Personal Philosophy of Nursing

Introduction

          My personal nursing philosophy is an ever evolving base, changing with my experiences and understanding of the profession. I would like to say I am very firm in my ideas and will be stead fast however, I cannot. I am still learning, growing, and experiencing new things in the lives of others almost hourly. I can at this point only focus on what I would like to be and my efforts will be refined, shaped, and shined as a nurse through a life time. My perspective comes from the view of the patient. I strive to empathize with their situation and aspire to act where and when appropriate, using the ideas of autonomy, education, and respect. I feel most accomplished when I can truly do something to help a person in need; environmentally, in health, or psycho-socially. These categories are overlapping and contribute to each other in what makes human beings people. Like homeostasis there is a need to have a balance in maintaining one’s own life. In an article about acting in the public interest Rachel Bard RN, M.A.ED quoted Florence Nightingale saying: “I think one’s feelings waste themselves in words; they ought all to be distilled into actions which bring results.” (Bard, 2010)

Personal Beliefs and Values of Nursing

         In thinking back on my personal experiences and exposure with nursing, I remember the most evident was when delivering my first child. As a patient I felt vulnerable. In having pain never experienced before, uneducated in the process of childbirth while desiring to be modest and tough I had lost all sense of propriety. The nurse stood by my side, coached me through the pain with breathing and focusing interventions, while aiding to the father of the baby who had to sit down because he felt faint. The nurse who knew to wake me, despite my apprehension, to train my body to breast feed every two hours after the birth advocated for me. In that time that I needed her she gave me courage, she showed me her veracity, her beneficence, and her protection. She knew my birth plan and she became accountable of that plan for me to breast feed my child when I didn’t have the energy. In doing all these things in such a short time my heart for her is ever so grateful. I can only hope to be as nurturing, patient, firm, and knowledgeable about those I will care for in my career. I strive to make my core values at the center of patient care. These core values being autonomy, educating, communication, seeking continued knowledge, advocating for, and promoting the health, safety, and well-being of others.

Relationships with Patients and Their Families

        Autonomy is key to any relationship. Feeling as though one has control and ownership of their own body, life, and decisions gives one a powerful feeling of strength and hope. When others give significance to those decisions that person becomes who they are, feeling safe to express their feelings. It allows one to thrive as an individual. It sets the tone for trust allowing education of subject matters to be received. It fosters a feeling of protection and advocacy for both the patient and the nurse. In families this might not always be the case. A mother feels her child is hers regardless of age. An adult child might feel the health decisions for their elderly parent belong to them. Autonomy can be freeing and without it one can feel imprisoned. This leaves those who don’t “have it in them” to stand up for themselves whether it is due to a lack of knowledge or hierarchy within the family. This leads to their autonomy being stripped away, fostering self doubt, loss of hope, and even uselessness.


         A nurse is one who can navigate the murky waters between relationships, showing respect, autonomy, and advocacy for sensitive feeling within a family unit. A nurse keeps in mind the diversity, safety, confidentiality, and her own responsibility to her patent when communicating with those who they love. I agree with the theorist Henderson who’s meta-paradigm of person is that the patient is “neither client nor consumer.” They are the “sum of parts with biopsychosocial needs.” (Yoost, 2016)

Relationship with Healthcare Professionals

        Communication is at the heart in quality of collaborating patient care. In an article about acting in the public interest Rachel Bard RN, M.A.ED said, our patients “trust RNs to hold up their part of the bargain in keeping a close watch on matters of patient safety, health policy, regulation and quality of care.”(Bard, 2010) My goal is to continue to identify areas of improvement for quality care when communicating with the healthcare team. This can be done through addressing policy issues, charting accurately and systematically, and/or verbal communication. A good healthcare team shows collegiality and respect for one another while asserting ideas or concerns that need to be addressed with the patients goals being at the center of care. I envision collaboration where each team member supports the other on safety, quality care, and success of goals all learning together and having a level of humility to be teachable while implementing measures needed.

Nursing, the Environment, Health and Culture

In efforts to have quality communication while collaborating with a HC team, identifying the relationship in a patients environment, culture, and health circumstance will only contribute to better outcomes in meeting specific patient centered goals. This can be done by educating one on their environment through their cultural perspective and promoting healthy outcomes. A quote from Sir William Osler, one of the founders of John Hopkins Hospital, illustrates my point, “These are our methods- to carefully observe the phenomena of life in all its stages, to cultivate reasoning faculty so as to be able to know the true from the false. This is our work - to prevent disease, to relieve suffering and to heal the sick.”(Osler)

Conclusion

        In conclusion, reiterating the philosophy of change in its constancy is enduring. As the environment changes, as my experience change, so will my perspective and goals change to accommodate the artful field of nursing and caring for others. Florence Nightingale was quoted in an article by Ginny Roth about celebrating nurses as being the heart of healing; “Nursing is an art: and if it is to be made an art, it requires an exclusive devotion as hard a preparation as any painter's or sculptor's work; for what is the having to do with dead canvas or dead marble, compared with having to do with the living body, the temple of God's spirit? It is one of the Fine Arts: I had almost said, the finest of Fine Arts.” (Roth, 2014)

Resources Cited

·         Bard, R. (2010, May). In the public interest. Retrieved from https://canadian-nurse.com/articles/issues/2010/may-2010/in-the-public-interest

·         Roth, G. A. (2014, May 06). Nurses-The Heart of Healing – Circulating Now from NLM. Retrieved from https://circulatingnow.nlm.nih.gov/2014/05/06/nurses-the-heart-of-healing/ Florence Nightingale Quote

·         Yoost, B.L. and Crawford, L.R. (2016). Fundamentals of nursing: Active learning for collaborative practice. St. Louis: Elsevier. pp 9 and 10.

·         William Osler, fully Sir William Osler. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.greatthoughtstreasury.com/author/william-osler-fully-sir-william-osler?page=1