Analysis of Nursing Profession's Social Responsibility and Ethics

This essay provides a comprehensive commentary on the nursing profession, examining its multifaceted role within society. It begins with an introduction that sets the stage for the discussion on nursing's societal impact. Section A delves into the alternative approaches in nursing, focusing on holistic techniques and the importance of understanding patients beyond their diagnosis. Section B assesses a colleague's efforts to support diversity within the nursing profession, highlighting the importance of inclusivity and understanding different backgrounds. Section C presents a self-assessment, identifying the author as a socially conscious consumer, and outlines their commitment to sustainable practices. Finally, Section D emphasizes the significant social responsibility of nurses, illustrating their crucial role in both hospital and community-based health programs, and their ability to bridge social differences through their work. The conclusion summarizes the key points, reinforcing the ethical guidelines and social responsibilities inherent in the nursing profession. The essay includes references to support the arguments made throughout the paper.

Introduction 1
Section A 1
Section B 2
Section C 3
Section D 3
Conclusion 4
References 5
Introduction
The paper is a commentary on the profession of Nursing and relates it to the societal side. The
paper is divided into four sections, where Section A is a reflection on the alternative approaches
of Nursing, followed by Section B that speaks on the assessment of a colleague. The third section
contains a self-assessment of personal approach toward society and the fourth section is an essay
piece on the social responsibility of nursing.
Section A
I have always considered my nursing technique to fall under holistic nursing. Hence, I consider
myself to be a holistic nurse. I have been in the department of oncology for a period of more than
one decade and I would like to think that I have always followed an alternative well-being
technique for my patients that actually falls beyond the diagnosis and treatment. This would lead
me to ask them about their families, their coping strategy, and how they have shaped their career
and also about their future; this would also let me give me an insight of how they actually got

diagnosed with cancer. This helps me to understand how self-care is an essential element in
holistic nursing (Campaign for Action, n.d.).
Once I attended a session on Reiki and though to pass on the same to my patients; nowhere,
Reiki is just more than a healing technique that transfers energy from one person to another. It
enables communication between the nurse and the patients that will actually divert them from the
illness itself and healing will take place in a more holistic process. This also enables a two-way
communication process among the nurses and the patients.
It is very necessary to spend more time within the community that is being served. In this, I will
be able to learn as much as possible about the serving population and will help me to bring the
same knowledge to the patients’ experiences. This also needs to take a cultural assessment
(Sibbald, 2004).
When it comes to viewing behaviors within such a context, it is more about perception than
anything else. This happens as the patient whom we are treating might not be responding well to
treatment; the reason may stem from a past-life experience or traditional beliefs. And the
incorporation of the knowledge is an evolving process and will take time. Once gathered, we
need to include them into the company's vision statement and patient engagement efforts.
Section B
One of my colleagues has put the cause ‘supporting a diversity of nursing professional to proper
effect. It has been seen nursing has witnessed a large diversity when it comes to talking about
races, color, sexual orientation etc. And Sophia Laurens (colleague) has embraced it quite
positively. The foremost thing needed here is to show a cooperating behavior and acceptability;
not only Sophia has guided the new nurses of African nationality into new procedures of the
nursing home but also has helped them to perform well in their allotted tasks. There have also
been instances when Sophia was present during their operational tasks and guided them properly.
Beside this, there is a nurse who is a transgender and had to face a lot of issues when she came

in. In that case, Sophia made her feel comfortable by making her participate in all the regular
affairs relating to the nursing home and also, asked her to share about her home and her
education and why she chose to nurse as a profession (Walden University, 2013).
This not only reflects Sophia’s open-minded nature toward every element of the society but has
also given her an insight about the communities of both the nurses that she had been helping. For
example, if Sophia had to treat a transgender patient, it would now be easier for her to treat the
person without hurting the sensitivity.
Section C
After taking the quiz, it has been observed that I am a socially Conscious Consumer. This does
not always mean that I need to be physically present in community programs or volunteer eco-
friendly programs, but I will present my social image of being conscious in a more effective way
i.e. buy products whose consumption do not produce any pollution to the environment. My
future agenda of being a social agent will be the same as now, as I am more concerned about
being an agent of a sustainable society.
Section D
Nursing is a profession that indeed serves a lot to the society and the same will be advocated in
favor of, in this question. Similarly, nurses do have a lot of social responsibility in real. Nurses
have a major role in both, hospital-based as well as community-based health programs
(American Nurses Association, 2010).
A nurse has the responsibility to care for and treat people belonging to all caste, color, ethnicity
etc. In this way, they are professing an occupation that is likely to impact society as a whole. For
example, a civil war is going in a country named ‘A’, and the two groups involved in the war are
X and Y; however, most of the casualties are from region Y and are to be brought to a hospital in

X region. In Spite of the external disturbances in the region, the nurses in the hospital based in
the region of X are deemed to treat the casualties. Hence, they have the power to bridge social
differences. This is not only their professional responsibility but also their social responsibility.
Much social responsibility, as well as ethics, is rooted in bonding with others and in a way, it
helps to guide in enhancing these kinds of behaviors. It is also a constituent of caring and justice
as compatible elements. Nursing has every element to be a social cause as it a profession that
goes beyond a person’s needs or wants; it refers to compassion, kindness and the urge to relieve
others from pain. Hence, it can easily be termed as a root of society that is a selfless virtue to
help others (Pullon, 2008).
Similarly, Nurses follow a treatment style that is deeper in terms of humanity when compared to
the doctors. However, they need to be educated in order to recognize their power to heal society
with something more than medical treatment.
Conclusion
The paper looks at the profession of Nursing as per the ethics and guidelines and also comments
on the social responsibility of Nursing. From the above mentioned four sections, along with the
third section that is a self-assessment, the paper presents a social approach toward the profession
of Nursing.
References
American Nurses Association. (2010). Nursing’s social policy statement: The essence of the
profession (2010 ed.). This article is available in the Walden Library databases
Campaign for Action. (n.d.). About us. Retrieved April 17, 2017, from
http://campaignforaction.org/about/

Walden University. (2013). What kind of social agent are you? [Interactive media]. Retrieved
from http://impactreport.waldenu.edu/
Sibbald, B. (2004). Changing the skill-mix of the health care workforce. J Health Serv Res
Policy 9 (Suppl 1):28–38.
Pullon, S. (2008). Competence, respect and trust: key features of successful interprofessional
nurse-doctor relationships. J Interprof Care.