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Nursing QUESTION #9222
Question 1
In Ida Jean Orlando's Nursing Process Theory, which element distinguishes a nursing problem from a medical problem?
  • A nursing problem requires physician authorization to address
  • A nursing problem is any condition that a nurse is licensed to treat independently
  • A nursing problem is the patient's immediate distress that the nurse identifies and relieves through deliberative action✔️
  • A nursing problem can only be identified after a medical diagnosis is established
Correct Answer Explanation
Correct Answer: C

Orlando's Nursing Process Theory (1961) — also called the Dynamic Nurse-Patient Relationship — focuses on the concept of deliberative nursing.

Key concepts:
  • Patient behavior: Verbal or nonverbal communication of a need
  • Nurse's reaction: The nurse's perception, thoughts, and feelings in response
  • Nursing action: Deliberative action based on validated understanding of the patient's need
Orlando distinguished automatic nursing actions (done without validation) from deliberative actions (based on exploring and validating the patient's immediate need).

A nursing problem in Orlando's framework is specifically the patient's immediate distress — physical discomfort, helplessness, or unmet need — that the nurse addresses through the deliberative nursing process to relieve suffering.