TOWARD A GENERAL UNDERSTANDING OF NURSING EDUCATION: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE WORK OF MYRA ESTRIN LEVINE.
Contributors: Loyola University of Chicago.
Published: 1987
Number of pages: 211
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The overall purpose of this research was to examine and identify trends in the writings of Myra Estrin Levine, as well as examine her philosophy and ideas relevant to the field of nursing. Nursing history was discussed in relation to the state of nursing today and the impact of higher education on nursing. The study also compared and contrasted Levine's nursing model to the nursing models of Orem and King.

Myra Estrin Levine, R.N., M.S.N., F.A.A.N., is currently a professor of nursing at the University of Illinois College of Nursing. She has written many articles and is the author of Renewal for Nursing and Introduction to Clinical Nursing. One of Levine's greatest contributions to nursing is her model of nursing, which is reflected in her book Introduction to Clinical Nursing, and is also discussed in several of her articles. Levine's philosophy of nursing centers around her Four Conservation Principles and the maintenance of the person's wholeness and integrity. Levine's principles are: the conservation of the patient's energy; structural integrity; personal integrity and social integrity.

The trends identified in Levine's writings were: holistic patient-centered nursing care; nursing education; communication, and finally, ethics in nursing. Overall, Levine discusses many aspects of the nursing profession in her articles, but one thing stands out above all: the center of health care is the individual. Levine focuses primarily on the patient and the uniqueness of the individual in nursing care.

An overview of all nursing models was presented and an analysis of Levine's model was discussed in terms of its relevance to nursing practice. Levine's model regards the patient as a dependent individual who is ill and in need of care, and those sense of integrity must be maintained. In Orem's model, the patient is regarded as independent and in control of his or her needs, as someone who is self-directed. On the other hand, King regards the patient as collaborating with the nurse to determine his or her health care needs. Also discussed were the issues of professionalism, theory, education, curriculum and research and their effects on the practice of nursing.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-11, Section: B, page: 4467.

Thesis (PH.D.)--LOYOLA UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO, 1987.

School code: 0112.