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Betty Neuman’s System Model

Iesha Dooley

California State University, Dominguez Hills

School of Nursing

Concepts of Professional Nursing Practice

BSN 302-177

Vera Kunte, DNP, APN-C, CNE

July 14, 2021

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Betty Neuman’s System Model

Betty Neuman’s system model piloted a theory based off of other theories such as Hans

Selye’s stress and general systems theory and Caplan’s conceptual model. She advanced mental

health nursing. Her model was created for her students to get a broad view of subjects before

going into more detail. Betty’s model spotlighted wellness to the patient in relation to

environmental disturbances and how the person will react to it (Blais & Hayes, 2016). The five

client variables are physiological, psychosocial, sociocultural, developmental, and spiritual. The

environmental influences include internal, external interpersonal, and external extra-personal and

created.

Betty Neuman was teaching her students to evaluate and treat patients as a functional

unit. Betty taught the two defense concepts that a body must use to fend off the stressors

presented. She incorporated this to understand how to help a person achieve their own personal

state of balance, equilibrium, and/or state of adaption. The flexible line of defense is a dynamic

protective barrier that prevents the stressors from breaking down the first line of defense. Sleep

deprivation is an example of a variable that can quickly alter the flexible line of defense (Blais &

Hayes, 2016).

Information and education help decrease anxiety and depression, improve individuals’

success of preventing complications, and enhance their recovery process in the postoperative

period (Diniz JS, et al., 2019). Individuals must be treated as single beings and an open system

consisting of physiological, psychological, sociocultural, developmental, and spiritual variables.

The variables interact among themselves and with the environment. A person’s energy resources

may be depleted without help from the primary, secondary, or tertiary levels of protection.
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In Neuman’s system model, preventive intervention is triaged based off which level of

primary, secondary, or tertiary protection the patient is experiencing. Quality nursing care is

important in hospitals because nurses have the knowledge and resources to meet a patient’s basic

human needs. A nurse physically and mentally prepares a patient for surgery, educates, and

encourages self-care, and knows and understands those human beings are weak and vulnerable.

Primary prevention supports the flexible line of defense by decreasing risk factors and stress.

The secondary preventions are activated after stress breaks through the normal line of defense

with a focus on diagnosing and treating. Tertiary preventions aim to reinforce, readapt, and

maintain stability.

The application of Neuman’s system model in a case study for the prevention of an

asthmatic attack has been used. The Neuman’s system model is appropriate to use in a

preventable disease such as asthma. When the patient is well, primary prevention is

implemented, during and right after an asthma attack episode, secondary prevention comes in,

and finally, during the recovery stage, tertiary prevention is activated. Nurses can specify

interventions at different stages of the disease process. It also allows nurses to use a holistic care

to create a range of interventions for different situations. While incorporating physical,

psychological, and psychosocial aspects of the patient, nurses can discover, detect, and focus on

interpersonal, intrapersonal, and extra-personal factors that may affect health (LEE Queennie,

2014). The model does not structure care according to activities of daily living (ADLs). The

assessment and intervention were holistic and required a collaboration of a multidisciplinary

team. The model is not only used by nurses. The decision on vaccinations is mainly by the

doctors, but education on vaccination is mainly conducted by the pharmacist. Nurses can suggest

to the doctor the need for vaccination, reinforce teaching and administer the vaccine. A
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collaboration of many healthcare professionals is required when adopting Neuman’s system

model (LEE Queennie, 2014)

Neuman’s system model is applicable for nurses and can be used as a framework to

develop interventions for patients (LEE Queennie, 2014). This model allows nurses to identify

interventions for different stages of patient management. It allows for variation in planning care

for patients with their needs as the focus. Neuman’s model has given healthcare personnel the

opportunity to collaborate closely with nurses to manage the patient care with a more holistic

approach.
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References

Blais, K. K., & Hayes, J. S. (2016). Professional nursing practice: Concepts and perspectives.

(7th ed.). Pearson.

Diniz J. S., Batista K. M., Luciano L. S., Fioresi M., Amorim M. H., Bringuente M. E. Nursing

intervention based on Neuman’s theory and mediated by an educational game. Acta Paul

Enferm. 2019;32(6):600-7.

LEE Queennie. (2014). Application of Neuman’s system model on the management of a patient

with asthma. Singapore Nursing Journal, 41(1), 20–25.