Dr. Stuart’s Stress Adaptation Model
About the Nursing Model
- Dr. Gail Stuart’s Stress Adaptation Model of health and wellness provides a consistent nursing-oriented framework, with clear explanations of biological, psychological, sociocultural, environmental, and legal-ethical components.
- Dr. Stuart’s Adaption Models provide a structure for thinking, observing, and interpreting what is seen. Conceptual nursing models are frames of reference within which patients, their environment and health states, and nursing activities are described. Dr. Stuart’s theory model includes psychiatric nursing care, which integrates various aspects of patient care into a unified framework for practice.
- Her Stress Adaptation Model of health and wellness provides a consistent nursing-oriented framework (Stuart, 2009).
Assumptions
- “Nature is ordered as a social hierarchy from the simplest unit to the most complex and the individual is a part of the family, group, community, society, and the larger biosphere.”
- “Nursing care is provided within a biological, psychological, sociocultural, environmental, and legal-ethical context.”
- Health/illness and adaptation/maladaptation (nursing worldview) are two distinct continuums.
- The model includes the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of prevention by describing four discrete stages of psychiatric treatment: crisis, acute, maintenance, and health promotion.
Nursing care is based on the use of the nursing process and the standards of care and professional performance for psychiatric nurses.
Major Concepts of the Stress Model
- Biopsychosocial approach: a holistic perspective that integrates biological, psychological, and sociocultural aspects of care.
- Predisposing factors: risk factors such as the genetic background.
- Precipitating stressors: stimuli that the person perceives as challenging such as life events.
- Appraisal of stressor: an evaluation of the significance of a stressor.
Coping Resources: options or strategies that help determine what can be done as well as what is at stake; Adaptation or Maladaptation, Levels of Prevention (Primary, Secondary, Tertiary).
Four Stages of Psychiatric Treatment & Nursing Care:
- Crisis stage
- Acute stage
- Maintenance stage
- Health promotion stage & Conclusion
Conclusion
- Stuart Stress Adaptation Model can be used across psychiatric settings.
- This model is based on standards of psychiatric nursing care and professional performance.
Strengths
- Stuart Stress Adaptation Model can be used across psychiatric settings.
- This model is based on standards of psychiatric nursing care and professional performance.
Additional Information & References
- Diagram and Outline of Dr. Stuart’s Model
- Dr. Stuart’s Contact Information at Medical University of South Carolina
- Online slides/notes
- Stuart, G. W. (2013). Principles and practice of psychiatric nursing. 10th ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Elsevier.
