My Personal Nursing Philosophy

Task You are required to reflect on your own and your family's experience of health care, and the experiences, beliefs and assumptions that have led you to choose to study nursing. You are then required to explore the views and theories articulated by nursing theorists published in scholarly literature, and apply what you learn to develop a personal nursing philosophy of care (1800 words +/- 10% including in-text references). Introduction The focus of this essay is to demonstrate an understanding of my own experiences of health care, and beliefs and assumptions that have led me to choose to study nursing.

This paper brings up my personal nursing philosophy that I am planning to deliver in my nursing career. I believe that nursing is more than merely as a profession, it also involves my medical knowledge combined it with a commitment to quality nursing care with compassion, respect, dignity, and advocacy for each patient. I believe that the interdisciplinary care and collaboration in the medical field are crucial elements that lead to a healthy relationship among healthcare professionals in promoting quality patient care that is individualized to each patient’s needs.

Every individual typically holds a personal philosophy about life which includes beliefs and values that help shape our choices and lead us to specific life path or in a certain direction. Very similarly every nurse has a philosophy about nursing and their career. Every nurse has guidelines that they choose to follow and motives for why certain choices are made. In order to develop a philosophy of nursing a nurse must reflect on the characteristics that they abide by and by which they base their nursing care. A nursing philosophy defines the motives behind why the nurse puts their heart and soul into their career. A personal nursing philosophy produces an individual viewpoint for nursing care, research, and education (Hood, 2014). In order to have a personal philosophy or a nursing philosophy, a nurse needs to understand themselves. Not one philosophy is permanent, right, or wrong and a personal philosophy is subject to change at any time (Hood, 2014).

The development of a philosophy related to the profession of nursing is important in that it provides a framework for the nurse to base his/her work on. Philosophy is defined by Merriam-Webster as “a search for a general understanding of values and reality by chiefly speculative rather than observational means”. In other words, philosophies are based on beliefs and assumptions with an overall goal of obtaining an objective which states the nurse’s purpose in the profession. In my undergraduate nursing program I was exposed to multiple nursing concepts that guided my practice. Coupled with my ten years of experience in the nursing field, I was enabled to formulate my own framework or guide to nursing. The paradigm which resonates with me the most is the interactive-integrative perspective as it views practice “as having multiple, interrelated parts in relation to a specific context.” (Newman, Sime, & Corcoran-Perry, 1991, p.38). My framework includes three main components: the client, the professional nurse, and the nurse-client relationship.

The purpose of this assignment is to enable the student, myself, to rediscover his or her personal philosophy of nursing as it exists upon the completion of the baccalaureate nursing program. Throughout the semesters, the view I had on what nursing meant to me has grown deeper, but one thing has stayed the same; my philosophy. In my philosophy project from the very first semester, I stated that nursing involves many different parts that all come together to make one great final end product, just like cookies. I compared nursing parts and all the different items nurses bring into the field, to being similar to the ingredients used to make cookies. I still believe that nursing is comprised of many different parts that all come together in order to give the best patient care possible. The personal philosophy paper now is an extension on that first semester’s assignment, to show the growth and development I have had while in this nursing program. It will explore what my personal definition of nursing is, the purpose of nursing, what assumptions in nursing there are, and will conclude with the principles of nursing.

I believe that nursing is like a platform of servanthood. Nursing is “the diagnosis and treatment of human responses to health and illness and the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, facilitation of healing, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, groups, communities, and populations” (American Nurses Association, 2018). Florence Nightingale defined nursing as an “art” and “differentiated nursing from medicine” (as cited in LeMone, 2011, p. 10). Jean Watson stated that nursing is individualized and it is the “process of nursing based on the assessment of the concepts in the patient model and individualization of nursing based on logical use of the process; assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating. As much as possible, the patient should be involved in each phase of the process” (as cited in McEwen & Wills, 2011, p. 167). I am a professional. It shows by my appearance in scrubs or uniform because my image is important to the patient. My clothing should be clean and my hairstyle intact. Along with practicing hand hygiene, my fingernails should be kept low and only a wristwatch placed upon my wrist. Cohen, Bartholomew, Swihart, and Tomajan (2014) noted research study findings in which nurses identified several actions that they felt shape patient perception of them, such as whether

In conclusion, I feel that the philosophy of nursing is a combination of core values, and beliefs that teaches us to treat each human being with the respect, compassion, dignity, and uniqueness, regardless of disease, social or economic status, or race that they deserve. My focus with each patient will be to allow them to have the right to be involved in the decision making of their care as well as allowing their family members to be involved in the decision making. I will maintain my beliefs and values by treating every patient, or coworker with respect that they deserve. I believe that each person has a calling in life and it takes a special person to become a nurse.

A nursing philosophy is concepts or values that a nurse embraces within his/her practice and allows these concepts and values to shape the way he/she practices nursing and drives the purpose of their nursing care. It is important for each nurse to develop his/her philosophy of nursing to be a purpose driven nurse. Each nurse will have his/her own nurse philosophy because each believes differently. Nursing philosophies might come from different understandings but still point to one thing. They point towards the benefit and for the good of the client. Nursing philosophies can have several key concepts that are used in nursing models that include: client, health, environment and nursing.

According to the American Nurses Association, “Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations” (ANA, 2010b). Nursing has come a long ways. From primitive times when caring for the sick was predominantly the rule of medicine-men who acquired the skills from their ancestors, to the era when it was viewed as a mean profession for prostitutes and nowadays when it is considered a noble profession with trained and skilled personnel.

The integration of nursing theories with a philosophical perspective lays the framework for nursing practice (McCurry, Revell & Roy, 2008). My philosophy of nursing is to provide holistic care meeting the physical, social, economic, cognitive, and spiritual health of a person. This philosophy embraces the four elements of the nursing metaparadigm, which is person, environment, health, and nursing. While theorists have differing concepts and definitions of nursing, the American Nurses Association (ANA), defines it as follows; “Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and

As a nurse, it will be my job to promote healthy lifestyles, such as eating healthy foods, exercising, receiving enough sleep, and the avoidance of dangerous habits, like drinking or smoking. In an attempt to not be a hypocrite, I will also have to live a healthy life, because if a patients notices that I am overweight for example, they will be less inclined to listen to my advice. Healthy habits not only affect a person, but also that person’s family, friends, or community. For example second-hand smoking is just as deadly as smoking. As a result, I strive to communicate the importance of a healthy

To understand nursing philosophy, you must first understand what nursing means to you as an individual. To me nursing as well as nursing philosophy involves providing individualized holistic care to a patient, family, community, or even one’s own self. Holistic care is providing care involving the mind, body, spirit, and environment.

My personal philosophy of nursing is based on my understanding and knowledge of medicine combined with practical, compassionate patient based care that culturally respects each patient while at the same time fulfilling their healthcare needs. My philosophy focuses just not on delivering patient based

In the fall of 1862, a war raged between the union and confederate forces at the Battle of Antietam. More than 130,000 soldiers fought, more than 22,000 were wounded. On the battlefront was a woman, Ms. Clara Barton, nicknamed the “Angel of the Battlefield”. Ms. Barton observed the strain of frontline battle, namely hunger, sickness, and wounds and once said “I may be compelled to face danger, but never fear it, and while our soldiers can stand and fight, I can stand and feed and nurse them”. (CITATION) It is this same dedication to nursing and our armed forces that drives my philosophy of nursing.

Nursing has a long history of debate over defining the definition of nursing. Much of this debate has been centered on political views that often scrutinize the nursing profession and label nurses as subordinates. Definitions of nursing reflect society’s values and influence and subjected the profession to many misinterpretations. One common misconception was that a nurse was inferior to a physician because they followed orders. It was imperative for nurses to define their image and profession to ensure respect, value, identity and scope of practice. Historically, the nurse’s sole responsibility was to provide care and comfort for the sick. As nursing continued to evolve over centuries, advances in knowledge, health promotion, and prevention expanded the need for nurses to create a more diverse definition as it relates to modern day time to meet the needs of each client holistically. In 2010 the ANA developed the following definition of nursing: “Nursing is the protection, promotion and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations” (ANA, 2010, p. 10).