What's in the name (Autobiograpy & Characteristics of Theory )

FOUR CONSERVATION PRINCIPLES OF NURSING

Theorist: MYRA ESTRIN LEVINE

Born: Chicago, Illinois in 1920

Died: Hospice of the North Shore at Evanston Hospital in 1996.

Nursing Education History:

Myra Levine developed an interest in nursing due to her father’s GI problems. She obtained a diploma in nursing at Cook County School of Nursing in 1944.She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at University of Chicago in 1949, and got her Master of Science in Nursing at Wayne State University in 1962.

Career Milestones in Nursing Profession and Science:

Levine had enjoyed a varied career. Her nursing experience included staff nursing, administrative and teaching supervision, clinical instruction, and direction of nursing services.

Published Article

Her paper entitled "Trophicognosis: An Alternative to Nursing Diagnosis," can be found in the American Nurses' Association publication Exploring Progress in Medical-Surgical Nursing Practice, New York, 1966, vol. 2.

Distinctions/Awards

•  A charter fellow of the American Academy of Nursing(1973)
• An honorary membership in the American Mental Health Aid to Israel (1976)
• Honorary Recognition from the Illinois Nurses' Association
• Member of Sigma Theta Tau (Alpha Beta Chapter, Loyola University)
• Enlisted in Who's Who in Americal Women (1977-1988)
• Enlisted in Who's Who in American Nursing (1987)
• Elected fellow in the Institute of Medicine of Chicago (1987-1991)
•   First recipient of the Elizabeth Russel Belford Award for excellence in teaching from Sigma Theta Tau (1977)
•  Both the first and second editions of her book, Introduction to Clinical Nursing, received American Journal of Nursing (AJN) Book of the Year awards and her 1971 book, Renewal for Nursing was translated to Hebrew
• Awarded Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Loyola University of Chicago (1992)

Extracurricular Activities

Levine  was an active leader in the American Nurses Association and the Illinois Nurses' Association. A dynamic speaker, she was a frequent presenter on programs, workshops, seminars and panels, and a prolific writer regarding nursing and education.

Although she never intended to develop theory, she provided an organizational structure for teaching medical-surgical nursing and a stimulus for theory development. "The Four Conservation Principles of Nursing" was the first statement of the conservation principles.

Other preliminary work included "Adaptation and Assessment: A Rationale for Nursing Intervention," "For Lack of Love Alone," and "The Pursuit of Wholeness." The first edition of the book was published in 1973. Afterwards, Levine presented the conservation principles at nurse theory conferences, some of which have been audiotaped, and at the Allentown College of St. Francis de Sales Conferences in April 1984.

Influential Beings

Levine’s theory drew from many other people’s ideas and viewpoints. She learned historical viewpoints of diseases and the way people think about disease changes over time from Beland's presentation of the theory of specific causation and multiple factors. Levine used James E. Gibson's definition of perceptual systems, Erik Erikson's differentiation between total and whole, Hans Selye's stress theory, and M. Bates' models of external environment.Kurt Goldstein, Sir Arthur Sherrington, and Rene Dubos were also influential in her work.Martha Rogers was her first editor.

Characteristics of the Theory

1.  Levine’s work is categorized as a conceptual model of nursing and is an example of the works of those often referred to as the grand theories in nursing which are comprehensive and tend to include major concepts with which nursing is concerned.
2. Levine’s model possesses clarity. The model has numerous terms; however, Levine was able to adequately define them.
3. Levine also used deductive logic in developing her model which can be used to generate research questions. She integrated theories and concepts from the humanities and the sciences and used this information to analyze nursing practice situations and described nursing skills and activities with the underlying belief that people are dependent on their relationships with other people.
4. It interrelates concepts in such a way as to create a different way of looking at a particular phenomenon. Ideas about nursing, the concepts of illness, adaptation, nursing interventions, and evaluation of nursing interventions are joined together and synthesized in such a way that the viewpoint of nursing care changes, grows and evolves.
5. It has logical nature. Levine’s ideas about nursing are organized in such a way as to be sequential and logical. They can be used to explain the consequences of nursing actions. There are no apparent contradictions in her ideas.
6. A simple yet generalizable theory. Levine’s theory is easy to use. Its major elements are easily comprehensible, and the relationships have the potential for being complex but are easily manageable. 
7. Levine’s ideas can be tested. Hypotheses can be derived from them. The principles of conservation are specific enough to be testable. For example, it is possible to test if physiological structure is being supported or improved, thus testing the principle of conservation of structural integrity.
8. Levine’s ideas can be used by practitioners to guide and improve their practice. Paula E. Crawford-Gamble successfully applied Levine’s theory to a female patient undergoing surgery for the traumatic amputation of fingers.
9. Levine’s ideas seem to be consistent with other theories, laws and principles, particularly those from the humanities and sciences, and many questions are left unanswered which would be worthy of investigation.
10.  Levine's theory for nursing focuses on one person - the patient. In utilizing this theory the nurse is concerned with the patient’s family and/or significant others only to the point that they influence or have an offer on the patient's progress. Nursing is human interaction.