lacked interactive interventions with the outer world. However, due to the care accorded by the mother, his well-being improved substantially. The only critical issue involved John’s mom stand of not allowing change to take place and have a positive outlook on life involving the son’s condition. Contrary Case This involves a clear example of a case different from the concept. This case scenario gives an example of a contrary situation that does not depict resilience. Mary got married at 21 to a man 65 years old, who have been abusive and authoritarian all their marriage. The life with this man was hard but Mary was used to hardships since she was young. Have been brought up in a foster home, the foster father was a drug addict and the adoptive mother very abusive. The adoptive parents never gave Mary the chance to experience normal life or the freedom that comes with teenage life. Mary looked for a casual job at the local sales store and worked there till she met her aged husband, and the marriage has lasted 23 years. Mary has brought up four kids, three boys, and one girl. To cope with her situation, she engaged in alcohol drinking and meth use. This resulted in a distorted and unfulfilled lifestyle that was depicted by being abusive to the kids. She later divorced her aged husband and married Mark a composed and well-mannered person. Nevertheless, Mary never changed her vices making her well-being deteriorate sporadically. Eventually, Mary was diagnosed with lung problems due to excessive alcohol drinking that resulted in death at the age of 47. The case presents a situation where Mary was not resilient in believing in change for the better. Although she endured pains and hardships, she could have chosen to lead a positive life by critically embracing change for the improvement of herself and the entire family. Defining Antecedents and Consequences Antecedents are the events or attributes that come before the concept takes place, whereas the consequences are the results of the concept taking place (Rhodes, 2012). Resilience involves an enduring ability exhibited as the strength of a nurse while responding to chronic cases and coming up with effective evidence-based practices as solutions to prevailing challenges. Resilience is a capacity and application of nursing interventions with a variance of the level of resilience offer nurses the positive perspective to embracing the intervention strategies (McAlister & McKinnon, 2009). After an extensive literature review, the following attributes have been identified as defining ones to the concept of resilience. First, flexibility enhances one’s coping mechanisms to the challenging and changing situations in nursing practice, followed by self-determination which is an attribute that greatly supports resilience. Having a high positive social relationship or social support has been shown to promote resilience, as well as the reintegration attribute which is a self-assertion of to carry on even when things seem to be working negatively (Rhodes, 2012). Having a positive attitude is crucial to overcoming and triumphing in achieving positive attributes. Finally, having a great deal of self-esteem or self-efficacy enhances one’s believe in their capacity to make it through the difficult times. Defining Empirical Referents and Implications for Nursing Empirical referents involve measurable factors that demonstrate the occurrence of the concept. Although it might appear difficult in determining measures of resilience, a number of constructs are available that indicate the level of resilience in an individual. These involve self-efficacy; perceive social support during overcoming challenges and level of hope (Luthar & Cicchetti, 2000). Effective analysis of resilience as a concept in nursing will promote understanding of definitions utilised in nursing practice, facilitate conceptual development to promote resilience, and promote the development of nursing communications procedures (Walker and Avant, 2011). Critical analysis of this concept helps nurses come up with clinical interventions aimed at enhancing the process, promote positive change, and improve psychological and environmental health outcomes. A good example is for a nurse working in chronic illnesses ward finding the concept of resilience and flexibility to embrace hardiness and overcoming as essential attributes in their assessment, intervention and eventual care to the patients (McCann et al., 2013). Through studying resilience as a theoretical concept, critical attributes will come up that enhances nursing professional practice. This will be through exploring of possibilities of resilient-based interventions that will enhance evidence-based practice among nurses. The effective concept analysis of resilience, clarification of attributes, antecedents, consequences and empirical referents of the concept will promote future theory formulation, research, and practice in nursing (Hunter & Warren, 2013). Nevertheless, the concept of resilience is a critical area of research as its impact can permeate to all settings and individuals in clinical systems. Conclusion In conclusion, the analysis presents the concept of resilience in coping with prevailing health issues, complication in nursing care and flexibility in handling diverse clinical issues in nursing practice. The initial step towards the development of a model of resilience in nursing was to analyse the concept. Resilience involves coping and adapting positively to adverse situations in the nursing practice (Hunter & Warren, 2013). Having the strong will, determinations, flexibility and hope to achieve positive results in care enhances the attribute of resilience in nursing. With a resilient demeanour, nurses can handle patients competently, address their health issues and support the patients and their relatives with respect to how to cope with chronic conditions. Further, the willingness to change behaviour particularly in respect to vices involves having a flexible and positive mindset which translates into a resilient attribute. Constructing and testing of relationships that favour overcoming challenges in nursing is paramount in the overall realisation of the value of resilience model. This enhances the process of overcoming challenges and the overall outcome in respect to care and quality of well-being for the patients. With systematic studies touching on the concept of resilience, whether qualitative or quantitative, increased improvement of nursing concepts will be realised translating into an increased promotion of health among individuals and the general population. References Atkinson, P.A., Martin, C.R. & Rankin, J. (2009). Resilience revisited. Journal of Psychiatry and Mental Health Nursing, 16,137-145. Hunter, B. & Warren, L. (2013). Investigating resilience in midwifery. Final report. Cardiff: Cardiff University. Lin, F., Rong, J. & Lee, T. (2013). Resilience among caregivers of children with chronic conditions: A concept analysis. Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare, 6, 323-333. 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Walker, L.O. & Avant, K.C. (2011). Strategies for theory construction in nursing (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Read More