In a Microsoft Word document of 5 pages formatted in APA style, describe your personal approach to professional nursing practice. Be sure to address each one of the following criteria:
Which philosophy/conceptual framework/theory/middle-range theory describes nursing in the way you think about it?
Discuss how you could utilize the philosophy/conceptual framework/theory/middle-range theory to organize your thoughts for critical thinking and decision making in nursing practice.
Formulate and discuss your personal definition of nursing, person, health, and environment.
Discuss a minimum of two beliefs and/or values about nursing that guide your own practice.
Analyze your communication style using one of the tools presented in the course.
Discuss the strengths and weaknesses associated with your style of communication.
Impact of your communication style on your ability to collaborate as part of an interdisciplinary team.
On a separate references page, cite all sources using APA format.
Nursing Philosophy
Nursing is a caring profession, which necessitates a close relationship between the carer (nurse) and the patient. Therefore, nurses should understand and develop appropriate skills, such as effective communication, to interact with and provide quality and safe care to patients and their families. Besides, through self-reflection, the nurse can refine knowledge, as well as understand areas of strengths and weaknesses to address to become a better caregiver. The experience helps the nurse to use self as a therapeutic modality and know one’s value in the therapeutic relationship. While through knowledge, a nurse learns numerous aspects, the most important is to understand the theory, philosophy or conceptual framework that aligns with the personal philosophy of a nurse. My philosophy and approach to nursing emanate from Jean Watson’s theory of human caring.
Personal Approach to Professional Nursing Practice
I have developed an approach to nursing through years of learning and practice to improve the quality of care that I provide to my patients. My philosophy of nursing involves the actual caring process, which relates to the therapeutic connection between the caregiver and the patient (and family). My philosophy is associated with the need for the nurse to view the patient as a person with critical needs that can be met through the effective connection between the nurse and the patient. When I think about my role as a caregiver, I gain the positive energy necessary to work with the patient to determine the most appropriate and successful intervention. I also know that the patient has a critical role in the caregiving process since the nurse works with him or her to understand the need and meet it most effectively.
The Theory that Describes my Nursing Philosophy
The theory that aligns best with my philosophy of nursing is Jean Watson’s theory of human caring. According to Watson, nursing is about caring through a mutually-created environment for healing (Clark, 2016). The theory relates to my philosophy of nursing due to the focus on the connection between the nurse and the patient that radiates positive energy that is mutually beneficial to the actors in the relationship. The role of the nurse is to place the patient in a position to support self-healing. It focuses on the critical role of the patient in the healing process since the nurse gives them the resources necessary to self-heal. Both the nurse and patient are actively engaged in the caring process through authentic presence and intentionality, which enhances the ability of the patient to health internally.
Application of Theory of Human Caring
The theory of human caring can help a nurse to think critically and make decisions that support the treatment process depending on the individual patient’s needs. Therefore, I would use the theory when working with my patients to think critically and make timely decisions. The theory is founded on humanistic aspects, as well as the spiritual and ethical dimensions of the caring process (Riegel, Crossetti, & Siqueira, 2018). I can use the theory to think about the bio-psycho-spiritual-social needs of each patient depending on personal characteristics. For example, through critical thinking and decision-making skills supported by the theory, I understand that the needs of an elderly Caucasian male patient differ from those of a young African American female patient. Consequently, the way I approach and relate to the two should differ, such as more compassion for the elderly patient and engagement for the younger patient.
Personal Definition of Nursing, Person, Health, and Environment
Nursing, person, health, and environment are the critical metaparadigms of the nursing theory of personal caring. Through learning and practice, I understand the meaning and implication of each of the concept for a nurse. Nursing is the actual caring process and involves the critical relationship between the nurse and patient to provide optimal care. The person is the individual who receives and benefits from the caring process. The individual could be the patient, family, or an entire community that receives care through the therapeutic relationship. Health is the outcome of the caregiving process and involves recovery to restore a person’s wellbeing following an injury or illness. The environment is the therapeutic setting where the critical relationship between the nurse and patient occurs. The environment should be supportive of the healing process, such as a warm room free from cold or other infections agents. The metaparadigms work together to support optimum care and healing for the patient.
Beliefs and Values about Nursing that Guide my Practice
I have developed certain beliefs and values that guide my nursing career and improves my caregiving through positive relationships with my patients. Empathy, human dignity, and patient education are the most important beliefs and values that support my nursing practice. Empathy is the ability to share the feelings of my patients to provide them with the necessary support to achieve self-healing. Human dignity refers to respect for humanity and treating all human beings equally (Parandeh, Khaghanizade, Mohammadi, & Mokhtari-Nouri, 2016). Patient education helps patients to understand their role in the treatment and healing process, as well as their rights. The beliefs and values empower patients to engage actively in the caregiving process and to play disease management (Jotterand, Amodio, & Elger, 2016). I practice the beliefs always when providing care to my patients.
Communication Style in Nursing
Effective communication is one of the most critical conditions for effective, caring process since it underlies the relationship between the nurse and patient. I have realized and develop the attentive communication style in nursing because of its role in understanding the patient’s needs and working collaboratively to find a solution. Effective communication requires that the nurse understands the needs and experiences of the patient and the ability to prove the desire to help (Kourkouta & Papathanasiou, 2014). As a nurse, I understand the value of showing attention to the patient through practical listening skills. For example, when the patient is expressing his or her needs, I listen without interrupting to enable exhaustive expression. The style allows me to understand the patient thoroughly before beginning the treatment process since I can only solve a problem that I understand completely.
Strengths and Weaknesses Associated my Communication Style
Through reading and practice, I have discovered some of the strengths and weaknesses associated with the attentive communication style. The style allows patients to take control of the therapeutic environment, trust the nurse, and express their needs and experiences in details. A patient becomes comfortable by knowing that the nurse is attentive to his or her needs, as well as the confidence in her ability to find a solution. However, the communication style has a weakness since the patient might perceive the nurse as uncaring or uninterested. When the nurse remains quiet for a long time listening, the patient might judge the situation negatively. Furthermore, they might feel intimidated by a nurse who only listens without responding. Thus, the nurse should balance the situation by showing genuine interest in the conversation.
Impact of the Communication Style on the Ability to Collaborate
Working with other health care professionals in an interdisciplinary team is critical for the success in the caring process, especially when dealing with complex medical conditions. The attentive communication style is helpful in such circumstances since it allows the nurse to understand the patient’s needs fully to communicate with members of the interdisciplinary team (Kourkouta & Papathanasiou, 2014). Since the nurse is the most critical point of contact with the patient, he or she should always be attentive to what the patient communicates to communicate the same correctly and exhaustively. Therefore, the attentive communication style has proven to be one of the strongest in collaborative environments to understand the problem thoroughly and increase the chances of getting an effective solution.
Conclusion
Nursing is one of the essential professions in health care due to the role of the nurse in the caring process. As a nurse, I should develop a personal philosophy to guide my caregiving role. My philosophy aligns with Watson’s theory of human caring, which focuses on the therapeutic connection between the nurse and the patient for optimum care and self-healing. The theory underlies my understanding of the concepts of nursing, person, health and environment, as well as my attentive communication style in nursing. The style reveals a genuine intention to understand a patient’s needs and address them in the care process.
References
Clark, C. S. (2016). Watson’s human caring theory: Pertinent transpersonal and humanities concepts for educators. Humanities, 5(2), 21. doi:10.3390/h5020021
Jotterand, F., Amodio, A., & Elger, B. S. (2016). Patient education as empowerment and self-rebiasing. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy, 19(4), 553-561. doi:10.1007/s11019-016-9702-9.
Kourkouta, L., & Papathanasiou, I. V. (2014). Communication in nursing practice. Materia socio-medica, 26(1), 65. doi:10.5455/msm.2014.26.65-67
Parandeh, A., Khaghanizade, M., Mohammadi, E., & Mokhtari-Nouri, J. (2016). Nurses’ human dignity in education and practice: An integrated literature review. Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research, 21(1), 1. doi:10.4103/1735-9066.174750
Riegel, F., Crossetti, M. D. G. O., & Siqueira, D. S. (2018). Contributions of Jean Watson’s theory to holistic critical thinking of nurses. Revista brasileira de enfermagem, 71(4), 2072-2076. doi:10.1590/0034-7167-2017-0065
Order an Essay Now & Get These Features For Free:
Turnitin Report
Formatting
Title Page
Citation
Outline
