The Role Of An Adult Nurse

Nurse – A nurse works with people of all different ages. There are many different types of nurses but every nurse’s main role is to be caring and nurse their patient back to health.

I personally define nursing as aiding in the recovery and survival of another person using the specialized knowledge, ability, and critical thinking skills attained through study and experience. The word nurse translates in Latin to nourish. This Latin translation reveals that nurses nourish when a person is in need. Angelo Gonzalo (2011) states, “Nursing is an art through which the practitioner of nursing gives specialized assistance to persons with disabilities which makes more than ordinary assistance necessary to meet needs for self-care” (Major Concepts section, para. 1). Nursing requires a diligent and hardy person to be able to assess the situation, access the appropriate knowledge and skills, and accordingly provide the care a person needs.

“Nursing encompasses autonomous and collaborative care of individuals of all ages, families, groups and communities, sick or well and in all settings. Nursing includes the promotion of health, prevention of illness, and the care of ill, disabled and dying people. Advocacy, promotion of a safe environment, research, participation in shaping health policy and in patient and health systems management, and education are also key nursing roles” (ICN 2010)

Nursing is primarily assisting the individual (sick or well) in the performance of those activities contributing to health or his recovery (or to a peaceful death) that he would perform unaided if he had the necessary strength, will, or knowledge. (as cited in Cox, Cline, & Reed, 2007, p. 93)

Communication is life long learning skills for nurses. Communication can be in different forms. It can be verbal or non verbal. Communication is important

Nursing is the use of clinical judgement in the provision of care to enable people to improve, maintain, or recover health, to cope with health problems, and to achieve the best possible quality of life, whatever their disease or disability, until death. (Royal College of Nursing, 2003, p. 3). The definition expresses the common core of nursing which remains constant, though different models and codes.

To enable individuals to improve, maintain, or recuperate health, to cope with health problems, and to achieve the best possible quality of life, whatever their disease or disability, until death, is undertaken by the use of clinical judgement in the provision of care. Nurses advance health, healing, growth and development and prevent disease, illness, injury and disability. Simultaneously they minimise distress and suffering. They enable patients and families to acknowledge and cope with their disease or disability,

Being a nurse means that there are multiple responsibilities to juggle, working with both young and old people, with numerous priorities ranging from counselling and teaching to giving medication.

Nurses support and enable individuals, families and groups to maintain, restore or improve their health status. Nurse also care for and comfort when deterioration of health has become irreversible. A traditional ideal of nursing is caring and nurturing of human beings regardless of race, religion, status, age, gender, diagnosis, or any other grounds.

ReferencesAlexander, M. F., Fawcett, J. M., & Runciman, P. J. (Eds.). (2004). Nursing practice hospital and home - The adult (2nd ed.). Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.

Nurses are known as the heart of health care. Being a nurse is a demanding job that requires commitment, but does not lack rewards. A fact stated by the American Association of Colleges of Nurses claims that “Nurses comprise the largest single component of hospital staff, are the primary providers of hospital patient care, and deliver most of the nation 's long-term care” (“Nursing Fact Sheet”). With many roles throughout the healthcare system as a whole, nurses are a large, very important role that interacts with every other part of the health care system. They have great qualities that not everyone has. They are highly compassionate, caring, professional, diligent and understanding individuals. A nurse experiences people at their worst and still care for patients in a way that no one else would. All these honest points prove that nurses are the most important members of the health care system because, nurses spend the most time with patients, nurses are the managers of patient care; they are teachers and are great with conflict resolution.

Communication is not only an essential component of an effective nursing process, but also a key component in every aspect of your life. Nurses use good communication skills to gain the trust of their patient and improve outcomes by doing so. Therefore, we can use the same skills with our family, friends, children and co-workers. Miscommunication can have a negative impact on everyone around you including your co-workers.

nursing” defined as. Human being or “person - a valued being to be cared for, respected, nurtured, understood, and assisted a fully functional

The salient point in Henderson’s definition is describing the duty of a nurse as one that cares or assists an individual whether sick or well in obtaining a state of health in order to live an independent lifestyle (paraphrased). Henderson also described the independent and dependent role of nurses and the importance of a collaborative work with the other members of the multi-disciplinary health care team especially the doctors (Henderson, 1966). The Royal College of Nursing, on the other hand, described nursing as the utilization of clinical judgement in extending the care necessary for the people to maintain and achieve an optimum state of life throughout their lifetime (RCN, 2003). Other significant definitions of nursing were those given by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Nurses Association (ANA).

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.