Nursing Process Discipline is a nursing theory developed by nursing theorist Ida Jean Orlando. This theory, one of the first written about the nursing process, was written to help establish nursing as an independent function in providing patient health care. Through this independent nursing function, Orlando developed her theory on the concept of nurse-patient interaction. During this interaction the nurse recognizes the patient's behavior as an “…immediate need for help” (George, 2011, p. 165). This “immediate” need must be correctly identified by the nurse, so that the nurse can provide assistance to alleviate the need for help experienced by the patient. Orlando's creation of the nursing process discipline helped to further solidify nursing as a profession and aimed to “…recognize the critical importance of patient participation and the nurse's intelligent deliberation in the nursing process” ( Sitzman & Eichelberger, 2011, p. 118). The purpose of this article is to introduce the reader to the basic concepts of Ida Jean Orlando's nursing theory and the operational correlation between the patient's behavior and the nurse's reaction to that behavior. Initial Concept, Recognition of Patient Behavior Patient behavior is the initial concept of the Orlando nursing discipline process. The nurse must learn to recognize different patient behaviors and apply nursing concepts to that behavior. Patient behavior is characterized by both verbal and nonverbal behaviors. Verbal behaviors discussed by George (2011) include “…all patients use language” (p. 166). Ida Jean Orlando's examples of this, listed by George (2011) are “complaints…, requests…., questions…, refusal…, requests…, and… comments or statements” (p. 166). Nonverbal behavior......middle of paper......profession. A continuum in assessing the patient as an individual is the foundation of Ida Jean Orlando's nursing and nursing process theory. Works Cited by the American Nurses Association. (2009, July 8). The nursing process: a common thread among all nurses. Nursing world: Caring for those who care. Retrieved from: http://nursingworld.org/specialforyou/studentnurses/thenursingprocess.aspxGeorge, J.B. (2011). Discipline of the nursing process: Ida Jean Orlando. In J. B. George (Ed.), Nursing theories: The basis for professional nursing practice. (6th ed., pp. 162-180). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.Sitzman, KL, & Eichelberger LW (2011) Ida Jean Orlando-Pelletier's Nursing Process Theory. In A. Sibley, P. Donnelly, & R. Shuster (Eds.), Understanding the work of nurse theorists: A creative beginning (pp.117-122). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.