Nursing Theories in Health Promotion

Nursing and non-nursing theories and models have long been used to drive health promotion and clinical decision making. When advanced practice nurses first begin their

clinical practice, they often select a particular theory or model that most aligns to their personal and professional beliefs—just as you have been asked to do prior

to each Practicum Experience in this program. However, practitioners frequently find that they might be using ideas from multiple theories and models. There is no

right or wrong way, but rather the idea is to select theories or models that can guide your practice and help you influence change within the patient population you

serve. In this Discussion, you select one nursing or non-nursing theory or model and consider how you would use the theory or model to influence change in patient risk

behaviors.

To prepare:
Review this week’s media presentation, as well as the Glanz et al. text in the Learning Resources.

Select a theory/model to use for the health promotion of patients in clinical settings.

The theory/model you select may be a nursing theory/model or a non-nursing theory/model that can be applied to nursing practice.

Reflect on how the theory/model you selected might guide your clinical practice.

Think about how you would use this theory/model to influence changes in a patient’s risk behaviors.
Discuss the theory/model you selected to use for the health promotion of patients in clinical settings.

Then, explain why you selected this theory/model, and discuss how it might guide your clinical practice.

Include a specific example of how you would use this theory/model to influence changes in a patient’s risk behaviors.

Readings
Glanz, K., Rimer, B. K., & Viswanath, K. (Eds.). (2008). Health behavior and health education: Theory, research, and practice (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA:

Jossey-Bass.

This text explores theories relevant to clinical practice, including the theory of reasoned action, theory of planned behavior, transtheoretical model of behavior

change, diffusion of innovation theory, and health belief model.
Green, J., & Tones, K. (2010). Health promotion: Planning and strategies (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Chapter 7, “Education for Health” (pp. 297–355)

This chapter explores the importance of health education in health promotion. It also examines the role of health education in influencing social and political change.
DeGuzman, P. B., & Kulbok, P. A. (2012). Changing health outcomes of vulnerable populations through nursing’s influence on neighborhood build environment: A

framework for nursing research. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 44(4), 341–348.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article explores the impact of built environments—including the presence and conditions of sidewalks, traffic flow, cleanliness of public spaces, and perceptions

of safety—on health behavior changes. It also presents a framework for examining physical and social environments at regional, neighborhood, and individual levels.
Im, E.-O., & Chang, S. J. (2012). Current trends in nursing theories. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 44(2), 156–164.

This article identifies current trends in nursing theories and categorizes the trends into six major themes: foci on specifics, coexistence of various types of

theories, close links to research, international collaborative works, integration to practice, and selective evolution.
McCurry, M. K., Revell, S. M. H., & Roy, S. C. (2010). Knowledge for the good of the individual and society: Linking philosophy, disciplinary goals, theory, and

practice. Nursing Philosophy, 11(1), 42–52.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article explores nursing theories and examines the impact of theory-guided practice on clinical decision making.
Newcomb, P. (2010). Using symptom management theory to explain how nurse practitioners care for children with asthma. Journal of Theory Construction & Testing, 14

(2), 40–44.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

This article describes the symptom management theory and outlines essential components and considerations. It also provides a case study to illustrate how the theory

can be used in practice when caring for children with asthma.