Core Issues in My Personal Nursing Philosophy

Nursing means being more than just a partner in health to the patient, it means being a partner in life. Whereas I once believed that nurses exclusively served the patient’s physiological needs, I now understand, through the course of my evolution and growth as a nursing student, that nursing is about holistically treating the patient. It is a process that starts with compassion and dedication within the nurse and then moves out to help patients along their health journey. Nursing climates in systemic reforms that help better the environment of healthcare for everyone.

Health-Environment

Before any progress can be made in helping patients or improving nursing, health must first be understood as comprehensively as possible. Even before I began nursing education, I was aware that health went beyond just the physical to include the psychological as well. Nevertheless, through my courses and practice experience, I found there were many other facets to health as well including the emotional, social, environmental, and more. These many aspects can be overwhelming if they are not placed within their proper context.

The Roy Adaptation Model offers a vision of health that I have found influential for understanding my own responsibility as a nurse. In essence, the Roy Adaptation model states that “Health is a state and process of being and becoming integrated with the whole”. In this context, the whole is the environment of the client. This is why I have essentially united these two paradigms of nursing as intrinsically related to another. So long as the patient is not in accordance with their environment, they will be in a state of ill health.

This is evidenced in a variety of ways within health. For instance, when it comes to ‘disability’ the challenge experienced by a patient may not be so much a health issue as an environmental issue. For instance, while a paraplegic patient can undergo extensive physical therapy, if they or their environment does not change and adapt they may never experience well-being. It is the duty of nurses to help clients understand that no matter how life-changing their condition may be that they can still adapt and live a meaningful life. Indeed, according to the Roy Adaptation Model, such adaptation is at the root of meaning itself. Thus, working with clients to frame health as a way of becoming accountable to one’s own environment, such as in a healthier dieting program, is a foremost belief of mine. While this requires one to often think outside of the box, I enjoy this philosophical aspect of nursing practice.

Nursing

Because health concerns the individual’s relationship to their environment, a nurse must take on the responsibility of being a provider and advocate for the patient in all circumstances. The economic, spiritual, and familial pressures of patient care were surprising to me, however, I have come to realize that each of these must be taken as seriously as the patient’s physiological health if they are to find wellness. Nurses must be aware of how these forces influence and shape patient care so that they can provide high-quality patient-centered care.

I believe at the root of each of these three factors is nursing advocacy. Vaartio, Leino-Kilpi, Salantera, and Suominen (2006), define nursing advocacy as “an integral part of the nurse’s efforts to promote and safeguard the well-being and interest of his/her patients or client by ensuring that they are aware of their rights and have access to information to make informed decision”. I respect this definition and believe it should be enlarged to include the patient’s right to healthcare itself. So many people in the world do not have access to healthcare due to insufficient health insurance. To address this issue, I would like to use my license as a nurse to help those in need regardless of what their insurance coverage is.

My efforts to do so would take place both on the individual level with patients as well as through advocacy for systematic healthcare reforms which improve coverage and quality of care for all. To do this, I will need to be a leader in the field of nursing which is my long term goal. As a leader, I would have many responsibilities like delegating tasks, time management, and skill development.

Patient

To truly make strides in nursing, it is necessary to tailor health services to the needs of the patient. This is what patient-centered care is all about, “deep respect for patients as unique living beings and the obligation to care for them on their terms”. Relating to patients, therefore, can never be a formulaic approach. Rather, every interaction should be informed by the patient’s unique world view, wishes, social worlds, and involvement in healthcare.

I believe that my ability to deliver patient-centered care is partly aided by how diverse my experience has been as a nurse. I have worked as a nurse in my OB clinics and learned just how miraculous the start of new life is. Similarly, in my medical-surgical term, I found how precious life is when it unfortunately ends. This had led me to have greater respect for patients of all backgrounds and health conditions since we are all unified by the fact that we are unique. In the future, I would like to work in as many different health settings as possible in order to round out my ability to anticipate and serve diverse patient needs.

Conclusion

My personal nursing philosophy is one of growth and adaptation. Health is all about adaptation and as a nurse, it is my role to help tailor the medical system to the patient’s needs. This should be achieved through a focus patient-centered care throughout every aspect of healthcare.