1. prepared by
Mr.N.SRIRAM
VIRGINIA HENDERSON

2. Virginia Henderson
 Army School of Nursing in Washington in 1918 and
graduated in 1921.
 She began the continuation of her education at Columbia
university teachers and completed her B.S. and M.A.
degree in nsg. Education in 1926.
 Henderson served as a teaching supervision in the clinics
of strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester , Newyork in
1929.
 She rewrote the fourth edition of Bertha Hamer’s
Textbook of the Principles and Practice of nsg. and
published in 1939.
 The fifth edition of textbook was published and continued
Henderson’s own definition of nsg. in 1955.
 Henderson directed the Nursing Studies Index Project
from 1959 to 1971.
 Her pamphlet , Basic Principles of Nursing was published
in 1960 and translated into more than 20 languages.

3. credential
 Her book ‘The Nature of Nursing’ of Nursing was
published in 1966.
 She remained active as a Research Associate
Emerious throught 1980s.
 She received sigma Theta Tan International ‘s
Mary Tolle Wright Foundation Award for
Leadership in 1983.
 She received Special citation of honour for her
lifelong contributions to nsg. research, education
and professionals in 1988.

4. Theoretical Sources For Theory
Development
 Annie .W.Goodrich –Dean of Army School of nsg.
 Dr. Eward Thorndike- Research on fundamentals need
of man.
 Maslow –Maslow’s hierrarchy of needs.
 Ida Orlando-Concepts of nurse patient relationship.
 Ernestine Weidenbach-Goal directed and deliberate
nsg approach need for health.
 Jean Broadhurst- Importance of hygiene and asepsis.
 Dr. George Deaver- The goal of the rehabilitation
efforts rebuilding the pat ient’s independence.
 Bertha Harmer- Textbook of the Principles and Practice
of nsg.

5. Empirical Evidence
 Virginia Henderson incorporated physiological
and psychological principles into her personal
concept of nsg. Virginia Henderson concluded
that ‘A definition of nursing should imply an
appreciation’ of the principles of physiological
balance. From Bernard’s theory , she also gained
an appreciation for psychosomatic medicine and
its implications for nsg.
 A coorelation with Abraham Maslow’s Hierrachy
of Needs is seen in Henderson’s 14 components
of nsg. care which begin with physical needs and
progress to the psychological components.

6. MAJOR CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS
Nursing
Nursing is defined as ‘The unique function of the
nurse to assist the individual, sick or well , in the
performance of those activities contributing to
health or its recovery or peaceful death that
he/she had necessary strength, will or
knowledge’ And to do this in such a way as to
help him/her to gain independence as rapidly as
possible.

7. Health
 ‘Health is viewed as “The individuals ability to
function independently in relation to 14
components basic nursing care which defined
as the domain of nursing requires
strength, will or knowledge.”
 She says ,it is the quality of health rather than
life itself, that margin of mental physical rigor
that allows a person to work effectively and
to reach his highest potential level of
satisfaction.

8. Needs
 Breathe normally.
 Eat and drink adequately.
 Eliminate body waste.
 Move and maintain desirable position.
 Sleep and rest.
 Select suitable clothes, dress and undress.
 Maintain body temp. Within normal range by
adjusting clothing and modifying the
environment.

9. needs
 Keep the body clean and well groomed and protect the
integument.
 Avoid dangers in the environment and avoid injuring
others.
 Worship according to one’s faith.
 Work in such a way that there is sense of accomplishments.
 Play participates in various forms of recreations.
 Communicate with others in expressing
emotions, needs, fears or opinions.
 Learn, discover or satisfy the curiosity that leads to normal
development and health use the available health facilities.

10. ENVIRONMENT
Environment as “the aggregate of
all the external conditions and
influences effecting the life and
developments of an organisms

11. Person
 Virginia Henderson views the patient as an
individual who requires assistance to achieve
health and independence or peaceful death. The
mind and body are inseparable. The patient and
family are viewed as unit

12. Major Assumptions
NURSING
 The nurse has a unique function to help well or sick
individuals.
 The nurse functions as a member of medical team.
 The nurse functions independently of the physician but
promotes his or her plan, if there is physician in attendance.
 Henderson stressed that the nurse e.g. nurse midwife can
function independently and must if he or she is the best
prepared health worker in the situation. The nurse can and
must diagnose and treat if the situation demands it.
 The nurse is knowledgeable in both biological and social
sciences.
 The nurses can asses basic human needs.
 The 14 components of nsg. care encompasses all possible
functions of nursing.

13. Person
 The person must maintain physiological and
emotional balance.
 The mind and body of person are inseparable.
 The patient requires help toward
independence.
 The patient and his family are a unit.
 The patient’s needs are encompassed by 14
components of nursing.

14. Health
 Health is a quality of life.
 Health is basic to human functioning.
 Health requires independence and
interdependence.
 Promotion of health is more important than
care of sick.
 Individuals will achieve or maintain health if
they have the necessary strength, will or
knowledge.

15. Environment
 Health interfere with that ability.
 Nurses should have safety education.
 Nurses should protect patients from mechanical injury.
 Nurses should minimize the chances of injury through
recommendations regarding construction of
buildings, purchase of equipment and maintenance.
 Doctors use nurse’s observations and judgments upon
which to base prescriptions for protective device.
 Nurses must know about social customs and religious
practices to asses dangers.
 She expects society to contribute to nursing education for
preparation of good nurses to society.

16. Theoretical Assertions
The Nurse-Patient Relationship
 The nurse as a substitute for the patient.
 The nurse as a helper to the patient.
 The nurse as a partner with the patient.

17. Logical Form
 Henderson appears to have used the deductive form
of logical reasoning to develop her definition of nsg.
She deduced her definition of nsg. and 14 needs
from physiological and psychological principles. One
must study the assumptions of Henderson’s
definition to assess logical adequacy.
 Many of the assumptions have validity because of
their high level of agreement with the literature and
research conclusions of scientists in other fields .e.g.
her 14 basic needs correspond closely to Maslow’s
widely accepted human needs hierarchy, even
through they were listed before she read Maslow’s
work.

18. Acceptance By The Nursing
Community

19. Practice
 It helps the nurses to help the patient move to
an independent state by
assessing, planning, implementing and
evaluating each of 14 components of basic nsg.
care.
 It helps the nurses to help the patient perform
activities to maintain heath, to recover from
illness or to aid in peaceful death.

20. Nursing Education
 The book “Principles and practice of nsg.”
gives definition to nsg. and this book been
used as a basic text in many schools of nsg.
 It gives curriculum for nsg.
 Her curriculum helps in structured learning
experiences which are goal directive.
 It helps the nurses in creative thinking.

21. Nursing Research
 It gives a source for educational research.
 Her basic needs serve as a source for the nsg.
research.
 It helps to formulate the questions in nsg.
research

22. Further Development
 Henderson has no plans to further develop
her definition of nursing. Neither does she
anticipate any further revisions of the text
‘Principles and Practice of nursing’. She
stressed continued assessment of the
patient’s needs and continued revision of the
patient’s needs as his condition and goals
changes. Henderson encourage the nurse to
identify new needs beyond the 14 she
recommended.

23. Critique

24. Simplicity
 Complex rather than simplistic. Contains many
variables and several descriptive and
explanatory relationships. Not associated with
structural organizations within a framework or
model form to enhance simplicity.

25. Generality
 Its generable because it is broad in scope. It
attempts to include the function of all nurses
and all patients in their various
interrelationships and interdependence.

26. Derivable Consequences
 Henderson’s perspective has been useful in
promoting new ideas and in furthering
conceptual development of emerging
theorist. She has discussed the importance of
nag’s interdependence from and
interdependence with, other branches of
health care field. Her theory is helpful in
curriculum development and made great
contribution in promoting the importance of
research in the clinical practice of nsg.

27. THANK YOU