Dorothea Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory

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Health Issues Paper
Laterra S. Brown
Walden University

Health Issues Paper
In the elderly population, there are several healthcare deficits noted, the issue is when these patients are abandon by nurses due to work environment issues such as staff shortage, assignment acuity disagreements, and etc. As stated, health care deficits most often affect the elderly population, but it can affect anyone that have a debilitating disease or trauma. I have over three years of nursing experience working in a nursing home, so I am very familiar with self- care deficits in the elderly population. When dealing with the elderly population I integrate the Dorothea Orem’s Self –Care Deficit Theory into my practice to address the issue at hand. What is the Dorothea Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory? Dorothea Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory is a grand …show more content…

The Self-Care Deficit Theory answers the question, why people need nursing, which is related to factors dealing with the limitations of the individual that leads to the individual inability to perform self-care properly. According to Parker & Smith (2010), “nursing is legitimate or needed when the individual’s self-care capabilities and care demands are equal to, less than, or more than at a point of time. With an existence of this inequality, a self-care deficit exists and nursing is needed” (p.126). As a Med-Surg nurse, on the daily basis, I am faced with patients that have a variety of limitations. By incorporating the Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory into my practice, it guides and enhances my practice through thoroughly assessing the patient’s needs and identifying their

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