Importance of Nursing Theory for the Nursing Profession

Importance of Nursing Theory for the Nursing Profession
Nursing theory is essential to the profession of nursing on many levels. Theories help to define the discipline and play an important role in research and  concept development helping to discover more facets of nursing for research (Im and Chung, 2012). Generating theory consolidates the nursing profession and ensures new roles are created and founded on “critically appraised science base” (Power, 2016, p.42) Nursing is never static; roles are expanding providing care once done by doctors. Nursing theory ensures a close linkage to research making implementation at the practice level more practical as well as providing the evidence base needed for further theoretical development (Warelow, 2013). Theory is crucial in propelling the profession of nursing and to “protect and preserve the focus and clarity of nursing’s distinct contribution to health care” (Wilson et al. 2015, p.146). In today’s multidisciplinary setting of healthcare, the nursing profession continues to strive to define and maintain its professional boundaries as well as expand its body of knowledge (Warelow, 2013).
The study of nursing theory aids in application of theory to everyday practice and patient/client interactions. Through study of nursing theory, graduate students reflect upon experiences from their practice and how application of theory aided in treatment of patients or how the lack of knowledge in theory hindered the person-nurse relationship. According to Hatlevik (2011), the teaching of nursing student in using reflective skills directly influences coherence of theoretical knowledge to practice.
Swanson’s Theory of Caring
Kristen Swanson first introduced the Theory of Caring with the introduction of Five Caring Processes in 1991 with the publishing Empirical Development of a Middle Range Theory of Caring, later expanding and reorganizing the caring processes in 1993 and 1998 (Wands, 2011;  Amendolair,2012). The five caring processes identified are maintaining belief, knowing, being with, doing for, and enabling.
The process of maintaining belief is a “fundamental belief in persons and their capacity to make it through events and transitions and face a future with meaning” (Wands, 2011 p.182). Nurses who maintain belief in their patients help patients find belief in themselves that they can get through whatever circumstance, by offering hope to them. “Knowing is the anchor that moors the beliefs of nursing/nursing to the lived realities of those served (Swanson, 1991, p.164)” (Amendolair, 2012, p.15). Knowing is learning and attempting to understand events and how they affect the person (Wands, 2011). Swanson’s third caring process is being with;  be with the patient, giving time to the patient and offering presence. Offering of one’s self and time conveys a message to the patient that they matter (Wands, 2011). Preserving life and dignity through caring actions is the fourth process of doing for (Amendolair, 2012). Doing for is not just the action, but predicting what the person would do if they could do it for themselves. Lastly, Swanson defines enabling as “to facilitate the other’s capacity to grow, heal, and/or practice self-care (p.164)” (Wands, 2011, p.184). Enabling equips the patients with the tools and empowerment to care and provide for themselves. These processes provide the foundation of Swanson’s Theory of Caring as well as the research of caring (Wands, 2011).
Theory of Caring and the Nursing Metaparadigm
The widely accepted metaparadigm concepts introduced by Fawcett are person, nurse, environment, and health (Alimohammadi, Taleghani, Mohammadi & Akbarian, 2014). Swanson’s five processes presented in the theory of caring meets all facets of the metaparadigm; person and health, person and environment, health and nurse, and person, environment and health. Maintaining belief and being with fulfills the person-environment-health metaparadigm, knowing is the person-environment, health-nurse can easily be related to doing for, and enabling fulfills the person-health concept of Fawcett’s nursing metaparadigm.
Maintaining belief and being with is a fundamental process in the person-environment-health relationship. Maintaining belief in the person is to encourage and give hope that the person can and will transition out of the current situation (Amendolair, 2012). Being with is arguably the most misunderstood process for nurses but is the most important (Wands, 2011). Spending one-on-one time by being emotionally present with the patient builds a trusting relationship encouraging the patient and nurse’s reception and giving of information from the other (Wands, 2011). These concepts lend to the metaparadigm by acknowledging the person, establishing trust, providing hope and