Only through the understanding of examples can the power to understand and explain be derived. Now the next question that the situation poses is to determine what exactly the form of inquiry that can be exercised is. The question has to be one that allows for the student to remain aligned to the Rogerian Paradigm. One of the earliest examples of a noninvasive medical procedure was the therapeutic touch according to Rogers.
In her 1970 book, An Introduction to the Theoretical Basis of Nursing, Rogers is of the opinion that man is in the process of bartering matter and energy with his environment at all times; and there is a continuous flowing of energy waves that occurs in rhythms. Very similarly, the Therapeutic touch is also considered to be a process that entails the exchange of matter and energy between the medical practitioner and the patient. Rogers has outlined certain assumptions in order to strengthen the validity of her point of view.
According to Rogers, she chooses to outline the four postulates that influence the therapeutic touch to include energy fields, the open systems that constitute the universe, pan-dimensionality and the patterns within patterns. Rogers has served to significantly redefine the ideology of homeodynamics according to her 1980 definition of resonancy in which she was of the opinion that the human and the fields of the human environment are consisting of waves. These waves are ones that undergo a continuous change at all times. This change is in frequency as well as wavelength.
The waves tend to change from low frequency and long wave patterns to relatively high frequency and relatively shorter wave patterns. Rogers chose to clarify that it was the contact between the human and these environment fields that of a continuous nature. Not only that, but this continuous flow is also simultaneously in the fact that it is not a one way street, instead the flow of these waves is always in both directions and is therefore considered to be mutual. The nature of the change in these waves is characterized to be uninterrupted, impulsive and increasing in multiplicity.
According to Rogers, the human and his environment are not to be considered as two separate entities but part of one whole environment. Rogers considers these two constituents of the environment inseparable. Hence there is very seldom any exchanging of these waves between them. Hence in light of Rogers’ concept, Krieger’s idea would also make sense, that a person who is fit and healthy is more better capable of transmitting his/her energy to the patient rather than one who is either as sick or as weak as the patient himself.
Needless to say, the energy store of the patient has depleted which is why the person is a patient and is being subjected to medical attention in the first place. The energy level of the patient has undergone a severe drain. However, it must be highlighted here that to date, no mechanism, device or measure has been developed through which the degree of exchange of these energy waves can be measured. What differentiates Rogers’ concept is that the Rogerian concept allows the therapeutic touch to be considered as a part of nursing; Rogerian nursing to be more specific, and not a part of some form of alternative medicine.
Rogers is of the opinion that there is no one-to-one interaction between the patient and the nurse. There is nothing that introduces one to the other. Instead, the nurse severs as a highly significant of the environment around the patient and serves to help the patient recover through the influence the nurse has upon that environment. Therefore, the phenomenon of significance to observe is not the nurse and patient communication but the patient and the environment interaction.