PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING PAPER

Personal Philosophy of Nursing Paper

Nursing 401- Career Pathways: Assessment
Personal Philosophy of Nursing Paper
Purpose of Assignment
The purpose of this assignment is to enable the student to discover his or her personal
philosophy of nursing, as it exists at the beginning of the academic journey toward the BSN.
Approach to Assignment
A nursing philosophy guides ones care in this field. It is our moral code, our values,
beliefs; it is what makes us nurses. I had been nursing for 18 years when I was tasked with
reflecting upon and writing down my own personal philosophy of nursing. Having not given this
subject much consideration before this assignment, being able to articulate my personal
philosophy took some soul searching and researching to be able to complete this assignment. I
found that known nursing philosophies had similar qualities that I attributed to nursing, giving
me the words I needed to formulate my own personal nursing philosophy.
Reason for Inclusion
This is a required assignment for my portfolio to show my growth and development as a
diploma Registered Nurse to a baccalaureate prepared nurse. In looking over my paper, I have
found that my personal philosophy has not changed and my zest for learning throughout this
journey has been strengthened by the challenges that I have met and conquered. The following
program objectives were highlighted in the paper:
Critical Thinking
o Uses nursing and other appropriate theories and models to guide
professional practice

Example: In looking for a definition of nursing for this paper, I

turned to our predecessors, going all the way back to the sixth
century from Rufida to most recently Loretta Ford. These two
people were instrumental in establishing schools to help mold,
guide, form and teach the nursing profession. The American
Nursing Association (ANA) was also incorporated into my paper
for their continued dedication and commitment to excellence in
nursing. This organization has defined nursing as what it is today.
They have also written a long thorough list covering the code of
ethics that governs the nursing profession.

o Uses decision-making skills in making clinical or professional judgments

Within this paper I spoke of the importance of establishing

professional boundaries with patients. In an age where social
media is commonplace, it is essential for nurses to remain
professional and not cross boundaries. The ANA notes this as well
in their code of ethics.

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING PAPER

Nursing Practice
o Applies appropriate knowledge of major health problems to guide nursing
practice
I have been a nurse for 20 years now and have spent most of my
career on the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Unit at a local
hospital. I speak in my paper about teaching the families as they
are entrusted into my care in order to address the reason for their
hospitalization along with preventative information that is
pertinent to the patient and family.

Communication
o Uses therapeutic communication within the nurse-patient relationship
In my paper, I touched on the topic of listening to the fears of
parents in discussing their dying child. These conversations are
sensitive as the families seek knowledge on how to approach this
topic with their child, or if to address it at all. A therapeutic
relationship in this setting takes trust in order to facilitate a
decision the parents can feel good about in the end.
o Produces clear, accurate, and relevant writing using correct grammar,
spelling and punctuation

Teaching

In this assignment, I used correct grammar, spelling and

punctuation. At the beginning of this assignment, I had a difficult
time articulating my personal philosophy, but by the end of the
paper, I was clear as I stated, my core values and beliefs of
integrity, honesty, reliability, accountability, trustworthiness and
caring have not changed. I went on to state, my view on
education has been revised, for at one time I felt this an
unnecessary step in a bedside nurses career. I truly value my
diploma education, as it was the best at the time in this area. As
this degree is coming to a close, I now have a greater appreciation
for the knowledge the BSN prepared nurse brings to the bedside as
well. My education will resume as soon as I pay this degree off.

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING PAPER

o Provides teaching to patients and/or professionals about health care

procedures and technologies in preparation for and following nursing or
medical interventions

In my paper I speak of teaching families as they are admitted to my

care. Teaching is one of the many aspects of my career that I enjoy.
Before new diagnosis families can be discharged, they must have a
foundation of understanding related to their childs illness. Prior to
discharge they must have a sound understanding of anemia,
neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia. They are also taught in-depth
how to care for their childs central line. This instruction is first
taught verbally to the parents, and then demonstrated on their child
by the nurse, lastly I have the families demonstrate what they have
learned on their child.

o Uses information technologies and other appropriate methods to enhance

ones own knowledge base
In my paper, I shared that after taking an 18-year hiatus from
formal learning, I re-enrolled into school. My goal one day is to
teach at a university level. This is going to require more than my
BSN, but it is a start as I broaden my knowledge base. I currently
have my certification in my field. Keeping my certification in
Pediatric Hematology Oncology Nursing (CPHON) while going
back to school has been a challenge due to all of the required
continued education credits I had to earn specifically in pediatric
hematology/oncology on top of my formal learning requirements.
Webinars and precepting role transition students have been a
lifesaver in obtaining this goal.

Leadership
o Articulates the values of the profession and the role of the nurse as
member of the interdisciplinary health care team
In my paper, I share that nurses play a significant role in our units
collaborative group. In my role as a nurse at the bedside, I come
into contact with a wide variety of other disciplines in order to give
the patient the best care. It is the nurse that coordinates much of
this care and communicates the needs of the patient along with
updates throughout their shift. My unit has daily multidisciplinary
rounds to discuss the assessment and plan for the patients. In a
round table formation sits the attending, residents of the month,
pharmacist, social workers, dietitian, chaplain, child life therapist,
discharge coordinator and charge nurse. Each bedside nurse will
join the table one at a time to discuss their patients for the day.

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING PAPER

The bedside nurse used to sit outside of the circle and have
minimal input, but here of recent, the bedside nurse has been
encouraged to sit at the table and contribute to the discussion. This
action further affirms the importance of the RN at the table as their
feedback is included in the decision making of the patient.
Professionalism
o Demonstrates accountability for ones own professional practice.
Working on a pediatric unit it is easy to cross boundaries when you
are spending so much time with little ones. Although it is easy to
get attached to adults, it is different with pediatrics due to the close
physical contact. It is not unusual or abnormal to see a pediatric
nurse holding, rocking and feeding their patients, as opposed to
caring for an adult where this activity would be unacceptable. That
is why professional boundaries are essential to keep nurses from
over stepping their boundaries. Professional boundaries is not only
supported by the ANA, but my work has a policy to ensure that
nurses stay professional despite the ease of getting attached to
these patients. When I precept new nurses, this is an area I like to
cover due to the importance of this topic. Despite the legal issues
that this subject opens nurses up to, it is the heartache and burnout
that I am trying to avoid in maintaining a professional boundary.

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING PAPER