Peer Response

Nola Pender’s Health Promotion Model (HPM) is a middle-range theory that “focuses on explaining health-promoting behaviors, using a wellness orientation” (Polit & Beck, 2018, p. 126). Health promotion involves anything that helps to maintain or improve a person’s health and well-being. This model defines health as a “positive dynamic state,” not just the “absence of disease” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 1). The theory suggests that everyone has characteristics and experiences that are unique to them, which affect their actions in any given situation. These variables can be affected by nursing interventions. “Health-promoting behavior is the desired behavioral outcome, which makes it the end-point in the Health Promotion Model” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 2). The results are “improved health, enhanced functional ability, and better quality of life at all stages of development” (Petiprin, 2020, para. 2). I chose this model because promoting health is something I am passionate about. in my nursing practice, I do this every day while working with the elderly population and helping them manage their chronic conditions.  

Obesity is becoming the most prevalent nutritional disease in developing countries, with the primary causes being poor nutrition, stress, and inactivity. It is a chronic disease, and a known risk factor for high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and can diminish quality of life. A study conducted by Khodaveisi et al. investigated the effect of Pender’s HPM on improving the nutritional behaviors of overweight and obese women in Hamadan, Iran. The reported prevalence of overweight and obese women was “33.7% and 15.8%, respectively” (Khodaveisi et al., 2017, para. 7).   

One hundred eight women from 18 to 60 years old and a body mass index of 25 or higher were randomly selected and assigned to either the experimental or the control group. The data was gathered from both groups using questionnaires before the study and then again two months later. The experimental group received an HPM-based intervention (Khodaveisi et al., 2017).  

Before the intervention, neither the experimental group nor the control group showed healthy nutritional behaviors. After the intervention, there were significant differences in the experimental group in “nutritional behavior, perceived benefits, perceived self-efficacy, commitment to action, interpersonal and situational influences, behavior-related affect, and perceived barriers” (Khodaveisi et al., 2017, para. 3). The researchers demonstrated that unhealthy nutritional behaviors could be replaced with appropriate ones by promoting health knowledge.   

One limitation noted in this study was the inability to observe nutritional behaviors directly; therefore, information collected using questionnaires was subjective and could result in an inaccurate representation of some of the variables (Khodaveisi et al., 2017). In my opinion, this limitation does not take away from the study’s usefulness because one of our primary roles as nurses is to educate, and any step in a positive direction in overcoming the obesity problem needs to be celebrated.  

References 

Khodaveisi, M., Omidi, A., Farokhi, S., & Soltanian, A. R. (2017). 131: The effect of pender’s health promotion model in improving the nutritional behavior of overweight and obese women. BMJ Open, 7(Suppl 1). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-015415.131 

Petiprin, A. (2020, July 21). Pender’s Health Promotion Model. Nursing Theory. Retrieved September 17, 2021, from https://nursing-theory.org/theories-and-models/pender-health-promotion-model.php. 

 Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2018). Essentials of nursing research: Appraising evidence for nursing practice. Wolters Kluwer Health /Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. 

Hello Classmate,
You have made an outstanding post in response to this discussion. It is correct to note that Nola Pender’s Health Promotion Model (HPM) is a theory that uses wellness orientation to exploit the behaviors that promote health. Promoting health focuses on making changes to lower the risk of acquiring a chronic disease in clinical practice. As a result, the well-being of an individual is enhanced. I believe that this theory must have instilled in you a feeling of satisfaction since you help the elderly manage their chronic diseases. Consequently, the theory must have enlightened you more about some of the techniques you can apply to make them even better after reducing the risk of acquiring morbidities and chronic diseases. Since some chronic diseases such as cancer and obesity are becoming prevalent in different nations, this theory must have excellent points that can be applied to lower the risk of acquiring these illnesses.

Your focus on the prevalence of obesity shows clear exploitation of the researchers’ demonstration that unhealthy eating habits can be replaced with good ones. The development of obesity and other related illnesses could be reduced, causing an overall health promotion. I like how you have discussed the inability to directly observe behaviors as one of the theory’s limitations as it can cause inaccurate variables representation (Masoud Khodaveisi, 2017). To summarize, you have made a great post, and I concur with you that even though the theoretical concept has a limitation, it is still very useful.

References

Masoud Khodaveisi, A. O. (2017). The Effect Of Pender’s Health Promotion Model In Improving The Nutritional Behavior Of Overweight And Obese Women. BMJ Journals. Retrieved from https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/7/Suppl_1/bmjopen-2016-015415.131

Annotated Bibliography