| Course | NUR-3220 Fundamentals of Nursing |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 1 |
| Paper type | Nursing paper: nursing theory applied to care |
| Length | About 1,042 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | B.S.N., Accelerated Second Degree |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NUR 3220 Module 1
Doing for, Doing With, Teaching to Do: Henderson and Orem at the Bedside of a Patient After Hip Replacement
Student Name
B.S.N., Accelerated Second Degree, Thomas Edison State University
NUR-3220: Fundamentals of Nursing
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
Doing for, Doing With, Teaching to Do: Henderson and Orem at the Bedside of a Patient After Hip Replacement
The Patient
The patient, the hospital and the student are invented. Mrs. Alvarez, a 78-year-old widow, lives alone in a walk-up apartment in Hamilton. She had a total hip replacement for osteoarthritis yesterday. Today she is alert, rates her pain 6 out of 10 when moving, has not yet walked beyond the chair, needs help to use the bathroom and says she is afraid of falling. She manages her own blood pressure medicine at home and is proud of being independent. Her daughter lives forty minutes away and works full time. Discharge is planned in two days, and the team is considering whether she can go home or needs a short stay in rehabilitation.
Henderson's Definition of Nursing
Henderson (1966) held that the nurse's distinctive job is assisting people, whether ill or healthy, with the activities that support health, recovery or a peaceful death, activities they would manage on their own if strength, will or knowledge allowed, always aiming to make them independent again as soon as possible. She listed fourteen basic needs that nursing helps people meet, including breathing, eating and drinking, eliminating, moving and maintaining posture, sleeping and resting, dressing, keeping the body clean, avoiding dangers, communicating and learning.
Henderson's definition fits Mrs. Alvarez closely. She would walk, toilet and dress herself if she had the strength and knowledge to do so safely after surgery. The nurse's goal is to help her regain that independence quickly.
Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory
Orem (2001) proposed that people normally care for themselves and that nursing is needed when their abilities fall short of their self-care demands. She called this gap a self-care deficit. The size of the deficit decides which of Orem's three nursing systems applies: wholly compensatory, in which the nurse performs self-care for a patient who cannot; partly compensatory, in which nurse and patient share the work; and supportive-educative, where the patient does the self-care and the nurse teaches and guides.
Orem's theory adds a way of measuring how much help Mrs. Alvarez needs and of planning how that help should change as she recovers.
The Nursing Process
Nursing's standards of practice (American Nurses Association, 2021) lay out the nursing process in six steps, starting with assessment and diagnosis, moving through outcomes and planning and ending with implementation and evaluation. The process gives the theories a structure for action.
| Henderson's need | Assessment | Orem's nursing system today | Goal by discharge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moving and maintaining posture | Walks to chair with walker and assist of one; fearful | Partly compensatory | Walks hallway with walker independently |
| Eliminating | Needs assistance to bathroom | Partly compensatory | Uses raised toilet seat alone |
| Avoiding dangers | Fall risk; hip precautions | Partly compensatory | States and follows hip precautions |
| Learning | Wants to manage at home; unsure how | Supportive-educative | Teaches back exercises and precautions |
| Sleeping and resting | Slept poorly from pain | Partly compensatory | Sleeps with pain controlled |
Assessment and Diagnosis
Assessment found pain limiting movement, fear of falling, reduced mobility, the need to follow hip precautions and a strong wish for independence. Nursing diagnoses include impaired physical mobility related to pain and surgical restrictions, risk for falls related to reduced mobility and new equipment and readiness for enhanced self-care, shown by her questions about managing at home.
Planning and Implementation
On day two, much of Mrs. Alvarez's care is partly compensatory. The student gives scheduled pain medicine thirty minutes before physical therapy, helps her to the bathroom with the walker and supervises her hip precautions. The student explains each step as they do it together, so that the help moves toward teaching. Mrs. Alvarez practices sitting and standing with the student, using the arms of a chair as she will at home.
By day three, the student shifts toward a supportive-educative system. Mrs. Alvarez walks to the bathroom with the walker while the student stands nearby. The student teaches her the hip precautions using a picture card, asks her to teach them back and helps her plan where she will sit, sleep and keep her walker at home. The student also discusses with the case manager whether a home health nurse and physical therapist can visit, given that she lives alone.
Involving the Family
Neither theory centers the family, but Mrs. Alvarez's recovery depends on her daughter. On day three, the student called the daughter with Mrs. Alvarez's permission and invited her to the afternoon teaching session. The daughter learned the hip precautions, how to help her mother from a chair without pulling on her arm and which warning signs, such as calf pain or a fever, need a call to the surgeon. She also arranged to move a lamp and a rug that would make the apartment unsafe with a walker. Bringing the daughter in widened Orem's supportive-educative system to the person who would support Mrs. Alvarez at home.
Evaluation
By day four, Mrs. Alvarez walks the hallway with her walker, uses the bathroom alone with a raised seat, states her hip precautions correctly and rates her pain 3 out of 10 with movement. The team agrees she can go home with home health services, and her daughter will stay the first two nights.
Reflection
Using both theories changed how the student approached care. Henderson's definition kept the focus on what Mrs. Alvarez would do for herself if she could. Orem's systems made it clear that care should change each day, and that doing too much for her would slow her recovery. The student noticed a temptation to help quickly because it was faster, and recognized that independence takes more time from the nurse in the short run.
Limits
Both theories were developed decades ago and focus on the individual, with less attention to family and community resources. A single patient's care cannot test a theory. The plan depends on home services that may not be available everywhere.
Conclusion
Henderson's definition explained the nurse's purpose for Mrs. Alvarez: to help her do what she would do unaided if she could. Orem's self-care deficit theory showed how much help she needed and how it should change. The nursing process turned both theories into a plan that moved her from partly compensatory care toward supportive-educative care and home.
References
American Nurses Association. (2021). Nursing: Scope and standards of practice (4th ed.). American Nurses Association.
Henderson, V. (1966). The nature of nursing: A definition and its implications for practice, research, and education. Macmillan.
Orem, D. E. (2001). Nursing: Concepts of practice (6th ed.). Mosby.
Reading the NUR 3220 Module 1 assignment instructions
TESU's catalog description of NUR-3220 has students put nursing theory, evidence and the profession's standards to work in everyday care, and because no syllabus is posted, the first module is planned as a nursing theory paper applied to one patient. A paper of this kind explains one or two nursing theories accurately, describes a patient with enough detail to plan care, uses the theories to organize assessment and goals, works through the nursing process and evaluates the outcome in the theory's terms. Some sections ask for a single theory, such as Orem, Henderson or Watson, or for a comparison of two theories without a patient. Check whether the brief requires NANDA-I diagnosis labels and whether the care plan belongs in a table. Patient details should be invented or fully disguised.
Inside the NUR 3220 Module 1 example
An invented 78-year-old woman on her second day after hip replacement at a Trenton hospital opens the paper. Henderson's definition and fourteen needs, Orem's self-care deficit and three nursing systems and the ANA's nursing process standards are explained. A five-row table joins the theories in assessment, nursing system and goals. Diagnoses, care moving from partly compensatory to supportive-educative, evaluation on day four, the student's reflection, limits and conclusion follow. Annotations point out how the two theories organize care and how the outcomes match the theory. A section on involving the patient's daughter shows the supportive-educative system extended to the family, filling a gap the theories leave.
NUR 3220 Module 1 rubric: what earns full marks
Nursing theory papers are rewarded for explaining each theory faithfully, for a patient described in enough detail to plan care, theory used to organize assessment and goals, a complete nursing process and evaluation in the theory's terms. Mentors notice when the plan changes as the patient improves, as Orem's systems suggest. Reflection on the temptation to do too much shows insight. Acknowledging that older theories focus on the individual shows critical thinking. Cite Henderson and Orem from the books themselves, with edition and publisher. Recognizing where a theory falls short, such as its limited attention to family, and filling the gap shows mature use of theory.
Common NUR 3220 Module 1 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Theory papers often describe a theory and then write a standard care plan that ignores it; let the theory shape every step. A second frequent weakness is a care plan frozen on day one while the patient keeps changing. Match the nursing system to the patient's deficit each day. Write goals the patient can show. Evaluate in the theory's terms. Send your patient, your theory and the brief; the desk returns a first draft at no cost, built the way the Trenton paper joins theory to care. Bring the family into teaching when the patient will depend on them at home, and note where the theory does not cover them.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Thomas Edison State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
More NUR 3220 and B.S.N., Accelerated Second Degree sample papers
- NUR 3220 Module 2: Infection Prevention Paper: Hand Hygiene Compliance and the Five Moments
- NUR 3220 Module 3: Skin Integrity Paper: Braden Risk, Pressure Injury Staging and Prevention
- NUR 3220 Module 4: Medication Safety Paper: Interruptions, Bar-Code Scanning and Safe Administration
- NUR 3220 Module 5: Recognizing Deterioration Paper: Vital Sign Trends and the National Early Warning Score
- NUR 3220 Module 6: Pain Assessment Paper: Self-Report, Patients Who Cannot Self-Report and Bias
- NUR 4210 Module 1: Postpartum Hemorrhage Paper: Quantified Blood Loss, the Hemorrhage Bundle and Tranexamic Acid
- NUR 3380 Module 1: Hypertension Paper: New Stage 2 Blood Pressure, Home Monitoring and the SPRINT Trial
- NUR 4320 Module 5: Brain Injury Paper: Preventing Secondary Injury After Severe TBI
- NUR 3480 Module 6: Sickle Cell Pain Paper: Timely Analgesia, Bias and an Individualized Plan
NUR 3220 Module 1 questions, answered
Where can I find a free NUR 3220 Module 1 sample paper?
The nursing theory paper about an invented patient after hip replacement in Trenton, from Henderson's needs to Orem's nursing systems, is on this page.
How did Henderson define nursing?
Henderson saw the nurse as stepping in for whatever a person cannot yet do alone toward health, recovery or a peaceful death, while helping them regain independence quickly.
What is a self-care deficit?
Orem's term for the gap between a person's self-care abilities and their self-care demands.
What are Orem's three nursing systems?
Wholly compensatory, partly compensatory and supportive-educative.
What are the steps of the nursing process?
Six linked steps: assess, diagnose, set outcomes, plan, carry out the plan and evaluate the result.