self-care theory, a model, central to Dorothea Orem’s concept of nursing, used to provide a conceptual framework for nursing care directed to self-care by the client to the greatest degree possible. The model requires an assessment of the client’s capability for self-care and need for care. The need for care includes biophysical and psychosocial needs and the specific needs that are the result of the illness. See also Orem, Dorothea E.
