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Nursing Foundations · Psychosocial needs

Psychosocial Needs

Holism in Nursingdefinition

Views the patient as an integrated whole of mind, body and spirit.

in simple words: Treat the whole person, not just the disease.

e.g. Assessing physical, emotional, social, cultural and spiritual needs for personalised care.

Biomedical Model – Reductionist approach

  • Focuses only on physiological processes and disease.
  • Ignores mental and spiritual well-being.
  • Does not address the full person.

Grooming to preferred style

  • Primary goal – Promotes self-esteem, not just relaxation or comfort.
  • Key phrase – 'Preferred style' emphasises personal choice and identity.
  • Psychological benefit – Main goal is psychological, not physical.

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Psychosocial Needs · Nursing Foundations

Stress & Adaptation

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)definition

The body's physiological response to stress in three stages: alarm, resistance and exhaustion.

in simple words: Selye's model of how stress makes us ill.

e.g. Chronic stress leads to illness.

Stages of GAS

  1. AlarmImmediate fight-or-flight; sympathetic nervous system and catecholamine release.
  2. ResistanceBody attempts to adapt and cope with ongoing stressor.
  3. ExhaustionResources depleted; burnout and illness.

Alarm phase: expected responses

ParameterResponse
Heart rateIncreases (tachycardia)
Respiratory rateIncreases (tachypnea)
Mental alertnessIncreases (hyper-alertness)
Energy levelIncreases (glycogen → glucose)

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