Individual Nursing Philosophy
Individual Philosophy of a Nurse
Abstract
Before we can answer the question, “What is your own personal nursing philosophy?” we must first understand what philosophy means. “The term philosophy comes from the Greek and means “love of wisdom” (Benner & Wrubel, 1989, p. 27). Philosophy examines ideas in terms of its origins as well as assumptions about why things are. Blais and Hayes define nursing philosophy as, “a concept that looks at the nature of things and aims to provide the meaning of nursing phenomena” (Blais & Hayes, 2011, p. 98). So why define nursing philosophy? When defining nursing philosophy, we attempt to gain understanding as to what it is to be a nurse as well as understand the knowledge required. Benner and Wrubel state,
Why philosophy? Because theories of nursing practice, of stress and coping, and of health and illness, whether they are formal or informal theories, are all based on assumptions about what it is to be a nurse, that is, on assumptions about being, knowing and knowledge. (Benner & Wrubel, 1989, p. 28)
In describing my own nursing philosophy, I will introduce my experience as a nurse, give my own definition of nursing, discuss my own values and beliefs that are the foundation of my nursing philosophy and conclude with what I believe the future of nursing will be.
Individual Philosophy of a Nurse
I have been an RN-ADN since 1997 when I graduated Phi Theta Kappa. Once I graduated, I travelled a lot as a nurse while my husband was in the US Navy. I spent two years in psych nursing working with children, a short stent in med-surgical nursing, and five years as a per-diem RN working between pediatrics and labor and delivery at Maine Coast Memorial Hospital and then worked at Eastern Maine Medical Center as a charge nurse in the emergency room and walk-in-care for the past seven years. In October, I was forced to exit my position as a full time nurse due to caring for my father on extended FMLA. I am
Abstract
Before we can answer the question, “What is your own personal nursing philosophy?” we must first understand what philosophy means. “The term philosophy comes from the Greek and means “love of wisdom” (Benner & Wrubel, 1989, p. 27). Philosophy examines ideas in terms of its origins as well as assumptions about why things are. Blais and Hayes define nursing philosophy as, “a concept that looks at the nature of things and aims to provide the meaning of nursing phenomena” (Blais & Hayes, 2011, p. 98). So why define nursing philosophy? When defining nursing philosophy, we attempt to gain understanding as to what it is to be a nurse as well as understand the knowledge required. Benner and Wrubel state,
Why philosophy? Because theories of nursing practice, of stress and coping, and of health and illness, whether they are formal or informal theories, are all based on assumptions about what it is to be a nurse, that is, on assumptions about being, knowing and knowledge. (Benner & Wrubel, 1989, p. 28)
In describing my own nursing philosophy, I will introduce my experience as a nurse, give my own definition of nursing, discuss my own values and beliefs that are the foundation of my nursing philosophy and conclude with what I believe the future of nursing will be.
Individual Philosophy of a Nurse
I have been an RN-ADN since 1997 when I graduated Phi Theta Kappa. Once I graduated, I travelled a lot as a nurse while my husband was in the US Navy. I spent two years in psych nursing working with children, a short stent in med-surgical nursing, and five years as a per-diem RN working between pediatrics and labor and delivery at Maine Coast Memorial Hospital and then worked at Eastern Maine Medical Center as a charge nurse in the emergency room and walk-in-care for the past seven years. In October, I was forced to exit my position as a full time nurse due to caring for my father on extended FMLA. I am
References: Benner, P., & Wrubel, J. (1989). The primacy of caring: Stress and coping in health and illness. Menlo Park: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. Kathleen Koernig Blais, and Hayes. (2011). Professional nursing practice concepts and perspectives. Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.