Personal Philosophy of Nursing

My personal philosophy of nursing is based on Jean Watson’s (2008) theory of human caring, which is rooted in expressing love, charity and compassion towards the patient. There are several core principles to this theory but the main ideas are that the nurse should demonstrate authentic care by embodying and “being” the caring environment. Informed by this theory, my central belief about the individual person is that every person deserves to be cared for and that the moral and ethical foundation for this concept is found in the Golden Rule and also in the commandment of Christ that people should love their neighbors. Every person who is a patient is in need of caring moments which can help them to feel a higher quality of care, a higher quality of life, and to feel like they are truly valued as human beings. This is the essence of what it means to care for someone, because it is not going to be the case that with every patient their sufferings can be wholly alleviated. Yet that does not mean a nurse cannot show the kind of spiritual care recommended by Watson. Care goes beyond the earthly and when demonstrated with sincere, authentic love it can transform the mind and spirit of the patient and bring a kind of peace that would otherwise not be acquired.

My personal worldview aligns with the theory of Watson quite well so my approach to patients is influenced by a desire to truly provide empathy, sympathy, care and compassion to each and every patient. As Von Dietze and Orb (2000) point out, compassionate care is a moral dimension of nursing. The response to the problems of the patient is more than just a natural human response, as Von Dietze and Orb (2000) put it. It is a moral choice that the nurse must make because nursing ultimately is a moral responsibility. That is the essence of Watson’s (2008) theory too I feel: the nurse by choosing to be a nurse is making a moral choice to support the patient no matter what the patient’s needs are and to lift the patient up in a way that is filled with the essence of charity and love. Thus I try to approach every patient as if I am approaching the concept of love itself. This enables me to be calm and collected, attentive to the needs of the patient and oriented towards doing always what is in the patient’s best interest.
What constitutes environment is my own sense of self and being present in the moment. As Watson (2008) states, the nurse has to be the environment. If the nurse cannot create an environment of compassion and care, charity and love, the nurse cannot achieve the ultimate effect that the theory of human caring should achieve. For that reason, the nurse is responsible for cultivating the environment of care that the patient can most benefit from. In real or practical terms, the environment is more than the nurse or the patient, however; for at some point, the nurse’s shift ends and another nurse takes over. This is why it is important for nurses to have the same approach because when they are aligned in their approach to care they can provide greater continuity of care (Haggerty et al., 2003). With continuity of care, the patient is placed in good hands from one shift to the next instead of experiencing disruption or confusion as to why when one nurse leaves and another picks up the care or quality of care is different. Nurses should communicate with one another about their own ideas and approaches so that they can learn to work together in a way that benefits the patient to the maximum and in this manner they can supply the best continuity of care, maintaining a quality environment for the patient from start to finish.
The individual and the environment interact in numerous ways. First, there is the issue of communication. Wagner (2010) notes that by “creating a healing environment at all levels, whereby wholeness, beauty, comfort, dignity, and peace are potentiated,” the nurse can foster an environment that is most suitable for the patient to subsist in (p. 2). In this manner the individual interacts with the environment by listening, learning, teaching, and voicing cares, concerns, worries, fears so that comfort and security can be provided by the care professional. The patient should be made to feel as though anything can be asked and all attentiveness will be provided.
The individual also brings something to the environment: the individual has his or her own views of health, his or her own experiences, background, beliefs, culture, and so on. Those things matter in health care and should be considered by the nurse as well. The nurse should be mindful of the culture of the patient and should have a high degree of cultural competence so that the nurse can better understand the patient’s needs even if they are not explicitly communicated. This is part of what it means to be there for the patient and to provide support in all things. To ensure that the patient is able to create the kind of environment that the patient wants is equally important to the nurse’s duty of providing quality care.
My view of health is a holistic one. I believe that care should be holistic: the patient should not be viewed in terms of whatever illness or problem is affecting the patient. Rather the patient’s whole self should be considered by the nurse. This means, according to Watson’s theory, that the nurse should allow for “openness to the unexpected and inexplicable life events” (Wagner, 2010, p. 1). The intention of the nurse towards promoting health should be to do for the patient and to be with the patient and to be mindful of how you are coming across to the patient. To show the patient that you are with them is the essence of this approach to care.
Illness relates to health in the sense that it is an obstacle or challenge to health, and yet it should not be viewed as a permanent block or something that means that patient can never enjoy good health again. Health is actually a relative term and will be different for every patient. Some patients will be able to manage their own illnesses better than others and will enjoy a high quality of life as a result. Others will suffer greatly from small illnesses and their quality of life will be lower even though they are not as afflicted as others who know how to manage their own care better. The nurse should be able to understand how the patient views health and what the patient needs to better prevent illnesses and to better manage their own health.
The central reason for the existence of nursing is found in the theory of Watson’s approach to human caring: the nurse is there to provide care for the patient. Every human being has value and every human being is in need of love and appreciation. Every human being is vulnerable and when illness strikes, the human being needs care more than ever. The nurse has made it a duty to provide that which is needed in that moment, and it may be more than just a shot, or an operation or a test or a procedure. It may be that in that moment the patient needs a friend and an advocate—someone will voice the concerns and cares to the doctor or to other nurses. The patient needs to feel supported and loved because that is what the central reason for the existence of nursing truly is. Some of the greatest nurses have shown that when this element of care, love, charity and commitment to the other is demonstrated it can fill hearts with so much hope and appreciation that all else fades into the background and serenity can come where before there was only anxiety and despair.

Retrieved
Haggerty, J. L., Reid, R. J., Freeman, G. K., Starfield, B. H., Adair, C. E., & McKendry,
R. (2003). Continuity of care: a multidisciplinary review. Bmj, 327(7425), 1219-1221.
Wagner, A. (2010). Core Concepts of Jean Watson’s Theory of Human Caring/Caring
Science. Retrieved from https://www.watsoncaringscience.org/files/PDF/watsons-theory-of-human-caring-core-concepts-and-evolution-to-caritas-processes-handout.pdf
Watson, J. (2008). Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring (rev. ed.), Boulder:
University Press of Colorado.
Von Dietze, E., & Orb, A. (2000). Compassionate care: a moral dimension of
nursing. Nursing Inquiry, 7(3), 166-174.