ther health care providers and support systems in order to meet and constantly improve upon general nursing services delivered to any and all patients.
The family is part of the client system (Fawcett, 2000). I view the family as an integral part of care in that any changes in the family will affect a patient who is attempting to deal with and/or recover from illness or injury. Further, patients have needs that develop and evolve as well as innate abilities, resources, experiences and value systems that guide their decision-making regarding health issues. These decisions influence, and are influenced by their families. I think that nursing interventions are for an entire family system and not just for the patient.
I think of disability as a state which interferes with optimal functioning and may be an impediment to learning and growth without habilitation or rehabilitation. I think that the role of nursing as it relates to disability is the provision of individualized holistic health services through application of the nursing process. Further, the role requires: provision of education, not only to the disabled client but to all systems which interact with him (e.g., public and private health agencies).
Question #2: Functional Health Patterns
According to Martin and Scheet (1992), Gordon's Functional Health Patterns consists of 11 categories used to group nursing diagnoses. In this regard, Gordon (1991) stated that the functional patterns offer an assessment framework to nurses as they provide care to patients. In terms of the strengths and weaknesses of the Functional Health Patterns framework, Potter and Perry (2002) report that the assessment system offered by Gordon is strong in that it is client-focused, flexible, comprehensive, and can be adapted to diverse circumstances such as hospital care, in-home health care, and even school health programs. It's greatest weakness, according to the authors, is that it is
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