Virginia Henderson’s Need theory
Virginia Henderson’s Need theory
Team D
Maria Rodriguez
Leidy Morey
Akinwunmi Akinbode
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Virginia Henderson’s need theory
Virginia Henderson’s need theory provides a definition of nursing care and describes specific areas in which nursing care is needed.
“The unique function of the nurse is to assist the individual, sick or well, in the performance of those activities contributing to health or its recovery (or to peaceful death) that he would perform unaided if he had the necessary strength, will or knowledge. And to do this in such a way as to help him gain independence as rapidly as possible” (Henderson, 1966).
Henderson developed 14 concepts based on human needs and categorized them as physiological, psychological, spiritual, or social.
Virginia Henderson believed that knowing the fundamental needs of a patient will contribute to how the nurse will care for the patient. It is beneficial to care for the patient until the patient can care for themselves or aid them in a peaceful death. (Henderson, 1966) She developed 14 concepts based on those human needs and categorized them as physiological, psychological, spiritual, or social (Henderson’s nursing need theory, (2016). Her concepts examine the individual holistically.
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Henderson’s 14 basic needs:
Henderson believes these 14 components are part of basic nursing care to return the patient to their optimal self. To do so, the nurse must have a nurse-patient relationship to achieve this goal (Vera, 2011).These are specific, effective concepts of how nurses should assess and interact with the patient.
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Physiological:
Breathe normally
Eat and drink adequately
Eliminate body wastes
Move and maintain postures
Sleep and rest
Dress and undress
Maintain body temperature
Protect integument
Avoid dangers
Psychological:
Communicate needs and concerns
Spiritual:
Worship one’s faith
Social:
Work with a sense of accomplishment
Participate in Recreation (Gonzalo, 2014)
Learn and discover normal development and health and use health facilities
Nursing practice
Henderson’s 14 components can be used as a guide in the nursing process to assist the nurse in her practice.
Assessment phase — Assess patient using the 14 basic needs. Analyze patient data.
Planning phase — Meeting individual’s needs, updating the plan as necessary based on the changes and as prescribed by the physician.
Implementation phase — Individualized interventions depending on factors and needs.
Evaluation phase — Evaluate according to the degree in which the patient performs independently.
Henderson believed in having an individualized care plan for each patient. She believed critical thinking is essential in this implementation. The fundamental needs of the patient, the planning and implementing of interventions, and the evaluation of the patient’s outcome are all crucial elements in Henderson’s need theory that contribute to the nursing process. The patient is examined holistically to achieve a common goal of optimal independence. It applies to every day clinical decision-making of nursing practice.
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