Defining attributes of self-care Assay

The concept of self-care is analyzed from the field of nursing. Avant and Walkers theoretical model of analysis provided information for the study. Self-care was defined through different field and correlated with relevant terms. Terms like, antecedents, empirical referents, consequences of self-care concept, and references were examined. Model cases, borderline, related cases, invented cases, contrary cases, and illegitimate cases were correlated with an ESRD patient. The concept of self-care, the factors of occurrence of self-care, and empirical referents were explored in the study.

Aim of Analysis: The aim of the concept is to develop an operational definition of theoretical concept of self-care.

Self-care is important to humanity and nursing. Self-care influences the lives of patients and the nursing profession. Self-care is a to a patient, thus increasing the knowledge and independence of the patient. Self-care educational program improves the life of ESRD patients because it provides the patient with knowledge of his or her diseases and the ability to carry on with his or her daily activities. Self-care education will reduce the dependence on nurses and will reduce the number of avoidable pain, discomfort and even death suffered by patients. Self-care is a scheme or mechanism that empowers a CKD or ESRD patients during the early stages of dialysis (Backmann & Hentinen, 1999). An ESRD patient loses control of his or her mental state thus, requiring assistance and support. This procedure helps nurses formulate a training program to for CKD or ESRD patients. Patients who can sit and see how things are done could assist themselves as their situation improves. This will be achieved through educational procedure. Self-care program will have a positive influence on humanity, the nursing profession and the ESRD or CKD patient.

Purpose of Analysis
The purpose of the study is to determine the influence of self-care on the quality of life of an ESRD patient. This analysis will correlate the importance of self-care to humanity, and its importance in the nursing profession. Self-care program will empower the patients to adequately control his or her environment and self, thus, to the limitations of healthcare management, nursing shortages. Patients with End Stage renal disease usually have poor adherence to fluid restrictions. Improving adherence by use of an education program on self-care will aid in improving the quality of life for these patients. Orem (2003) said nursing care revolves around three major things: giving care to a patient; giving instructions to a patient on how to care for them and helping the patient achieve self-care. Giving care to a patient may seem easy to achieve without self-care of the patient; this is not the case. Every nursing procedure requires consent (Clark, 1995). This consent may be hard to achieve if the patient does not have self-care. It is an aspect of self-care which makes an individual recognize symptoms of a disease and (Katz & Kelvin, 1980). There are two major goals of nursing: Ensuring a patient meets their daily health care requirements and ensuring patient participation in his or her health care as directed by the health service provider (Gaffney & Moore, 1996). For nurses to achieve their goals they should understand the concept of self-care.

Miller (1992) says that the importance of self-care in a patient with chronic illness cannot be overemphasized. To achieve quality of life in the management of chronic illness, the patient should have self-care skills (Bandura, 1986). End Stage Renal Disease is a chronic disease. Its management involves among other things, fluid restrictions; protein restrictions and sodium and potassium restrictions (Jenerette & Murdaugh, 2008). This is due to the function of the kidney in regulating fluid, ionic composition and protein. In the pathophysiology of End Stage Renal Disease, the functions of the kidney are severely compromised. The patient is required to limit intake of these substances to improve health (Barofsky, 1987).