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Philosophy of Nursing
Lindsay Winston
Dr. Turner
“I Pledge…”
PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING 2
Philosophy of Nursing
A personal philosophy of nursing requires one to consider their beliefs, principles and
values within their scope of practice. In my opinion, it is essential to explore and determine your
personal philosophy of nursing in order to provide the best care possible. In order to develop a
philosophy that is specific to you, you must undergo situations that allow you to contemplate and
develop a personal view regarding the practice of nursing. Nursing is an extremely unique and
important profession and being in touch with your individual beliefs and values will only help
you excel and deliver excellent care to those in need. Throughout this paper, I will explain the
journey I endured in order to discover my personal philosophy of nursing and how it improved
Definition of Nursing
The term ‘nursing’ can be defined and interpreted in many different ways. Every
individual in the nursing profession describes and practices nursing in their own unique way. Of
course, there are certain things that are universal to nursing; such as performing physical
assessments and documenting your findings. However, personalizing the way you practice
nursing and deliver care is essential and very appropriate for this profession.
Throughout my journey through nursing school, I realized that nursing is so much more
profession that involves a wealth of knowledge and experience. When I was given the task to
is so much more than learning about a disease process and being able to treat it properly. In order
critical thinking skills and patience. In addition, nursing requires immense teamwork and you
PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING 3
must be able to conquer the task of therapeutic communication with your patients. Overall, I
believe nursing is and art and in order to deliver the best possible care, you must establish what
nursing means to you and how you want to be portrayed in the field.
The program philosophy statement provided by the college of nursing outlines and
embodies important aspects and components of nursing. As I am approaching the final days of
my long journey through nursing school, though I am eager to be finishing up, I am very aware
that the education does not end here. After referring to the philosophy statement, one tenet in the
nursing category that stood out to me was, nurses are lifelong learners. The medical field is
constantly growing and evolving with new technology, better treatment plans and much more.
There is always room to grow and learn in this profession. Therefore, as a nurse you will always
have opportunities to expand your knowledge and continue your education. In addition, as a
nursing student I embrace every educational opportunity I am offered. I cannot emphasize how
important nursing education is. Prior to nursing school, I can honestly say I was completely
naïve to the complexity and overwhelming amount of dedication that nursing requires. However,
as I sit in my final weeks of school, I feel confident in my ability to be a nurse in all aspects due
to the empowerment and support from my professors and mentors throughout the process.
Having the ability to translate knowledge into my practice is rewarding and very fulfilling and it
an effective nurse. In my opinion, having a caring personality is the number one requirement in
order to be successful in the nursing field. A caring attitude can be expressed in many different
ways and it is important to not lose sight of how imperative obtaining a caring attitude is.
Therefore, as I wrap up the overall definition of nursing, there are two more characteristics that
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have to be considered; health and service. These two aspects go hand-in-hand and are
emphasized greatly in the Bon Secours philosophy statement. The Bon Secours mission and
values really help define nursing as a whole and benefit the overall health of everyone involved.
Overall, having to put a specific definition to nursing was a challenging task for me. In my eyes,
nursing is an extremely special profession that involves empathy, adaptability and dedication and
Personal Philosophy
I have always obtained a very unselfish, caring personality. Taking care of others has
always come extremely easy to me and I have an intense passion for it. Therefore, my personal
personal values and beliefs are always growing and improving with each unique experience I
encounter.
Throughout my nursing journey this far, one value I have found is imperative in the
nursing field is teamwork. Having peers, co-workers and mentors to rely on for help and
guidance is crucial in a health-care setting. Teamwork and collaboration are on the top of my list
when it comes to my nursing philosophy and I make sure to implement it into my practice no
matter what my role is. Regardless if I am a patient care tech, a student, or even just observing, I
offer my help to those in need and will always include teamwork in my nursing practice. In
respect. Having respect for yourself and others is essential in my opinion. Respect should be
given to everyone involved in the patient’s care including patient care techs, janitors, dietary
services, etc. No matter what your job title is, you offer an integral part of the patient’s plan of
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care in some aspect, so respect should be delivered in order to have a collaborative, effective,
positive team.
I am very passionate about the nursing philosophy I obtain, especially regarding nurse-
patient relationships. I am very dedicated to establishing a relationship with my patients from the
very first encounter. It is essential to establish a relationship with the patients because that allows
the patients to develop a trusting connection with the healthcare professional and also create a
positive rapport. Therefore, benefiting the overall delivery of care in a positive manner.
Furthermore, another belief I am very adamant about is holistic care. The goal of holistic care is
to treat the whole patient including their body, spirit and mind. It is a comprehensive model of
care that ensures the patient is looked at as a whole and obtains a plan of care that benefits their
well-being. In addition, it emphasizes that each patient is looked at individually and the treatment
plan that is offered is specific to their needs. The personal viewpoint I obtain is precise to my
beliefs; thus, I am very passionate and proud of the philosophy I have developed.
At the conclusion of reviewing my original philosophy paper, I was interested to see how
my values and beliefs have differed just from a few additional years of experience and education.
It was interesting to see how real-life experiences, maturity and appropriate guidance influenced
the way I practice in a positive way. With that being said, my values and beliefs haven’t
necessarily been changed, but they do differ in the fact that I am more passionate regarding my
original beliefs and have gained additional values to base my practice on.
At the beginning of nursing school, I was aware that compassion and a dedication were
essential if you wanted to be a successful nurse. Furthermore, I was committed to being the most
caring, dedicated nurse I could be. However, after encountering valuable classes and many
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clinical experiences, my nursing philosophy has evolved and matured immensely. I have added
imperative principles to my philosophy such as, incorporating holistic care, a passion for
much more. I am eager to integrate the personal philosophy I obtain into the delivery of my care
Bon Secours has provided me with ample opportunities to make a difference in not only
my life, but also my patients’ lives. I have had multiple patient encounters that have been
monumental in molding me into a better caregiver. However, one situation I experienced, will be
one that I will never forget. It was my second clinical day on the Medical Surgical floor. I was in
my second semester of my junior year at the time, so I was still getting comfortable in the
clinical setting on my own. The patient I was assigned that day was extremely sick and his health
status was declining. Upon first arriving into the patient’s room, I observed that the patient was
severely sick and the family was at the bedside. About midway through the day, the patient
began to get very anxious; thus, decreasing his oxygen saturation. As alarms were sounding, the
family responded with anxiety and panic. I ran into the room not knowing what to do at the time.
I was overwhelmed and scared to say the least. Instead of yelling out into the hall to make things
worse, I first attended to the patient medically to make sure he was stable. Next, I calmly pressed
the call bell to avoid adding any stress to the family that was present. At this point, my attention
was directed to the family. They were obviously feeling a mix of emotions and I knew my
priority at this point was to calm them down. I asked the wife if it was okay if we prayed
together and she looked at me with complete relief and a sense of calmness and replied, ‘that
would be great.’ At that time, I realized that it is so important to look at the whole picture.
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Taking care of everyone involved is essential and demonstrates holistic care. This situation
relates to the professional care model because I was able to provide a faith-based solution and
relate to the mission and values that Bon Secours embodies. Overall, this situation initially left
me with a feeling of urgency, but at the conclusion I felt confident and proud of the interventions
I performed and it provided a great learning experience that will benefit my care in the future.
Nursing 4140 has provided me with a whole new outlook on community health.
Honestly, at the start of the semester when we were assigned the project, I was very apprehensive
and underwhelmed at my ability to change such a big problem. Despite my hesitance, as the
semester is coming to an end, I am very thankful for the experience and learning opportunities
this class has presented me with. My role as a change agent has evolved and solidified. I no
longer doubt my ability to assess a problem and offer a feasible solution. In addition, my
advocacy skilled have improved immensely; thus, improving the way I deliver care in a positive
way.
Community health has always had a special place in my heart. The first hospital I
attended clinical at was Richmond Community, which was a little daunting at first, but turned
out to be a great place to learn skills and evaluate unique situations. Furthermore, I was able to
use these past experiences to guide me in the right direction for our current clinical project.
Working with the Care-A-Van has been a very refreshing and rewarding experience. In addition,
it only continued to fulfill my love for community health and benefit my role as a change agent. I
believe these unique experiences have shaped me into a better nurse, while allowing me to
school journey has not been easy, but it has been very rewarding and a great learning experience.
As my time in school is coming to an end, I have started to reflect on where I stand as far as my
ability to perform skills, interact with patients and complete physical assessments. Patricia
Benner offers a theory that serves as guide for the skill acquisition of nurses. Dreyfus (2004),
does a great job of breaking down the five stages of the novice to expert theory; thus, allowing
nurses to decipher their skill acquisition and reflect on what they can improve to conquer the
stages.
The stage of skill acquisition that adequately describes me at this point in my journey is
advanced beginner. According to Dreyfus (2004), the advanced beginner is able to move from
the instructional phase of nursing and start coping with real situations. As an advanced beginner,
you are expected to be able to start critically thinking and anticipating what could happen.
Furthermore, in this stage, the individual can recognize high stress situations and begin to learn
how to cope and handle them correctly. However, even though the advanced beginner has more
experience than the novice, there is still so much room for improvement and additional learning.
Eventually, my goal is to make it to the expert phase and be able to share my expertise
with others while anticipating actions and being an influential figure. However, at this point in
my nursing career, that is just not possible. It is not because I am not smart, or not trying my
hardest, but the expert level of the theory comes with years of experience and exposure to critical
situations. I feel extremely comfortable with my progress throughout this journey and the skill
acquisition I obtain. Finally, I am very eager to continue my adventure and I look forward to
nervousness, happiness and much more. It brings back memories from a few years ago when I
got accepted into nursing school. I was feeling the same emotions in a different capacity. The
thing is, when life presents a new chapter, it is completely normal to have mixed emotions.
Despite the roller coaster of emotions I am experiencing, I use those emotions as energy to do
my very best and facilitate my movement in advancing in the nursing field. In addition, since I
obtain such a dedicated personality, I plan to take advantage of every learning experience I
encounter in order to advance myself in the stages of skill acquisition. Furthermore, I will rely on
the wisdom from seasoned nurses in times of stress, which will aid me in my journey to facilitate
must first take care of yourself. I am a firm believer in taking care of yourself in order to take
care of others, so that will be a priority in my action plan. In order to fulfill my goal of self-care,
I plan to perform self-soothing exercises such as meditation and running. Also, professional
development is very important to me, so I plan to join nursing committees, move up the clinical
ladder and incorporate myself in any other activities that will benefit my development in the
professional atmosphere.
Conclusion
healthcare profession. Exploring and being confident in your values and beliefs is imperative, so
you can deliver the best care possible. After a long, tough journey, I have established a solid
philosophy that molds my beliefs and influences the way I practice nursing in a positive way.
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References
Dreyfus, S. E. (2004). The five-stage model of adult skill acquisition. Bulletin of Science,