1. Kolcaba’s Theory of Comfort
Sarah McClure, RN
Stephanie Coronado, rn
Melissa Shea, rn

2. Purpose Statement
“The technical term for comfort in relation to health care is the immediate state of being strengthened by having the needs for relief, ease, and transcendence addressed in the four contexts of holistic human experience: physical, psychospiritual, sociocultural, and environmental,” (
Kolcaba states, “The overall purpose of the comfort theory was to highlight the importance of comforting our patients in this high tech world,” (

3. Concept: Nursing and Health
Nursing is “The intentional assessment of comfort needs, design of comfort measures to address those needs, and re-assessment of patients, families, or community comfort after implementation of comfort measures, compared to a previous baseline” (
“Health is considered optimal functioning of the patient, the family, the healthcare provider, or the community” (Masters, p. 380). Some examples would be: rest, nutrition, and the management of health concerns as well as pain control.

4. Concept: Person and Environment
According to Kolcaba a person is a “recipient of care [and] may be individuals, families, institutions, or communities in need of health care.” (Masters, p. 380).
“The environment includes any aspect of the patient, family, or institutional setting that can be manipulated by the nurse, a loved one, or the institution to enhance comfort” (Masters, p. 380). This can refer to room temperature, lighting, the layout, and aesthetics.

5. Application for Evidence Based Practice
Nursing theory can be used for evidence based practice if there is research supporting the application. The Comfort Theory has been utilized in multiple populations from cardiac, to pediatric, labor and delivery, perianesthesia, hospice, and many more.
Comfort questionaires available at
American Society of Perianesthesia Nurses developed the comfort clinical guideline to increase education to perianesthesia nurses and to increase optimal pain management to patients in this sector.

6. Contemporary Application of Kolcaba’s Theory of Comfort
The Comfort Theory has real world application in the contemporary health care environment at local, regional, and global levels.
Hospital quiet times and pain intervention (Krinsky, Murillo, & Johnson, 2014)
Community Health Education
Application by disciplines other than nursing (March & McCormack, 2009)
Comfort is a universal theme- spanning cultures, religions, and continents (

7. References
Kolcaba, K. Y. (1994). A theory of holistic comfort for nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 19(6),
Kolcaba’s Comfort Theory References Kolcaba, K. (2007, May 3). An introduction to comfort theory. In the comfort line . Retrieved February 24, 2015, from / Kolcaba, K.
Kolcaba, K.Y. (2003). Comfort Theory and Practice. New York, NY: Springer. Retrieved from:
Masters, K., (2012). Theory of comfort: Katharine Kolcaba. In Nursing Theories: A framework for professional practice (p.380). Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC.
American Society of Perianesthesia Nurses. Pain and Comfort Care Guidelines. Cherry Hill, NJ Retrieved April 2, 2015 from