Introduction
Nursing theories and models play an essential role in the healthcare industry. One can state that nurses can use them as a guide for making decisions during their professional practice to ensure that patients receive adequate care. Numerous models and theories exist, meaning that healthcare professionals can choose among many options to find the most suitable solutions. The transcultural nursing theory by Madeleine Leininger is among the most requested models that are currently used by nurses. The selected approach allows for meeting nursing goals and for providing patients with appropriate care, which is of significance for Family Medicine practice.
Transcultural Nursing Theory and Its Basic Principles
To begin with, one should explain what the transcultural nursing theory means. According to Ellina et al. (2020), this theoretical assumption stipulates that “a nurse must pay attention to the patient’s cultural background in order to achieve complete caring behavior” (p. 738). This generalized statement makes it clear that the theory focuses on patients having different cultural, ethnic, sexual, and gender peculiarities, which should be considered while providing care. Leininger, the theory’s author, admits that it is not reasonable to separate the concepts of health and illness from cultural values (Okeya, 2021). Being aware of people’s backgrounds is significant for healthcare professionals because it helps them understand patients’ value systems, recognize individual expectations about roles and relationships, and adequately address possible ethical dilemmas (Okeya, 2021). This information demonstrates that the transcultural nursing theory can benefit healthcare professionals significantly.
Now, it is reasonable to comment on how the given theoretical assumption can be used in general practice and in my professional activities within the Family Medicine area, in particular. On the one hand, every nurse can obtain essential benefits from relying on the transcultural nursing theory. Today, diversity is welcomed at all levels of social life, meaning that medical professionals should know and respect the cultural peculiarities of their patients. This information can help nurses avoid any discrimination or biased attitudes in their professional practice. For example, even though a nurse has some prejudiced attitudes regarding the representatives of a specific ethnicity, this fact should not be a barrier to providing high-quality care. On the other hand, I can state that the transcultural nursing theory results in many advantages for my practice in Family Medicine. I deal with representatives of various cultural and ethnic groups and respect their beliefs. In particular, I understand that female nurses may only examine female Islamic patients to avoid any conflicts. This information demonstrates that the selected theory makes my professional practice better.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the paper has commented on the transcultural nursing theory and its basic principles. This theoretical framework stipulates that nurses should be aware of patients’ diverse backgrounds and respect their various cultural, ethnic, sexual, and gender peculiarities. Different scholarly works focus on the theory and demonstrate how and why healthcare professionals should draw attention to it. This scientific evidence also indicates that the approach is still requested in the modern medical industry. The paper has also elaborated on the fact that relying on the selected theoretical framework can provide nurses with many advantages. Being aware of cultural background can help healthcare professionals choose the most appropriate strategies and make the correct decisions to provide adequate care. A few examples have also demonstrated that the transcultural nursing theory is beneficial within the Family Medicine area.
References
Ellina, A. D., Nursalam, N., Yunitasari, E., & Rusmawati, A. (2020). Patient satisfaction about nurse caring behavior: Based on Swanson’s theory of caring and transcultural nursing theory. International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24(9), 737-743. Web.
Okeya, O. E. (2021). A critical analysis of transcultural nursing. International Journal of Scientific Development and Research, 6(1), 31-34.