TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 1

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1 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 1 Nursing Philosophy Paper Katie Kostiuk Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing October 12 th, 2014

2 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 2 Treat others as you want to be treated best defines my philosophy of nursing. As human beings, each of us possesses basic wants and needs; these wants and needs are especially sensitive when it comes to our health and well-being and the health and well-being of those we love. No one acknowledged this better than Florence Nightingale, considered the Founder of Modern Nursing, who revolutionized and reformed the practice of nursing during her lifetime. Her methods and philosophy of nursing were the catalysts that transformed our profession into what it has become today. Indeed, her philosophy and the values of Bon Secours support my ideals and are congruent with my own personal philosophy of nursing. Florence Nightingale was shocked by the appallingly unsanitary and inhumane conditions (Biography.com) she witnessed in the hospitals during the Crimean War. She realized that change needed to take place beginning with the very basic concepts of sanitation and cleanliness basic, but essential to the overall improvement of the patient. She stated The very first requirement in a hospital is that it should do the sick no harm (20 Greatest Florence Nightingale Quotes for Nurses). To that end, Nightingale set out to make significant changes to the quality of the environment and the health care structure that would be conducive to and expedite healing. Bon Secours commitment to innovation, quality, integrity, and growth factors into Nightingale s metaparadigm. These core concepts, especially those of sanitation and cleanliness, are also imbedded in my own personal philosophy of nursing; I believe they are essential to patient care and well-being and contribute to the greater good of the health care community and the healing system.

3 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 3 Nursing is an art: and if it is to be made an art, it requires an exclusive devotion and as hard as a preparation, as any painter s or sculptor s work; for what is the having to do with a dead canvas or dead marble, compared with having to do with a living body? (20 Greatest Florence Nightingale Quotes for Nurses). Clearly, nursing is an art it is dynamic; it requires the nurse to strive constantly to hone his/her skills through self-evaluation, observation, education, and dedication. At the center of my philosophy of nursing and embedded in the core values of Bon Secours are the respect for and recognition of the dignity and integrity of the human spirit. As a nurse, I strive to treat my patients with respect and dignity, making them feel comfortable and safe and confident that the care I will give them will be the best I can give. It is my goal for my patients to feel they are in good hands, receiving good care, knowing that I have their good health and well-being at the forefront of my actions and decisions; I am prepared to do whatever it takes to facilitate their recovery. My patients should sense my dedication and commitment to them; they should recognize that I have, indeed, honed my art, and I am prepared to take on whatever aspects of their care are necessary. Florence Nightingale referred to her work as her must (Dossey, 2000; Dossey, Selanders, Beck and Atwell, 2005). As such, she dedicated herself to improving health care structure and the healing system during her lifetime. Florence Nightingale was a mystic, visionary, healer, reformer, environmentalist, feminist, practitioner, scientist, and global citizen. She was a brave risk-taker who possessed uncommon vision, focus, dedication, and commitment. Her tenets of healing, leadership, and global action provide us with an image for a healthy world (Dossey, 2000; Dossey, Selanders, Beck and Atwell, 2005). There is no doubt

4 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 4 that Florence Nightingale left an indelible mark not only on health care systems during her lifetime, but she left a legacy for those of us in the medical profession to emulate and follow. Nightingale was the whole package, so to speak: she was idealistic, optimistic, and energetic; she was driven by her compassion for and dedication to a cause to which she dedicated her entire life. I recognize and respect these characteristics; they are closely aligned with my own philosophy. Regardless of the fact that Nightingale practiced her art over a century ago, she has left an indelible mark on the nursing profession today. She stands as a symbol and an example for all of us practicing nursing in the twenty-first century because what she believed, practiced and stood for represent the classic core values of good nursing today. I hold the tenets of healing, leadership and global action to be important elements of my own philosophy of nursing. Nightingale s actions spoke louder than her words. She said, I think one s feelings waste themselves in words; they ought to be distilled into actions which bring results (20 Greatest Florence Nightingale Quotes for Nurses). I believe it is important for me and for all nurses to strive to thread Nightingale s quote into our personal philosophies of nursing never to lose the energy and enthusiasm and dedication to our profession that is so vital, not only to our patients well-being, but also vital to our well-being and integrity as nurses living in a global community. The philosophical basis of modern nursing is generally seen as Nightingale s most recognized contribution to societal change (Selanders 1998). Without a doubt, Florence Nightingale s legacy of caring continues. She viewed the essence of person as patient, and as

5 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 5 such, it is the goal of nursing to place the patient in the best possible condition for nature to act (Selanders, L.C. 1998). How better to do this than to ensure conditions are sanitary, and the patient is treated with compassion, integrity, and respect he or she is in good hands, has good care, and his/her well-being and good health are of paramount concern to the nurses who are entrusted with this care.

6 TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED 6 References 20 Greatest Florence Nightingale Quotes for Nurses. (2014). Nursebuff.com. Website. Available from: Dossey, B. Selanders, L., Beck, D.M., and Atwell, A. (2005). Florence Nightingale Today: Healing, Leadership, Global Action. Washington, D.C.: Nursebooks.Org. Florence Nightingale: Metaparadigm in Nursing. (2014). Nursing Theories. Website: Selanders, Louise C. The Power of Environmental Adaptation: Florence Nightingale s Original Theory of Nursing Practice. Journal of Holist Nursing. June : Website:

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