The family, crisis and chronic illness: an evolutionary model

Title

The family, crisis and chronic illness: an evolutionary model

Creator

Shaw MC; Halliday PH

Publisher

Journal Of Advanced Nursing

Date

1992

Subject

Female; Humans; Attitude to Health; Systems Theory; Role; adolescent; Models; Family/psychology; Parent caregivers; Nursing; Crisis Intervention; Chronic Disease/nursing/psychology; Emergencies/nursing/psychology

Description

While chronic illness has a profound impact upon the individual, an immense burden is imposed upon the family. When the competing demands of an illness and the family escalate exponentially, there may be a crisis. Traditionally, crisis theory has been applied to acute care contexts such as emergency, intensive care and mental health nursing. Yet, clinical experience with families and chronic illness supports the notion of periodic crises from the prediagnostic phase to the long-haul of the illness. Moreover, the authors hypothesize that the family's perception of the event determines whether the crisis is perceived as a threat or a challenge. This paper thus addresses the perception of crisis within the framework of chronic illness from a biological and family systems nursing perspective. First, the theory of Humberto Maturana, a Chilean biologist, is explored and applied to clinical observations regarding family, crisis and chronic illness. Second, an evolutionary model for conceptualizing crisis and chronic illness is presented. Third, the role of beliefs in the family perceptions of crisis and chronic illness is discussed.
1992

Rights

Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).

Type

Journal Article

Citation List Month

Backlog

Citation

Shaw MC; Halliday PH, “The family, crisis and chronic illness: an evolutionary model,” Pediatric Palliative Care Library, accessed February 13, 2025, https://pedpalascnetlibrary.omeka.net/items/show/11950.