Characteristics and Professional Behavior of a Nurse

Student’s Last Name 1
Professionalism
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Professor
University
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Student’s Last Name 2
Introduction
Based on my understanding as a nursing student, professionalism is the act of adhering to
all the roles and setting practices according to the ARNNL Standards of Practice.
Professionalism comprises of values, attitudes, behaviors, as well as qualities that demonstrate I
am accountable, ethical, visible, and knowledgeable. The rapid changes in health services have
got an indirect effect on the nursing profession. Specifically, in recent years, there has been an
increase in quality studies hence necessitating institutions to engage nurses who understand their
roles and responsibilities, think ethically, and are sensitive to the profession’s ethical values,
behave autonomously, and respect people. The study explores some of the characteristics of a
professional nurse and their professional behavior.
Characteristics of a Professional Nurse
Empathy is the first characteristic that a professional nurse should exhibit. In caring
work, empathy is very significant because the focus of nursing care is the interpersonal
interaction between a patient and a nurse. Empathy is considered to affect a patient’s emotions.
For instance, it brings heightened self-esteem (Akhtar-Danesh, et al., 2013, pp.251). Also, an
empathetic encounter with a patient is the building block of a therapeutic alliance, which is
important for a successful psychotherapeutic treatment. A good empathetic capacity among
nurses has been associated with improved well-being and satisfaction, decrease in complications
and errors, enhanced patient compliance, including better health outcomes. As a professional
nurse, my encounter with patients can either be interpreted as being characterized either by
mutuality or unilaterality, purportedly resulting in a feeling of confirmation or disconfirmation