502 Paper 1.docx - 1 Faye Abdellah’s Theory of...

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Faye Abdellah’s Theory of Patient-Centered Care
The term theory can be defined as a creative structuring of ideas that projects a
purposeful and systematic view of phenomena (McEwen, 2019, p. 25). Providing a definition of
nursing theory helps nurses to understand their purpose and role in the healthcare setting. While
no one theory is better than another, some theories may be better utilized depending on the
clinical situation or population (Fawcett, 2017, p. 2). Nursing theorist, Faye G Abdellah,

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developed a nursing theory based on a patient-centered approach to nursing. Abdellah’s theory is
considered a grand theory as it is based on broad, abstract, and complex concepts generally
pertaining to components such as people and health. The four major paradigm concepts of
Abdellah’s theory are person, nursing, health, and environment. Abdellah’s theory based on
human needs affects current practice today and plays an important role in the work of advanced
practice nurses.
Abdellah’s Patient Centered Approach
Faye Abdellah’s theory explains nursing as a holistic service which observes the nursing
problems of the patient and consistently evaluates ways to improve and develop new approaches
to healthcare. Much like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Abdellah’s grand theory sees the patient
made up of physiological, sociological, and psychological parts (Kim & Kollak, 2006, p. 17).