Dr. Phil Barker and Poppy-Buchanan Barker
Poppy Barker and Dr. Phil Barker
Background
The Tidal Model is a philosophical approach to the discovery of
mental health, focused on helping people recover their personal story of
distress, as a first step towards reclaiming control over their lives.
It is considered as a mid-range theory of nursing developed by
Phil Barker together with Poppy Buchanan-Barker of University of Newcastle, UK.
Key Concepts
Baker's theory focuses on the patient's state of mind and what
goes on inside it. He believes that, based on the theme of water, man goes on a
journey called life in a ship and compares the ocean as illness. That somewhere
along the way, man becomes physically, emotionally and spiritually distressed
causing a shipwreck.
Nurse's duties are emphasized in a way that they must be the
listener or the learner and that they must learn as much as possible from the
life story of the patient in order for the health practitioner to develop a
individually-catered care that will guide them to independence and recovery.
Major Concepts
1. Person/Patient
- Barker believed that nurses must focus on the patient and the
story behind him or her thus making this theory a client-focused theory.
- According to Barker the individual's mental well-being is
dependent on his or her individual life experiences, including his or her sense
of self, perceptions, thoughts and actions.
- He stated that by using their own language, metaphors and
personal stories people begin to express something of the meaning of their
lives.
- The patient has three different domains where engagement may
occur, namely: self, world, and others. The self domain is where the patient
feel their world of experiences. The world domain is where the patient holds
his or her story. While the others domain represents the different
relationships of the patient, including past, present, and future. This
includes the nurse as well as other members of the health care team, friends,
family, and other supporters.
2. Health
With the author specializing in psychiatric nursing, one may
surmise that health according to the theory corresponds with mental status of
the patient.
Barker views health and illness as fluid, and life as a journey
undertaken on an ocean of experience. However, patients can become physically,
emotionally or spiritually shipwrecked.
3. Nursing
Barker believed that the following must be accepted in order for
the nurse to engage the patient:
· recovery is possible
· change is inevitable
· ultimately, the patient knows what is
best for him or her
· the patient possesses all the
resources he or she needs to begin the recovery journey
· the patient is the teacher, while the
helpers are the pupils
· the helper needs to be creatively
curious, and to learn what needs to be done to help the person
- In relation to the 3 different patient domains, nurses must
explore these dimensions to increase awareness of the situation in the present
and determine what needs to occur at that moment. For the self domain, nurses
must develop a plan to provide security to the patient himself and to those
around him. In the world domain, nurses use a specific form of inquiry to
explore the story collaboratively, revealing its hidden meanings, the patient's
resources, and to identify what needs to be done to help the patient recover.
- Baker emphasized that what works for one patient in his or her
illness may not work for another patient in his or her illness.
4. Environment
Baker did not emphasize his own definition of the environment.
Though it can be inferred from the writings/resources that in able for the
nurse to help the patient in his or her road to recovery, one must ensure a
safe and secure environment for both the patient and the people around him or
her.
Reference:
Tidal Model of Mental Health Nursing (Online) Available at http://currentnursing.com/nursing_theory/Tidal_Model.html (Accessed: 11 September 2016)
Image from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/497788565033594686/
0 responses to “Dr. Phil Barker and Poppy-Buchanan Barker”