Nightingale’s Nursing Theory

The environment usually plays a significant role in determining patients’ experiences and health outcomes in a healthcare setting. In particular, environmental issues such as personal hygiene, waste management, congestion, and availability of nursing services are some of the essential factors that influence the health and wellbeing of populations living within a particular area (Hegge, 2013). Thus, this paper offers a critical perspective of how specific environmental factors can aggravate health problems and identify appropriate corrective strategies that can be implemented to help improve the overall health and wellbeing of the people. 

Nightingale’s Nursing Theory

Florence Nightingale’s theory of nursing provides a comprehensive portrayal of different features of the environment and their influence in determining a person’s health. Nightingale’s nursing theory is based on four fundamental concepts or meta-paradigms: human, environment, nursing, and health (Sher & Akhtar, 2018). According to her nursing theory, Nightingale recognizes the person as the individual or patient receiving care services. Secondly, Nightingale’s theory identifies the environment as an essential factor in maintaining the patient’s health and well-being and enhancing the recovery process. However, the environment is considered a changeable factor that can be modified to meet the patient’s needs and health. The third concept of nursing refers to the modifications in the patient environment that help provide them with comfort throughout the sick period. Therefore, nursing is identified in Nightingale’s nursing theory as the assistance that people receive in managing their environment to improve their ability to promote their health and healing process. Lastly, health is described as a dynamic process that involves being well and being able to utilize personal powers well. According to this nursing theory, the meta-paradigm of health is achieved by meeting six essential elements of personal hygiene, healthy dietary practices, pure water, fresh air, proper drainage, and appropriate light (Hegge, 2013).  

Current Environmental Problem

Presently, communities around the globe are faced with the environmental problem of the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid-19 is a highly infectious respiratory illness spread from one person to another through a virus known as Coronavirus 2019 (Jernigan & CDC COVID-19 Response Team, 2020). This deadly virus was first reported in Wuhan in China in December 2019 and spread rapidly globally, causing hundreds of deaths worldwide within one year. Indeed, the environment has played a significant part in influencing the continuous spread and severity of the Covid-19 complications. In particular, Covid-19 patients and the larger community require adequate fresh air, maintenance of personal hygiene, and a sufficient supply of clean water to address this health problem (Sher & Akhtar, 2018). Besides, a healthy balanced diet is also considered important to help boost an individual’s immune system to help fight off the infection. 

Additionally, other external factors such as political influences, policy issues, and legal influences also have a notable impact on Covid-19 in different ways. Firstly, political influences are a significant contributor to the increased spread of the Covid-19 disease among the people, considering the huge gathering that politicians draw in their rallies and campaigns. Secondly, policy issues also play an essential part in influencing the impact of the Covid-19 disease within the population. In particular, policies such as lockdown, cessation of movement, banning public gatherings, and observation of preventive measures like wearing face masks, social distancing, and regular hand washing help reduce the spread of the infection across the population (Nadim, Ghosh & Chattopadhyay, 2021). Thirdly, legal influences, such as punishing those who go against the established health policies, play a vital role in ensuring that the severity of the Covid-19 infection is significantly reduced. These legal practices help ensure that individuals and population groups adhere strictly to preventive measures set by the authorities, thereby aiding in breaking the chain of transmission of the health problem. 

Social Work and Nursing in Examining Covid-19 Problem

Another essential discipline that is applicable in examining the environmental problem of Covid-19 is social work. Like nursing, social work is also directly involved in delivering care services to patients diagnosed with Covid-19 complications. For instance, social work professionals help assist in testing these patients for the disease, refer affected patients to health care or quarantine facilities, and help care for those diagnosed with the disease (Nadim, Ghosh & Chattopadhyay, 2021). Additionally, social workers also help facilitate public health education and awareness regarding the nature of Covid-19, ways to prevent its spread and address the myths surrounding this health problem. However, nursing plays a more active role in giving Covid-19 patients comprehensive healthcare services in the health care settings such as hospitals, clinics, and care homes. On the other hand, social work involves offering social services or assistance to the patients instead of treating the sick. 

Stakeholders and Resources Involved in Examining Covid-19

Several stakeholders and resources are involved in examining the identified environmental problem of Covid-19. Some of the most significant stakeholders and resources involved here include medical research institutes, pharmaceutical organizations, local and national authorities, international organizations, healthcare providers, and the public (Nadim, Ghosh & Chattopadhyay, 2021). Medical research institutions are involved in investigating the severity of the Covid-19 problem and help pharmaceutical organizations, local and national authorities, and international organizations develop effective measures that can be implemented to reduce the spread and lessen the burden of the disease against the existing health care systems. On their part, healthcare providers engage with the public in availing necessary Covid-19 data invaliding its prevalence, severity, mortality, and recoveries. 

Outcomes and Measuring the Success of Proposed Solutions

Several strategies can be implemented to address the environmental problem of Covid-19. Some of these strategies include increased public education and awareness, vaccination, wearing of face masks in public places, keeping social distance, regular handwashing with soap and running water, and sanitization of hands (Nadim, Ghosh & Chattopadhyay, 2021). Additionally, other strategies include setting curfews, cessation of movement, and locking down areas reporting high infection rates. Proper implementation of these preventive strategies has a significant impact on the overall severity of the Covid-19 infection. However, if not correctly implemented, persistent abandoning of these measures will result in a rapid increase of the disease within the community. 

Various strategies can be used to measure the success of the proposed solutions to address the current environmental health problem of Covid-19. One of the strategies that can be used here is evaluating the infection rates of the disease. A continuous in the incident rates of Covid-19 infections will mean that the implemented solutions are successful. Secondly, another strategy that can be used here is determining behavioral changes through observation or population survey. An improvement in people’s behavior, such as strict adherence to safety protocols like maintaining social distance, wearing face masks, frequent hand washing, and hand sanitization, will mean that the proposed solutions are successful. Nevertheless, the determination of public awareness and knowledge regarding Covid-19 is also instrumental in measuring the success of the proposed solutions. This success will be indicated by a significant improvement in the level of knowledge. 

References

Hegge, M. (2013). Nightingale’s environmental theory. Nursing science quarterly, 26(3), 211-219. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894318413489255

Jernigan, D. B., & CDC COVID-19 Response Team (2020). Update: Public Health Response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Outbreak – United States, February 24, 2020. MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report, 69(8), 216–219. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6908e1

Nadim, S. S., Ghosh, I., & Chattopadhyay, J. (2021). Short-term predictions and prevention strategies for COVID-19: a model-based study. Applied Mathematics and Computation, 404, 126251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amc.2021.126251

Sher, A. N. A., & Akhtar, A. (2018). Clinical application of Nightingale’s theory. Journal of Clinical Research and Bioethics, 9(329), 2. https://doi.org/10.4172/2155-9627.1000329

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