Developing a Nursing Philosophy: Standards and Practice

This essay presents a personal philosophy of nursing, defining nursing as a specialized practice that addresses societal needs with compassion, integrating physical, spiritual, and emotional care. The primary goal of nursing is identified as caring for human beings, guided by nursing theories and standards. Key values embedded in the nursing philosophy include caring, integrity, diversity, and excellence. Nursing is viewed as both an art and a science, combining compassion with technology and education. The philosophy emphasizes the importance of caring and compassion in facilitating patient safety and care, and it aligns with Canadian nursing standards by promoting a common understanding of nursing practice. Virginia Henderson’s need theory is identified as the most appropriate theory to underpin the nursing practice, emphasizing patient self-determination and a comprehensive approach to nursing that covers physiological, mental, spiritual, and social needs.

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Nursing and Knowledge
Name
Institution

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Nursing and Knowledge
Definition of Nursing
Nursing is a highly specialized and constantly evolving profession that addresses the
needs of the society beyond compassion. Across the entire patient experience, nursing is an
indispensable practice in safeguarding public health from ensuring the most accurate diagnoses
to public education on the critical issues they are facing or are likely to face. Nurses not only
care for the physical aspects of the public health but also spiritual and emotional needs.
According to Scott (2017), nursing as a practice has ethical qualities at its core that help touch
people’s lives at its peaks and troughs of human existence. Nursing incorporatesself-sufficient
and collective care of people, families, and societies in all settings by preventing illnesses,
promoting health and a safe environment, shaping the health policies, conducting research to
come up with better ways of practice as well as advocacy. Nursing is of international importance
since it provides safe and kind healthcare and services to all population (Scott, Matthews, &
Kirwan, 2014). In my opinion, nursing is a service in which competent provision emotional,
physical, spiritual, mental and behavioral care which are necessary for maintaining and restoring
health of people from all populations is offered. In essence, nurses combine the work of other
healthcare professionals when caring for their patients.
Primary Goal of Nursing
Nursing is an integral part of the healthcare system which consists of personal,
interpersonal and social interacting systems. From keeping records and taking vital signs to assist
during diagnostic testing and educating patients, nurses work in different medical settings so as
to help restore the health of a given population. In my own opinion, the primary goal of nursing

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is therefore to care for human beings. By utilizing the nursing theories that guide their own
beliefs as well as the nursing standards stated by the accreditation nursing organizations, nurses
ensure optimal care of patients through objective, systematic monitoring, and criteria-based
evaluations. Johnson and Webber (2015) argue that nurses incorporate the components of
knowledge, skills, values, implications and encounters in their nursing practice so as to ensure
they provide comprehensive care that puts into consideration the patient’s beliefs, cultural and
emotional needs. All these components is for the purpose of providing hands-on care so as to
ensure they meet their main objective and mission. It is also important to note that Florence
Nightingale’s mission statement for nursing clearly defines the primary goal of nursing
(Nightingale Initiative for Global Health, 2016).
Key Values Embedded in My Nursing Philosophy
To provide safe and competent nursing care, nurses should have the ability to think, feel,
perceive, choose, set goals and select the means to achieve the goals. This involves different
values embedded which commits to being professional, competent and compassionate so as to
provide the best care to every individual. One of the key values embedded in my nursing
philosophy is caring. The caring culture is an important part of the nursing practice as it
describes the concern and consideration for the individual, obligation to common goal as well as
the outreach to those who are vulnerable. Caring is key value in nursing because it ensures that
all healthcare organization’s exercises are overseen in a participative and individual focused way
subsequently showing a capacity to comprehend the necessities of various individuals and
focusing on dependably act to the greatest advantage of the considerable number of partners
(Burkhardt, Nathaniel, & Walton, 2014). Integrity is another key value embedded in my nursing
philosophy. This is because integrity enables nurses to embrace and demonstrate the principles of

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open communication, ethical decision-making, and humility. While doing the right thing is
noble, committing to telling the truth and being empathetic always is essential in ensuring
positive patient experiences. A culture of comprehensive greatness involves numerous characters
affected by crossing points of race, age, sex, sexual introduction, financial status, physical
capacities, religious and political convictions as well as ethnicity (Chulay, & Burns, 2010). It
likewise addresses the practices crosswise over educational and health ventures. This makes
diversity one of the key values in my nursing philosophy. Diversity ensures nurses understand
themselves and other people by acknowledging legitimacy and celebrating the differences.
Excellence is also a key value in nursing because it reflects obligation to constant growth,
development and understanding. It also embraces transformation through continuous research,
learning and balance of professional and personal well-being.
Nursing as An Art and Science
My philosophy of nursing is that it is a collaboration of science and art. Nursing takes the
art of compassion and character as well as the science of technology and education. Although art
and science have different meaning and defining characteristics, they are all significant in the
practice of nursing. According to Doan, Fick, Hill, andKitko, (2018), the art of nursing includes
fostering an understanding of patient and family and family experience to inform care while
nursing as a science involves systemization of knowledge.The art of nursing is caring,
compassion, cultural sensitivity and nonjudgmental. This is evident in the fact that while caring
for an individual, nurses also care for the whole family or even society by being respectful and
showing dignity to all populations (Doorenbos, Levy, Curtis& Dougherty, 2016). Since not all
patients have the same needs, nurses have to use creative approaches which can only be achieved
through arts. Through arts, nurses learn to analyze problems and think critically through them so

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as to come up with the best available solutions. It is also through arts that nurses learn to
effectively communicate. The science portion of nursing includes assessment, diagnosis,
planning, implementation, evaluation and referrals. It involves the application of theory into
practice.Through science, nurses offer knowledge of different aspects of science like physiology,
anatomy, chemistry, microbiology, psychology and sociology so as to care for the patients. To
achieve this, nurses base their practice on evidence and act as patient advocates (Thomas, 2011).
They also serve the society by providing direct care, offering education, conducting research and
acting as administrators. Professional nursing requires natural characteristics like mindfulness
and empathy as well as scientific characteristics like expansive educational establishment hence
the art and science of nursing.
How Nursing Philosophy Guide My Practice
Nurses should take seriously their role as it reflects on patients (Sitzman, 2017). Giving
patients a sense of caring makes them comfortable and easily open up when talking to nurses.
My belief that nurses should be caring and compassionate is essential in facilitating patient safety
and care. Nurses should also be competent and educate patients on their conditions.My
philosophy that nurses advocate and care for individuals of all populations have guided my
nursing practice all through my experience. I remember one instance when I was handling a
patient who tore her anterior cruciate ligament and had to go through surgery even though her
family members were rebellious due to their beliefs. I explained to her family why she needed
the surgery and the impact of the surgery while taking into consideration their values. I educated
the parents on the effects of not performing a surgery as well as took them through the whole
process so that they may understand what will really be done. By being compassionate and
empathetic, I did everything in my capacity to convince the parents on the importance of the

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surgery including information on the girl’s recovery. I also answered their questions and
concerns effectively, making them feel comfortable. After discharge, I called the family to check
on my patients until she fully recovered. This made the family trust the healthcare facility and
made it their number one priority in any case they needed medical care. To ensure positive
patient experience, nurses should be able to do anything in their capacity to provide quality care
(De Chesnay, & Anderson, 2019).
Relationship Between My Philosophy and Canadian Nursing Standards
The Canadian nursing standards are concerned with the length in which the societal
issues affect the people’s health and well-being. They describe the expectations from nursing
practice. These standards have a relationship with my philosophy because they both promote a
common understanding of nursing practice. To effectively achieve the primary goal of caring for
the health of the society, my philosophy as well as the nursing standards must be put into
practice as they go hand in hand. According to Canadian Nurses Association (CAN) (2017),
nurses have ethical responsibilities and values which describes the professional relationships that
nurses should have to ensure quality care. The code also defines the ethical endeavors which
defines the broad societal issues. For instance, my philosophy that the nature of nursing practice
is rooted in commitment to public service has been derived from this ethical practices and
nursing standards. Being able to articulate your philosophies is important so that you may have a
clear picture of the professional nursing expectations from the society at large. Nightingale
Initiative for Global Health (2016) argue that the role of nursing has remained unchanged, but
the models for caring keep changing in accordance to the expectation. In such manner, the
nursing models have been created by leading exploration and considering individual methods of
insight that can help improve the conveyance of value care.

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My Nursing Philosophy and Theory of Nursing
There are several nursing theories that are related to my nursing philosophy (Burr,
(2010). However, the most appropriate one that underpins the nursing practice and helps to
generate further knowledge is Virginia Henderson’s need theory which creates emphasis on the
priority of patient self-determination so that the patient’s health may improve even after being
discharged from the hospital. This theory characterizes the role of nursing as substitutive,
supplementary, and complementary. Virginia’s theory insists that the mind and body are one
inseparable entity thus making nurses responsible to the patient. This theory believes that nursing
is helping individuals gain independence towards the activities and performances contributing to
the health or recovery of the patient. This theory is related to my philosophy that addressing the
needs of patients is crucial in ensuring quality outcome. The fact that it is based on four major
concepts namely environmental, individual, health and nursing emphasize on comprehensive
way to deal with nursing which covers the physiological, mental, otherworldly and social needs
of a patient. These are very important aspects to consider so as to ensure that the nurse’s ability
to function independently is effective in delivering quality of care. Ahtisham and Jacoline (2015)
argue that Henderson’s need theory is applicable and is capable of enabling the nurses to
improve the standard of caring by assessing the needs of the patient and developing pragmatic
plan for care.By giving nurses a sense of identity, this theory enables nurses to recognize their
unique contribution in the nursing practice. For instance,just like my own philosophy that
nursing practice is based on undeniable desire need to help others, the nurse has the
responsibility to asses the needs of the patients, help them meet their health needs as well as
provide a conducive environment where the patient can perform activities unaided with out being
bias.

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References
Ahtisham, Y., & Jacoline, S. (2015). Integrating Nursing Theory and Process into Practice;
Virginia's Henderson Need Theory. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 8(2).
Burr, A. (2010). Nursing theories: Love 'em or leave 'em. [Blog post]. Retrieved from
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Chulay, M., & Burns, S. (2010). AACN essentials of critical care nursing pocket handbook.
McGraw-Hill Professional.
Burkhardt, M. A., Nathaniel, A. K., & Walton, N. A. (2014). Ethics & issues in contemporary
nursing. Toronto: Nelson Education.
Canadian Nurses Association (2017). Code of ethics for registered nurses Canadian Nurses
Association, Ottawa, ON. Retrieved from CNA website: https://www.cna-aiic.ca/enf
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Publishers. ISBN-10: 1284066274
Doan, W. J., Fick, D. M., Hill, N. L., &Kitko, L. (2018). The Art and Science of
Nursing. Journal of gerontological nursing, 44(12), 3-5.
Doorenbos, A. Z., Levy, W. C., Curtis, J. R., & Dougherty, C. M. (2016). An intervention to
enhance goals-of-care communication between heart failure patients and heart failure
providers. Journal of pain and symptom management, 52(3), 353-360.
Johnson, B.M., & Webber, P.B. (2015). An introduction to theory and reasoning in nursing (4th
ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.

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Nightingale Initiative for Global Health. (2016). [Web site]. Retrieved from
http://www.nighvision.net/
Sitzman, K. (2017). Understanding the work of nurse theorists: A creative beginning. Retrieved
on 25th march 2019 from https://connect.springerpub.com/content/sgrrtnp/31/4/402
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does the 21st century health system require of nursing?. Nursing Philosophy, 15(1), 23-
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Scott, P. A. (2017). Nursing and the Ethical Dimension of Practice. In Key Concepts and Issues
in Nursing Ethics (pp. 1-13). Springer, Cham.
Thomas, D. (2011). Reflections on nursing and the art of caring. Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand,
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