Running Head: Personal Philosophy of Nursing 1

Personal Philosophy of Nursing

Yasmin Y. Young

Jacksonville State University

Personal Philosophy of Nursing 2

Abstract

According to Merriam- Websters collegiate dictionary (2001), philosophy can be defined as

the most general beliefs, concepts, and attitudes of an individual or group. My personal belief

is that nursing, at its core, involves the commitment to give of ones self. It involves, not only

caring for those who are ill, but also those who are well. Nursing unifies medical knowledge

with compassionate care. The patient is a person to be cared for rather than just a disease to be

treated. This paper explores my personal philosophy of nursing and its relationship to society.
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I chose nursing, or rather, should I say nursing chose me. I wasnt quite fully aware of

the role nurses played in society, and didnt consider it as a career until later in life. However,

the desire and need to help people was always embedded within my heart. Nursing is for those

who have a true desire to help and care for the needs of others. Nursing is a calling. You must

to be selfless. According to the American Nurses Association (n.d.), nursing is 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. I simply

see nursing as being the ultimate model of service to others. Nursing care can be provided

anywhere. It is not confined within the walls of a hospital. As with new models that are arising,

we can see that more nurses will be soon be entering homes more than hospitals as things shift

more towards community-oriented nursing (Public Health Nursing, 2016).

The Profession

Education is important to nursing. Nursing is no longer task oriented as it was during its

earlier years. It now requires a formal education as opposed to hospital apprenticeship training.

I believe it is important for nurses to continue to expand their knowledge and seek education

because the field changes on a daily basis. Nurses must be able to keep up with the best current

evidence based practices. People are living longer with chronic illnesses and being cared for in

their own homes, therefore, its necessary that nurses are equipped with the knowledge and

critical thinking skills needed to provide proper care.

Also, of importance is a need for nurses to exhibit a high level of accountability. In some

of the training that I have received within the past few years, I was taught to be 200%
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accountable. That notion involves you accepting accountability for yourself and others. I

believe it is best to think of it as everyone being there to take care of the patients as a group.

Collaboration with nurses and other disciplines is important. You must be able to work with

others. Some complex medical issues require the attention of interdisciplinary team.

Collaboration is needed in planning, making decisions, solving problems, setting goals, and

coordinating (Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 2005). Teamwork is important to nursing.

From my experience, in places where I have worked that had a strong team effort, the work

environment was better and patient care fared better. I think hospitable work environments

positively affect patient and nursing morale. Communication is also of importance.

The Patient

Patients are people first. It is my belief that you should get to know the person and not

only focus on the disease. Patients are emotional and spiritual beings. They also vary by

cultural beliefs, socioeconomic status, ethnic background, and sexual orientation. Nurses must

be able to care for others no matter what their background. You should be nonjudgmental; you

should respect them and help them maintain their dignity. Too many times, I think, we get

caught up in our routines that we forget that we are dealing with an actual person.

It is also imperative that there is an awareness of relationship dynamics of the patient.

We have to be able to see that the patient, not only consists of the one person, but also all of the

family, friends, and any others that may be involved in their care. We must encourage each

patient to become more involved in their care.

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The Environment

In 1860, Florence Nightingale suggested that a nurses role was to assist the patient into

the best condition for nature to act upon him (Alligood, 2014). She believed that care was based

on a person and their surroundings, and that proper hygiene, rest, sanitation and nutrition were

vital to health (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2016). I also believe environment factors into well-being.

I believe that there are internal and external components that influence a persons well=being.

Factors such as spiritual beliefs, cultural beliefs, finances, social support system, and quality

healthcare all affect the well-being either positively or negatively based on the presence or lack

thereof. I also feel the community is part of a persons environment. Nightingale

stated that the health of the unity is the health of the community. Unless you have the health of

the unity, there is no community health (Stanhope & Lancaster, p.27, 2016). This is of

particular importance to me because the community is what I want to reach in my future

practices. Nurses play a major role in their communities. It is my duty as nurse to promote

health in the communities. It shouldnt stop once the patient leaves the hospital. Active roles

should be taken in educating regarding the importance of immunizations and health screenings.

We should encourage community health fairs and exercise classes. It is my belief that my job as

a nurse is to ensure that all of the contributing components to their environment are suitable to

optimize the well-being of the patient

The Vulnerable

According to National Center for Biotechnology Information (2013), vulnerable

populations include racial/ethnic minorities, children, elderly, poor, and underinsured. It has

been shown that members of vulnerable populations often have health conditions that are
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worsened by inadequate healthcare. After researching and reading about different patient

populations, I was drawn to that of African Americans. The leading causes of deaths in the

United States are heart disease, cancer, and stroke in that order (Centers for Disease Control,

n.d.). The risks of getting those diseases are even higher for African-Americans. According to

the American Heart Association (n.d.), the prevalence of hypertension in African-Americans is

the highest in the world. In the National Vital Statistics Report (2013) released earlier this year

by the Center for Disease Control, it showed that the average risk of death for African Americans

(860.8/100,000) was 17.8% higher than for Caucasians (731.0/100,000). Although still high, the

disparity is decreasing.

My role as an Advanced Public Health Nurse (APHN) would be a very beneficial

addition to this population. First, I would have to be aware of cultural beliefs the patients level

of health care literacy so that proper education may be provided. I would adjust terminology

used accordingly. My primary education would be regarding health screening and health

promotion. I would educate regarding healthier nutrition options and exercise. I would see if

there are options to host health screenings at local churches. The National Institute of Health

conducted a study that showed how spiritual framing increased African- American womens

adherence to screening for breast cancer (National Institute of Health, 2016). This approach may

be beneficial to adherence to health screening as a whole.

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Conclusion

Nursing extends far beyond the health facilities. It is an integral part of our communities.

It resonates in every aspect of life in some form. I want to continue to value each person as an

individual and make sure they have the proper environment to maintain their healthy state. I

plan to always serve the community in ways that promote health and prevention that way we can

improve the health of our nation as a whole.