My Nursing Philosophy
I intend to stand by my philosophy of nursing in my entire nursing career. Dahnke and Dreher (2006) state that nursing philosophy is how one defines nursing to best suit their work as a nurse, and how it helps one perform their daily duties both in the hospital and the community. My philosophy aims at providing holistic care to the patients and doing all I have to at ensuring patient safety to the best of my ability. I have worked as a nurse for the past nine years and realized that there is far more in nursing than just providing medical care. The system’s model by Betty Neuman explains that individuals have variables that make their life unique. The variables are believed to be a collection of interpersonal, intrapersonal and extra-personal stressors (Kozier, 2012). The primary area of interest in the model is the provision of primary, secondary and tertiary care to minimize the stressors in patients. I have realized that each patient I provide care for is unique. Therefore, to ensure proper care, I always try to understand the variables in the life of each.
I believe that to provide proper care to patients; I must learn more to acquire additional skills and expertise, hence, the reason for the continued education up to this level. I have also come to understand that nursing is a bit of art and more of science, but one has to possess both skills for provision of quality work. As far as one can say they love nursing by word of mouth, they should be good at hands-on in nursing. Science, on the other hand, describes the human body thus a nurse should have sound knowledge of anatomy and physiology of human beings (Dahnke and Dreher, 2016). Nursing being an art and science makes me motivated to learn and acquire the relevant knowledge needed to better my career and provide holistic care to the patients.
Values and beliefs are crucial in the development of an individual’s career either in Nursing or any other field. I believe that I am a good nurse, a person who others look at and admire. I believe in professionalism, and one of the competencies of a nurse is continuous education and research. My master’s programme aims at exploring more into nursing and conduction of extensive research to provide precious information that will give me access to more nursing care options and more in-depth understanding of who a nurse is. My nursing philosophy is surrounded by four main parameters namely the humans/persons, environment, health, and nursing as a whole.
Humans/Persons
The client or the person refers to the individual that I am going to provide care to in the hospital. In several occasions, nurses deliver care to patients than clients. Based on experience and believes the patient almost entirely depends on the nurse for the provision of care (Cody, 2013). This trust between the patient and the nurse matters in the healing process. The most important thing about the patient is care delivery and optimum care aimed at the well-being of the patient. I have always done my best to the patients I have come across. What I have noted with most of them is that they think a nurse should do everything to them. That is not true because the nurse facilitates your healing and the patient is part of the healing team.
Each patient is unique, and patient’s needs vary with the condition. As a nurse, one of my responsibilities is to look into the diagnosis and determine how it affects the well being of my patient. Neuman’s theory provides an assessment of a patient as an open system that works together with the exchange of information and reaction with other variables (Kozier, 2012). The model also addresses the five needs of the patient: psychological, physiological, spiritual, socio-cultural and developmental needs. The nurse must evaluate each of the requirements and provide appropriate interventions after making a plan of care. In the end, the nurse can take care of the needs of the patient.
The Environment
Environment refers to the surrounding where the patient is hospitalized. It cannot be defined to be only the physical structures but also the mental safety of the patient. The environment forms a platform where the society lives in. It involves the area where the person stays, home structure and the people. Mental care provides a cool internal environment because the spiritual and emotional aspects are covered. The significant others are also part of those who receive care from the nurse. All the interactions between the environment, recipient of care and the society are dynamic and synergistic.
For efficient service delivery, the environment must be conducive to the patient and the health team. A clean room that is well spaced and noise free promotes faster healing. Also, the confidentiality of the patient increases when the environment is favorable. The psychological status forms an immediate internal environment of the patient. Mostly the nurse concentrates on care delivery, and they ignore the mental health of the patient. Both the psychological and physical environment contributes to the patient’s health.
Health
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as a state of physical, emotional, mental and psychological well-being of an individual and not merely absence of a disease (Fawcett et al. 2013). The above definition, therefore, depicts that a person can be having an illness but at the same time termed as healthy. What a contradiction. I believe that health of the person starts with the physique of the individual and how they exclusively define health. Neuman reflects on the health status of an individual as wellness in harmony of all aspects of the person’s life. The state of health varies from worse to better to worse. The nurse assesses the patient’s health and works to restore the functioning of all the body systems.
Nursing
Nursing is an art and science that deals with the provision of care to the patient. I think the nursing component focuses on the attributes and characteristics of the nurse practitioner. Nursing is a profession whereby quality work with the use of relevant skills is required. Communication and teamwork is another attribute that dominates the nursing profession. The application of ethical principles in care of the patient distinguishes a real nurse from just caregivers. Justice, beneficence, non-maleficence, and veracity form the core guidelines in nursing care provision. Empathy is the ability to suit oneself into the shoes of the patient hence providing care as if you were the patient. Critical thinking is helpful in differentiating safe from unsafe acts in nursing. If a nurse is unable to think critically, then they are in danger in the field of medicine. A combination of the attributes makes a competent nurse that can be trusted by the patients and colleagues.
Values in Conflict with Practice
Healthcare should be effective and efficient for quality provision of care. Evidence-based practices have shown that ethical dilemmas arise when trying to make the health of individuals efficient and effective. Effective healthcare aims at achieving the desired outcome (Kozier, 2012). I have had problems when trying to achieve the desired outcomes in health for instance pain management in chronically ill patients. Sometimes the result of preserving life comes with consequences such as continued suffering making it challenging to make a clear decision. I would instead save an individual from the pain that let them live as they suffer. Efficiency is the second ethical dilemma that gives nurses a challenge to maintain. It means using fewer resources in achieving the desired outcome (Fawcett et al. 2013). I have had difficulties in providing care to individuals who do not have enough money to pay for their services. As a nurse, the primary concern should be patient safety, but hospital policies and regulations make it difficult to make choices.
Gifts to Clinical Practice
Nursing is a way of giving back to the society and helping people when they are in their hour of need. Personally, nursing is a profession that makes me satisfied with helping people. I enjoy when helping others especially the elderly who have been abandoned by their loved ones. I want my patients to trust my ability to care for them and feel secure when I am in control. Others view nursing as a way of making money, but I view it as a way of providing care. If there is one area that I have to perfect is spiritual care. I will also like to work in decision making by reading more about ethical decision-making models and how to solve moral dilemmas in healthcare provision.
Conclusion
My philosophy is easily carried into my professional life as a nurse making nursing enjoyable all the time. I work to the very best giving optimum care to the sick, advancing my knowledge of nursing care and living a life of acceptance that I am a nurse by profession. I believe nursing is my career of choice and I will live my philosophy of nursing every day of my life.
References
Cody, W. K. (2013). Philosophical and theoretical perspectives for advanced nursing practice. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Dahnke, M. D., & Dreher, H. M. (2016). Philosophy of science for nursing practice: Concepts and applications.
Fawcett, J., & Desanto-Madeya, S. (2013). Contemporary nursing knowledge: Analysis and evaluation of nursing models and theories. Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis.
Kozier, B. (2012). Fundamentals of nursing: Concepts, process and practice. Harlow, England: Pearson.
