Analyzing Nursing: A Reflective Essay on Totality Paradigm Concepts

This essay provides an in-depth analysis of the totality paradigm within the context of nursing, focusing on the four core concepts of person, environment, health, and nursing. Each concept is defined from a personal perspective, reflecting the author's understanding and experiences within the nursing profession. The 'person' is viewed as a unique being comprised of physical, spiritual, social, and mental components, while 'environment' encompasses the surrounding conditions that influence an individual's health. 'Health' is defined as a state of complete well-being, free from injury or illness, and 'nursing' is described as a profession dedicated to providing comprehensive care to individuals, families, and communities. The essay integrates practical examples from the author's nursing experience to illustrate each concept, emphasizing the importance of a holistic approach to patient care and highlighting the interconnectedness of these elements in achieving overall well-being. The author concludes by affirming their embodiment of the totality paradigm, encompassing the crucial dimensions necessary for adapting to different surroundings and ensuring better health outcomes.

Running head: PARADIGM ANALYSIS
PARADIGM ANALYSIS
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

1PARADIGM ANALYSIS
Introduction:
The essay focuses on the concept of totality paradigm that comprises of the four
different concept of person, environment, health and nursing. All the above mentioned
concept are defined that is included as overall totality. Totality paradigm is considered as a
nursing theory that outlooks an individual as a combination of psychological, biological,
spiritual and sociocultural dimensions and ruminates that the individual adjusts to variations
in the exterior environment and familiarizes to illness and wellness as a variety of health
conditions.
Thesis Statement: The essay will focus on the totality paradigm helpful for defining the
concept of person, environment, health and nurse.
Person:
The person is defined as a human being who is considered as an individual. The
person is made up of four different components and the components together makes a person.
Physical, spiritual, social and mental are the components that makes up the definition of the
‘person’ that reflect the totality paradigm that includes combination of all dimension. Each
person a different appearances and personalities that include the above mentioned
components but no person looks similar or identical to each other until they are identical
twins. Hence, a person can be defined as a ‘unique being’.
The practical example to demonstrate the concept of person as a nurse is during
assessment of an individual patient to identify their condition or disorder. As a nurse I have to
assess the patient who is an individual person suffering from any condition or disorder.
Therefore, I wrote in the concept of person that they are human being and are considered as
individual as it was influenced by the living presence of the person making them prone to
various health condition and hence as a nurse I have to assess each patient and identify their

2PARADIGM ANALYSIS
individual health condition. Once I have identified the patient’s individual health condition,
treatment is given to each person on the basis of their health condition. Hence, I am ‘totality’
because as a person I comprise of different traits that make up a person or an individual that
makes each individual different from one another.
Environment:
The environment is defined as the condition or surrounding in which an individual
person, plant or animals operates or live. It is a natural world or biosphere that is considered
as everything around a person that can either be living things or non-living things.
Environment includes all chemical, physical and natural forces that make up the entire
environment. Hence, environment reflect the totality paradigm that comprise of all forces
required by the person that will help them to adapt in the environment or surrounding.
The practical example to demonstrate the concept of environment as a nurse is during
assessment of an individual patient to identify the environmental factors that result in the
development of their condition or disorder. I have defined this concept as an important
paradigm because the environmental factors affects an individual person activity that further
interferes with their health and hence require effective nursing strategy to overcome from the
health condition. The environmental factors can either be chemical, physical or natural in
nature that can result in bad health condition as all the factors are present in the environment
hence fulfilling the concept of totality and the factors that sum up to totality.
Health:
Health is defined as the condition of being un-restricted or free from any injury or
illness. Health incorporates both physical and mental health condition that is responsible for a
healthy life of a patient. Health is thus considered as a state of complete well-being that
includes social, mental and physical well-being associated with absence of disease or injury

3PARADIGM ANALYSIS
fulfilling the totality paradigm that comprises of different factors responsible for a better
health of a person. In my personal opinion, being healthy is defined as a state of well-being
where an individual person is free from any health condition or illness and is completely
healthy or fit to lead their individual life.
The practical example to demonstrate the concept of health as a nurse is during
assessment of an individual patient to identify their condition or disorder. I chose health as a
state of well-being because being healthy or fit means that the person is devoid of any health
complication and hence normal mental and physical health condition. No external factors
affects the person’s health condition and therefore provide all the suitable factors and
environment that will allow an individual to be fit or healthy hence health is a totality
paradigm that comprises of all the factors allowing the person to adapt in the external or
internal environment.
Nursing:
Nursing is defined as a profession that provides complete knowledge and care to the
patient and is included within healthcare region that primarily focus on providing complete
care to an individual, community members and family members in order to assist them in
accomplishing and maintaining their quality of life and health condition that is the major
factor included in totality as it fulfils the theory revolving around totality. Hence according to
my experience I will define nursing profession as a field, which is concerned with the aspect
of taking care of an injured person or person with illness and helping that person to prevent
the illness and maintain their overall health condition. In this profession, the nurses play a
crucial role in saving a person and improving their health condition by applying effective
healthcare delivery method. I chose nursing profession as my profession because the roles
and responsibilities that has to be fulfilled by nurses are crucial and in this profession, a nurse

4PARADIGM ANALYSIS
can understand and acquire various aspect of health condition and understand the important
factors that can help the patient to be fit and healthy and devoid of any illness or bad health
condition. Being a nurse we acquire all cognitive, legal, ethical and interpersonal skills and
abilities that will allow us to handle every patient and treat them to make their life free of any
illness or disease. Hence, I am totality as I encompasses all the crucial factors that is required
to be a successful nurse and provide best healthcare facility to the patient.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that I am totality as I encompass all the crucial dimension
including spiritual, sociocultural, psychological and biological factors necessary for adapting
to different surrounding based on nursing profession to ensure better health and well-being.
Hence, all the four concept allows a person or an individual to interact with the environment
and adapt the evolutionary process of developing wellness.