Professionalism in Nursing: Ethical Standards, Characteristics, and Uniform Guidelines

In this document we will discuss about Professionalism in Nursing and below are the summary points of this document:- Professionalism in Nursing encompasses ethical standards, technical expertise, and courteous behavior. Important characteristics of a professional nurse include caring nature, empathy, attention to detail, organization, and adaptability. Maintaining a standard uniform and displaying care and support are key aspects of professionalism in the nursing field.

PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING 1
STUDENT NAME:
STUDENT ID:
TOPIC: PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING
DATE: 6-3-2019

PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING 2
Professionalism in Nursing
Professionalism is characterized by ethical standards and the technical understanding of a
profession, including courteous and conscientious behavior that is exhibited in the workplace.
Professionalism in nursing is reflected by ethical values and moral standards that are evaluated
and based on the judgments of patients and clients. I am studying nursing and have crafted my
knowledge in the nursing subject. The knowledge and skills that a nurse possesses also reflects in
their training and other ethical skills in the profession. The subject of nursing includes studying
the behavioral science approach and to understand details about biological and physical sciences
to diagnose the patient and treat them for their respective treatments. Ethical professionalism in
nursing is when medical practitioners have equal knowledge and understanding of the
professional skills in accordance with legal and ethical standards for the benefit of patients (Auer
et al 2014).
Characteristics of a nurse
Nursing is a profession that is involved with the prevention of illnesses and diseases and
management of health care benefits and services for patients. I believe that behavioral aspects
like showing politeness, dressing in a proper uniform, displaying compassion towards patients,
are some of the ethical nursing traits observed in a professional nurse. These are the main
elements that are required in the nursing profession. I have studied in lectures about the ethical
standards to be followed by the nurses that evaluate the professionalism approach.
I have studied the characteristics that a professional nurse should implement and analyzed the
ideal behavior of the nurse while on their duties. The characteristics and behaviors that I think
are important for a professional nurse are caring nature, being empathetic, having a keen eye to
details, being organized, being emotionally stable, adaptable, having mental and physical
endurance, quick thinker and hard working.
These are a few of the important characteristics that a professional nurse should have in a health
care organization.
Standard uniform

PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING 3
Maintaining and carrying a professional appearance is a major criterion that is concerned and
evaluated appropriately (Auer et al 2014). A nurse must have a standard uniform, follow the
protocols and serve patients with care and support. A clean uniform serves as a foundation for
professionalism in the nursing field, thus, following the appropriate dress code is a symbol of
professionalism in nursing field.
Caring and supportive
A caring person makes a good nurse and the best nurses are those who care for patients and help
in faster recovery. This characteristic of professional nurses helps patients garner more support,
comfort, and empathy during hard times. Because nursing is all about providing the right health
care services and support to patients, it is important that the work is done with care and empathy
for patients in mind (Devlin, Roberts & Fong 2010). A caring nature and attitude in the nursing
field strengthen the bond between a nurse and patient.
Empathetic
From my point of view, a nurse should be empathetic, which means nurse should treat patients
with care and should have the ability to empathize with a certain situation of the patient, thus
providing emotional support to patients and their family members. This is a true form of
connection that is built between nurses and tends to focus on the life-changing behavior of
patients.
Preparing notes
I believe that professional nurses should have each and every detail written on paper and follow a
more detail-oriented approach. This becomes an important characteristic when the nurse needs to
comment on the patient’s recovery for the next stage (Gidman 2011). Making important notes is
considered a good and well-concerned behavior in the nursing profession; making is easier to
focus on further recovery stages with good information and understanding.
Staying organized
Staying organized is the next thing that nurses should implement in their professional duties. I
believe that nurses should know their job and be aware of their job responsibilities while

PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING 4
providing accurate diagnosis and medication to patients at the right time and the right place. This
is the basic foundation that nurses should follow without any excuses.
Emotionally stable
Being emotionally stable is another quality that a professional nurse should have while on the
job. As infallible human beings are majorly prone to stress, a nurse should know how to manage
activities and stay organized in their profession (Mattila, Pitkäjärvi & Eriksson 2010). Patient
responsibility also shows the professionalism of a nurse as the same attitude helps them take care
of patients and their families emotionally. It is important that the nurse take decisions that do not
make things worse, instead, they must try and develop a positive attitude in order to adapt to a
professional nursing environment with better quality and greater flexibility.

PROFESSIONALISM IN NURSING 5
References
Auer, C, Schwendimann, R, Koch, R, De Geest, S, & Ausserhofer, D 2014, ‘How hospital
leaders contribute to patient safety through the development of trust’, Journal of Nursing
Administration, vol. 44, no. 1, pp. 23-29.
Devlin JW, Roberts RJ, Fong JJ, 2010, Efficacy and safety of quetiapine in critically ill patients
with delirium: a prospective, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebocontrolled pilot
study. Crit Care Med; vol. 38, no. 2, pp. 419-427.
Gidman, J, McIntosh, A, Melling, K, & Smith, D, 2011, Student perceptions of support in
practice. Nurse Education in Practice, vol. 11, no. 6, pp. 351–355.
Mattila, L R, Pitkäjärvi, M, & Eriksson, E, 2010, International student nurses’ experiences of
clinical practice in the Finnish health care system. Nurse Education in Practice, vol. 10, no. 3,
pp. 153–157.