Jean Watson's theory of human caring and transpersonal healing

Jean Watson's Theory Of Caring

A TOTAL HEALING EXPERIENCE

Jean Watson's Theory of Caring

Every person or patient has needs, which must be uniquely recognized, respected, and filled in the quest for healing and wholeness. Caring for the patient not only enhances recovery in any mysterious way. It can also be demonstrated and practiced by those who care for patients, especially nurses. Caring occurs in an environment, which accepts the patient as a distinct being with distinct and unique potentials (Al-Sharmi, 2010; Conway et al., 2011). Caring promotes health better than simply curing an illness. It promotes growth through the patient's potentials. Caring is also central to nursing (Al-Sharmi). These basic principles form the core of Jean Watson's Theory of Human Caring.

Watson conceived her Theory of Human Caring while she was teaching at the University of Colorado in 1975 to 1979 (Conway et al., 2011). It evolved from her personal views on nursing and merged with her learning and experience from her doctoral studies in education, clinical and social psychology. With the publication of her first book, Jean Watson developed the initial ideas of her theory and came up with 10 "carative" factors. Her actual theory was published in 1985, after which she further developed the corresponding nursing curriculum. In those years, Watson also extensively traveled in Asia and Australia while practiced. The prevailing influences in the nursing field at the time were those of Carl Rogers, Florence Nightingale and Leininger. Main psychological influences emanated from Maslow, Giorgi, Johnson and Koch. The major thought influences in the 70s were feminism, quantum physics, wisdom tradition, Eastern philosophy, the New Ate and metaphysics (Conway et al.).

III. Application

One role a nurse can play in her caring and healing function in relation to Watson's theory of caring is to cultivate or strengthen hope in inmates. The nurse herself performs her duties from the same hope that she can contribute to the inmate's cure or well-being (Vance, 2010). By hoping, she commits herself to the inmate's cure or improvement. Hope is not just a wish but an awareness of the actual moment and all its possibilities (Schoenhofer, 2002 as qtd in Vance). It may be that all the help needed by the inmate is precisely for someone to stimulate that hope. If the nurse or another person cares enough to honor his hope and expresses genuine support for him as a person, the inmate may be encouraged to believe in himself again and reboot his damaged life. The nurse guides him to do that through hope. She does this with an awareness of preconceived beliefs and morals pertaining to the culture of the individual inmate. She is, however, trained to sublimate these preconceived beliefs and morals and to perceive the individual independently of these (Vance).

Latest statistics say that approximately 2 million persons are kept in jails and prisons in the U.S. (Vance, 2010). Many of them also suffer from medical conditions, mostly because of age, and as a result of incarceration. Jean Watson introduced a caring and healing theory, which views a person as an integrated entity with its own value. It says that caring may not always cure but curing cannot occur without caring. Many nurses apply Watson's theory in their health care practices. But studies showed a number of barriers encountered by these nurses in actual jail and prison settings, which hamper or negate their caring practice, such as the custodian officers' attitude and the inexperience of prison health staff. Alternative strategies have been established to ensure that their culturally competent programs may produce desired effects or maintain them. These are effective treatment for medical conditions and remedies in cases when imprisonment is not imposed. These remedies directly repair damage inflicted on society by the crime (Vance).

IV. Analysis of Assumptions

The theory of human caring by Jean Watson involves caring actions by nurses in iheir interaction with others (Fawcett, 2002). Its values and assumptions have a metaphysical, phenomenological-existential and spiritual slant, based on Eastern philosophy. Its values include a deep respect for the wonder and mysteries of life and the power of the human being to change; high regard and respect for the spiritual or subjective nature of each person to grow and to change; and a non-paternalistic scheme to help the person or patient acquire greater self-knowledge, self-control and self-healing, whatever his or her illness. Its assumptions relate with human life, nursing science and nursing processes. Jean Watson's concept of human life draws from the belief that the soul possesses a body that is not limited by physical or concrete space and time. Experiencing a person is not subjected or limited to either external or internal perceptions of time or space. Rather, it determines its own time and space, which have no constraints. Watson also perceives nursing as a human science dealing with persons and health-illness experiences of human beings. These experiences are mediated by professional, personal, scientific, aesthetic, and ethical human care transactions. Human care is the process of nursing (Fawcett).

V. Jean Watson's Carative Factors

In her original work, these 10 carative factors are the formation of a humanistic-altruistic system of values; instillation of faith and hope; cultivation of sensitivity to one's self and to others; the development of a helping and trusting, human caring relationship; promotion and acceptance of the expression of either positive or negative feelings; a systematic use of a creative problem-solving caring process; the promotion of transpersonal teaching-learning; the provision for a specifically needed environment; assistance in the satisfaction of human needs; and allowance for existential-phenomenal-spiritual forces (Watson, 2006 as qtd in Current Nursing, 2010). Her intention was to transform carative factors into clinical caritas processes. Her original carative factors were to serve as the core of her nursing theory. As the core, these aspects were to enforce therapeutic healing processes and relationships, as affecting both the caregiver and the patient receiving care. The term "carative" refers to the deeper and larger dimension of nursing, which goes beyond all the processes and activities surrounding treatment and technology and the duration and setting aspects of treatment. This is exactly where her theory fits into. It both differs from other modes and complements, at the same time (Current Nursing).

As Watson's perspective expanded, she changed her original carative factors into clinical caritas processes, which make them easier to practice (Current Nursing, 2010). The formation of humanistic-altruistic system of values has become the practice of loving-kindness and equanimity within the context of caring consciousness. The instillation of faith and hope has become authentic presence and the enabling and sustaining of the deep belief system and subjective life world of the self and the one-being-cared-for. Cultivation of sensitivity to one's self and others has become the cultivation of one's spiritual practice and transpersonal self or a going beyond one's ego self. The development of a helping and trusting, human caring relationship has become the developing and sustaining of this kind of relationship. The promotion and acceptance of the expression of both positive and negative feelings has become the presence and supportive expression of these feelings as connected to the deeper spirit of the self and the patient. The systematic use of a creative problem-solving caring process has become the creative use of the self and all the ways of knowing as part of the caring process and the artistry in caring and healing practices. The promotion of transpersonal teaching and learning has become an engaging in genuine teaching and learning experience of the unity of being and meaning. The provision for a specific environment has become the creation of a healing environment at all levels. Assistance in the satisfaction of human needs has become assisting with basic needs through a caring consciousness and an administering of the essentials of human care, which help align the mind, body and spirit. And an allowance for existential-phenomenal-spiritual forces has become an opening and attending to the spiritual-mysterious and existential dimensions of the patient's life and death and care for his and the caregiver's souls (Current Nursing).

The difference between the original carative factors and the clinical caritas factors consists in the spiritual dimension and the more open expressing of love and caring (Watson, 2006 as qtd in Current Nursing, 2010). This new perspective is seen as placing nursing in a most mature framework in alignment with the model of nursing by Florence Nightingale waiting to evolve and be actualized. Watson views this shift as going beyond theory and transforming into a converging paradigm for the future of nursing. In her own words, she views her work as more as a philosophical, ethical and intellectual framework for nursing than a mere theory. The traditional caring theory will and should continue to guide educational curricula, clinical practice models, methods for research and inquiry and administrative policy for nursing and health care delivery. Jean Watson's work, on the other hand, offers an explicit moral foundation and assumes a specific position towards the centrality of human caring, "caritas" and love as an ethical belief and meaning. In addition, it is intended as a critical starting point for the foundation and practice of nursing, as a broad mission for society, and as basis for advancement of caring and healing practices (Watson as qtd in Current Nursing).

The word "caritas" is a Latin word, which means "to cherish, to appreciate, to give special attention to" something very fine and precious (Current Nursing, 2010). The word is related to "carative," which Watson used in her 1979 book. She made new connections between "carative" and "caritas" in invoking love, caring and coming together in a new form or way of deep transpersonal caring. The relationship that it creates will induce inner healing in the caregiver, the patient and others. That healing extends to nature and the larger universe. It unfolds and evolves within the universe in a metaphysical way and transcends all the living beings in it (Watson, 1998 as qtd in Current Nursing).

"Clinical caritas" are an emerging model of transpersonal caring, moving from carative to caritas (Watson, 1998 as qtd in Current Nursing, 2010). It transcends traditional industrial and static concepts of nursing. At the same time, it links with the past by tying back to Nightingale's calling and deep sense of commitment to human service and with the present and the future by transforming the nurse, the patient, institutions and the profession itself (Watson as qtd in Current Nursing). #