2)
The four identified metaparadigms of nursing -- nurse, person, environment, and health -- reflect the current understanding of nursing practice as an integrated part of medical treatment and health enhancement. Though each concept is highly related to the others, each represents a different way of approaching and understanding issues in nursing. The nurse is understood as a medical practitioner, using verified empirical data in providing treatment options to the patient. The person metaparadigm takes the subjectivity and personal judgment that is equally essential to the practice of nursing into account (Chin & Kramer 2004). Environment can be understood as the physical, emotional, and social surroundings of the treatment, and health is best understood as the overall well-being of those involved in treatment. Each concept refers to a distinct way of studying issues in nursing, yet each is also completely essential for a comprehensive understanding of modern nursing practice and scholarship.
To do so, one must consider both the individual's attitudes and beliefs as well as their overall environment, including the people surrounding them in the healthcare and home settings. Interaction between the individual and their environment is constant and absolute, and failing to take this fact into consideration leads to inefficient and ineffective nursing practices. Health requires restoring balance to the individual within a given environment.
References
Chinn, P. & Kramer, M. (2004). Integrated knowledge development in nursing. St. Louis: Mosby.
Dobson, R.; Stevenson, K.; Bushc, a.; Scott, D.; Henry, C. & Wall, P. (2009). "A quality improvement activity to promote interprofessional collaboration among health professions students." American journal of pharmaceutical education 73(4), pp. 1-7.
