My personal nursing philosophy

1. BY:
Habtemariam Mulugeta
College of Medicine and Health Sciences
School of Nursing & Midwifery
Department of Adult Health Nursing
PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING
P.by:-
Name: Habtemariam Mulugeta Abate
ID No: SRSG/ 398/12
DESSIE, ETHIOPIA
DECEMBER, 2019

2. I
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................................................I
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT..............................................................................................................II
CHAPTER ONE............................................................................................................................. 1
1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 1
CHAPTER TWO ............................................................................................................................ 2
2. PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING DEVELOPMENT .............................................. 2
CHAPTER THREE ........................................................................................................................ 4
3. MY PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING...................................................................... 4
CHAPTER FOUR........................................................................................................................... 6
4. META-PARADIGMS CONCEPTS........................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER FIVE ............................................................................................................................ 7
5. REFERENCE.............................................................................................................................. 7

3. II
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to WU CMHS for giving me this chance
to enhance my knowledge and skill.
Secondly I would like to thank my instructor Dr. Prem Kumar for sharing me his deep
knowledge, experience and expertise.
Last but not least I would like to thank my family and friends in helping me in ideas and
material during my entire work.

4. 1
CHAPTER ONE
1. INTRODUCTION
Philosophy is derived from Greek word „philos‟ means love, and „sophia‟ means wisdom. It is
the loving and searching for wisdom and truth. The philosophy of healthcare is the study of the
ethics, processes, and people which constitute the maintenance of health for human beings. It is
best approached as an indelible component of human social structures (1).
A philosophy of nursing is a statement that declares a nurse‟s beliefs, values, and ethics
regarding their care and treatment of patients while they are in the nursing profession. It states
our thoughts on what we believe to be true about the nature of the profession of nursing and
provide a basis for nursing activities; it refers to the outlook and thinking of nurses toward their
roles, values, and behaviors (2).
The creation of nursing philosophies involves knowledge procurement, including thinking on the
nature of nursing, the cultivation of professionalism in nursing science, and reflection on the
value of nursing. Its development is influenced by many factors like level of education, clinical
experience, personal interests, values beliefs and resources (3).
Nursing philosophy and knowledge development are based on the groundwork of nursing‟s
metaparadigm concepts. These “central concepts of the discipline” interact and interrelate with
one another and must be considered in cycle. The metaparadigm of nursing is identified as
incorporating “the major concepts of person, health, environment, and nursing”. The
metaparadigm concepts of nursing are vital to the further development of nursing knowledge,
which “refers to knowledge necessary as useful and significant to nurses and patients in
understanding and facilitating human health processes”. The identification and use of nursing
science and art within nursing‟s metaparadigm is also an important component of what nursing
means to me (4).

5. 2
CHAPTER TWO
2. PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING DEVELOPMENT
First I begin by defining my personal philosophy of the nursing profession by first answering the
questions below from my own perspective:
1. What is nursing?
Nursing is the most versatile a humble, precious, honorable profession of providing competent,
empathetic, nonjudgmental, compassionate and optimal holistic care, support, Advocacy and
help for those in need by critical analysis of the situation and it is also the discipline of unlimited
potential and role in many field like generation, dissemination of knowledge through research
and Teaching.
2. Why is it important to me?
Nursing is has much importance for me such as:
 It is the profession that I can proud of
 I can have ample knowledge about Health Science that I can protect, promote and
maintain my own Health
 I can help many people who needs help
 I can work in many field of Health science
 I can work in many roles like care provider in clinical practice, Teaching, research,
managerial position etc.
3. What does a nurse bring to society?
Nurse brings a lot of benefit to the society like:
 Promote, protect and preserve the health of the public
 Provide direct care for the society
 Educate community like managing chronic conditions and making healthy choices
 Evaluate a community‟s delivery of patient care and wellness projects
 Institute health and wellness programs for society health benefit
 Conduct research to improve healthcare of the society
 Nursing become symbol for good
4. Who makes a great nurse?

6. 3
To be a great nurse it requires a lot of great qualities, skills and values etc. to be possessed by
each individual nurse among those:
 Humanity Behavior
 Higher educational qualification
 Great clinical, teaching, research, community service etc. experience
 Versatile and understanding nature
 Transcultural
 Pioneer in generating knowledge and serving the society
5. What qualities and skills are important for nurses?
The qualities and Skills that are important for the nurses are: caring and compassion, good
communication skill, emotional stability, Flexibility, empathy: to really hear and share in a
patient‟s feelings, focus: giving attention to each detail, respect to people, self-awareness: to rely
know one self, desire to update oneself to keep learning, Interpersonal skills: having team spirit,
Physical Endurance, Problem Solving Skills, Quick response.
6. Which values should every nurse have?
The Value every nurse should have is: Compassion, Trustworthiness, Humility (humbleness),
Accountability, Curiosity, Mental stability, Physical endurance, Commitment, Sheer will, Ethical
principle, Mental Integrity, Educational and Skill Competency etc.
7. What mistakes should a nurse never make?
As much as possible a good nurse should not make mistake but as a human we make mistake but
as a nurse we should avoid the following mistakes:
 Life threatening mistakes: e.g. Administration wrong medication, dispensing wrong dose
of medication, giving a medication to the wrong patient, and failing to monitor patient‟s
condition are some of the errors under this category that are potentially life-threatening to
patients
 Negligence: it may result a lot of trouble like Patient Infection due to lack of Hygiene
especially Hand Hygiene.
 Documentation/Charting Errors

7. 4
CHAPTER THREE
3. MY PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING
Nursing is the most versatile a humble, precious, honorable profession of providing competent,
empathetic, nonjudgmental, compassionate and optimal holistic care, support, Advocacy and
help for those in need by critical analysis of the situation and it is also the discipline of unlimited
potential and role in many field like generation, dissemination of knowledge through research
and Teaching. Human beings are complex and multi-faceted, understanding the lives and illness
experiences of people we work with requires the ability to look at situations from multiple
perspectives (biological, psychological, developmental, etc.), critically analyzing situations and
especially to appreciate the perspectives of the individuals and families affected, that among any
health professionals only the nurses can perform such tasks absolute. I believe the nature of
nursing is something that cannot be simplified to one word or phrase. Nursing is more than a
profession; it is more than treating those who are ill, rather it is a model of care and service to
others and it is continually evolving, advancing, broadening incorporating of many disciplines
and concepts having too many roles beside giving care for who needs it.
A good nurse should own good qualities, values and traits like Humanity Behavior: caring and
compassion, good communication skill, emotional stability, Flexibility, empathy: to really hear
and share in a patient‟s feelings, focus: giving attention to each detail, respect to people, self-
awareness: to rely know one self, desire to update oneself: to keep learning, Interpersonal skills:
having team spirit, Physical Endurance, Problem Solving Skills, Quick response, Higher
educational qualification and way over the top clinical skill and competency, teaching, research,
community service experience, Versatile and understanding nature, being Transcultural and
Pioneer in generating knowledge and serving the society, Trustworthiness, Humility
(humbleness), Accountability, Curiosity, Commitment, Sheer will, Ethical principle and Mental
Integrity etc.
During my undergraduate studying of nursing when I was in Attachment for clinical practice in
Dessie Referral Hospital, One day a lot of severely wounded patients come to the hospital it
appears to be as a result of car accident happened around akesta area and those patents were
referred from Hidar 11 Primary Hospital and there was high patient, work load in such chaotic

8. 5
condition I admired the hospital Health professionals especially the nurses effort that they start
give their service in immediate and quick manner, they communicate each other and cooperate
well in managing the patients they incorporate students into their work by giving specific tasks
like giving anti-pain medication, dressing patients wounds… They triaged the patients well from
sever to the minor and give help accordingly they manage to cope with the huge work load and
stress even watching that horror was much more frightening but they still able to cope and work
efficiently. They see all patients equally and treat them accordingly the nurses also divided tasks
some do dressing, other brings oxygen tank, the other give ant pain, other record the work done.
All the Nurses that day especially worked as care provider, councilor, Teacher and perform
multiple tasks that amazed me and thought me a lot In general; that day the nurses and all other
health professionals make miracle as always in saving the Victims of the Accident that make me
to believe that Nurses are not only the Health service sector but also the heart of the society and
the world.
As a nurse, it seems that our families members, neighbors and friends are compelled to ask us to
examine abnormal things in their body, or give advice on everything from childbirth to variety of
health and illness related issues so we become counselors, teachers etc. for members of our
family and our society in such ways our society believes in nurses and expect many things from
nurses that indicate nurses impact to society by performing their tasks.
I believe all nurses can have impact on society by performing variety of activities that benefit
the society like: public health Promotion, protestation and preservation activities by Provide
direct care for the society, Educate community about risk factors to different illness, managing
chronic conditions, making healthy choices etc., Institute health and wellness programs for
society health benefit, Conduct research to improve healthcare of the society, volunteering for
countless relief organizations, mission trips, and humanitarian endeavors, showing up in large
numbers in response to hurricanes, war, earthquakes, floods, and refugee crises around the globe,
by participating in policy designing, legislations, working on managerial roles etc.

9. 6
CHAPTER FOUR
4. META-PARADIGMS CONCEPTS
My personal nursing philosophy embodies the discipline of nursing using the four meta-
paradigms thoughts: person, environment, health, and nursing.
Person: I view patients as people first and as partners in their own care, and I see students as
partners in their own learning because I believe Nursing is caring also teaching and many other
roles.
Environment: I view the environment as the field of human life process, as human beings are
central to nursing, it is also essential to look beyond the patient to the environment in which
he/she lives because people are members of a larger society with different features and
characteristics that influence greatly our patients, so we cannot separate patients from their
environment because they are interrelated.
Health: is a dynamic state that exists on a continuum from wellness to illness and shifts in
response to environmental factors. Health is more about quality of life. I attempt to understand
the patients and communities with which I work in the context of the determinants of health.
Nursing: I view nursing as a versatile multipurpose vehicle that bring greatest benefit to self
and society as it needs being with individual patients or communities and being engaged in the
moment. Its main practice is facilitating, supporting and assisting individuals, families,
communities and/or societies to enhance, maintain and recover health, and to reduce and weaken
the effects of illness.
I believe my Personal Nursing Philosophy works well together with F. Nightingale‟s and Orem
theory: Holistic Approach and Abdella‟s theory: to be kind & Intelligent as well in service
provision.
In Conclusion Nursing is a profession of countless opportunity and happiness but it also come
with a huge responsibility and challenges in order to overcome those challenges and fulfill our
responsibility all nurses should possess the required value, traits and qualities like caring and
compassion, good communication skill, emotional stability, Flexibility, empathy: to really hear
and share in a patient‟s feelings, focus: giving attention to each detail, respect to people, self-
awareness: to rely know one self, desire to update oneself to keep learning, Interpersonal skills:
having team spirit, Physical Endurance, Problem Solving Skills, Quick response.

10. 7
CHAPTER FIVE
5. REFERENCE
1) The Possibility of Naturalism: a Philosophical Critique of the Contemporary Human
Sciences, 2nd edn. Harvester Wheatsheaf, Hemel Hempstead. Bhaskar R. (1997)
2) Yuval Levin, "Putting Health in Perspective," The New Atlantis
(http://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/putting-health-in-perspective)
3) Chen, Y. C., Lee, S., Yeh Chang, M., Ku, N. P., Lee, Y. Y., Sheen, Y. T., et al. (2004).
Introduction to nursing (3nd ed.). Taipei: Wey Far Books.
4) Fawcett, J., 1985. Theory: basis for the study and practice of nursing education. J. Nurs.
Educ. 24 (6), 226e229. Retrieved from. http://www.healio.com/nursing/journals/jne