Nursing Process Discipline and Independent Nursing Essay

A profession can be defined as a “prestigious occupation with a high degree of identification among its member that requires a length and rigorous education in an intellectually demanding and theoretically based course of study; that engages in rigorous self-regulation and control; that holds authority over clients; and that puts service to society above simple self interest” (Schwirian, 1998, p. 6). Nursing is just that, and with its specific body of knowledge, standards, and codes of ethics, it is only fitting that it be self-regulated (College of Nurses of Ontario, 2012). The College of Nurses works with registered nurses, registered practical nurses, and nurse practioners to determine whether or not standards and best practices are met and that the public’s safety is protected.

The nursing practise has continually evolved and can be described as autonomous due to the significant involvement of nurses in patient care. This then necessitates critical reflection as a way to continually develop and improve the nursing practise. The Gibbs' model, one of the reflection models, assists nurses in complying to the codes and guidelines of nursing practice. For example, developing action plans, evaluating patient outcomes, and thinking critically. This essay will describe an event involving nurses and explain the feelings it evoked. It will also provide an evaluation of the positives and negatives, analysis and enhancement of learning, and an action plan.

In this essay we are going to explore the connection between professional nursing practice and professional caring. I will outline the terms of professional nursing practice and what makes nursing a profession? I will describe the term of professional caring and the connection to the nursing practice and discuss the dilemma of care and cure. And also determine the importance of both in professional nursing practice.

As a nurse, an important part of the job is to be caring and helpful for the physical and mental aspects of the patient. The ideas of Jean Watson 's Caritas Processes help define how a nurse can show caring in themselves to their patients. Watson names the eight processes; then define they mean which is key to understanding how a nurse should act to their patients. The book as We Are Now by May Sarton helps show some examples of how these processes work in action and helps to form ideas of how one can improve as a nurse in the future.

In this assignment, the author has chose to critically analyse a situation where a second year nursing student Catherine, who is on a 7 week clinical placement is having an issue when communicating with patients at times.

The following essay is a reflective account on an event that I, a student nurse encountered whilst on my second clinical placement in my first year of study. The event took place in a Fountain Nursing Home in Granite City. I have chosen to give thought to the event described in this essay as I feel that it highlights the need for nurses to have effective communication skills especially when treating patients that are suffering with a mental illness. Upon arriving to the Nursing home for the second time on Thursday November 14,2013; assigned the same patient as before. On meeting my patient the first thing I noticed myself doing without even thinking about it was giving her a visual inspection. Before nursing school I never really looked at

As a nurse, communication is an essential and important factor to building a therapeutic relationship between a nurse and patient as it is the difference between average and excellent nursing care, as it helps maintain a good quality of life and allows nurses’ and patients to interact and provide comfort when needed. The importance of good communication can become apparent with patients especially when they are in the hospital, as it helps the nurses build a positive relationship with patients and helps overcome barriers including physical, psychological and social. A therapeutic relationship is built on many factors which include both verbal and non-verbal communication which helps maintains the relationship and strengthens it due to the positive impact it has not only on the patient’s experience but also the nurse’s.

There is a expectation for nurses to notice things about their patient or certain situations. Tanner (2006) mentions that this expectation is stemmed from “ nurses knowledge of a particular patient and his or her patterns of responses, clinical or practical knowledge of similar patients, drawn from experience, and their textbook knowledge” (p.208). The next aspect would be interpreting and responding. Once there nurse has a real grasp on what is going on, they are then triggered with how they should respond and handle certain situations. In this instance the nurse may know exactly what to do or they could find themselves in a hypothetico-deductive reasoning pattern. Lastly, the ability to reflect on situations helps the nurse grow in their profession. Tanner takes a moment to write about reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action. Reflection-in-action gives the nurse the power to read the patient. During this reflection the nurse can how the patient is reacting to certain interventions and if they need to be adjusted or not. On the other hand, reflection-on-action gives the nurse the opportunity to understand and think about the knowledge they gained from what they experienced. Reflection is part of the nurse’s duty of continuing their ongoing

LoBiondo-Wood and Haber describes phenomena as those things which are perceived by our senses. In this article phenomena is the nurse’s attitude and their practical use of restrains is the base of study. Mohler & Meyer (2014) used the systemic review of qualitative and quantitative research method because they had to discover information about their phenomenon from nurse’s experiences in geriatric setting.

Closely linked to this decision-making model is the ubiquitous nursing process. The nursing process includes data collection and documentation, analysis of the data to determine current condition and real or potential health related issues, development of an individualized plan of care to deal with these issues, implementation of that plan of care, and evaluation of the plan of care to determine its effectiveness and adjust the plan as needed. (Blais, Hayes, Kozier, & Erb, 2006)

The two clips compare two different approaches by the nurse to the patient. Non-verbal and verbal communication is both key factors in nurse patient relationships. Observing the first clip it can be seen where the patient is very stressed with pain and anxiety. The nurse's approach is abrupt and lacking empathy. The patient becomes more agitated. Whereas the second clip the nurse gently approaches the patient and sits down, talking in a calm point soothes the patient's anxiety as the nurse shows compassion and concern. The Code of Ethics for nurses emphasizes having empathy, respect and kindness to

When the nurse’s verbal and nonverbal interactions are congruent, he or she is thought to be expressing which characteristic of a therapeutic relationship?

In the professional setting, knowing the patient through his or her diagnosis, name, history of present illness, laboratory results or reason for staying in the hospital only contributes to the manner of physical care of the patient. However, recognizing the patient 's spiritual needs such as emotional support, mental positivity, and intellectual understanding of his or her situation gives a better assessment, as well as a trusting relationship between the nurse and the patient, as per personal experience. In the ward, it is evident that most of the staff nurses spend their time doing documentations, preparing medications, following-up laboratory requests, as well as reading through the patients ' charts to affirm the physician 's order. Throughout the duration of our shifts as student nurses, I see that the most that the staff nurses get to be conversant with the patient is when certain procedures (such as feeding through nasogastric tube, taking

Nursing is an art where human beings entrust their lives in the hands of another. It requires an in depth understanding of the physiological, pathophysiological, psychological, and emotional needs of a human being. Equipped with knowledge and observations, a nurse is able to formulate an individualized care plan that will meet the needs of the patient. Just as Florence Nightingale had described a painter or sculptor having devotion and preparation, the nurse too invests in continuously acquiring knowledge about her profession to come to near perfection with every sterile technique, every medication administration,

Nursing demands vigilance about people. The sights and smells that a patient offers, their movements and their offhand comments all contribute crucial information to understanding what they need. Training and experience heighten one's ability to see what needs to be seen. (Quote- Steven Amsterdam)