Nursing Values and How To Be A Professional
Nursing Values and How To Be A Professional(ni401)
This essay is designed to outline some of the main values of nursing and how the role in society has changed over the years where modern technology combined with appropriate training can lead to a great career in nursing based on respect and kindness for our patients and colleagues. The medical field is growing every day and nurses are representing the majority in the health system. Nursing does not represent a job only it is a way of looking after ill people that involves commitment and dedication in order to achieve a therapeutic relation with the patients. In the modern world nursing is based on standards and run on budgets that sometimes comes in contradiction with the needs of patients.
The base of nursing is having long roots in history and Florence Nightingale has been considered the first nurse that implemented regulations and rules regarding the care of sick. The care of the sick man appeared with mankind, and since then it has been regarded not only as a science but also as an art. Care has been practiced since prehistoric times, among the primitive tribes, and lasted until the early Cretan era. It was ignorant, natural and instinctive, made up of a desire to help others and self-care; nursing was administered by women’s taking care of children, elderly, army staff. The wars in general, but especially the middle of the nineteenth century, contributed to the development of medicine along with the development of care. Of these, the Crimean War had an important role, where Russian wounded were taken care of by voluntary sisters whose training was organized by surgeon Pirogov. On the other hand, English and French soldiers care was provided by Florence Nightingale and a volunteer group organized and prepared by her. Florence Nightingale, born in Florence, Italy, had a complex education, traveled a lot, getting in touch with new ideas, matching her wishes: caring for the sick. Through her skills and observations developed basic training for women’s that wanted to be nurses and lifted the standards to a new era. Florence and her team have done the utmost rigor of hospital cleaning, tool sterilization, buttocks and gauze dressings, and the inadequate nutrition of the soldiers. As a result of these extremely rigorous measures, the mortality among the wounded persons has been considerably reduced (Notes on Nursing, 1820).
The first accepted code of ethics for nurses’ dates back to 1893, was made by Lystra Gretter in Michigan, taking the oath of Hippocrates as a model, and called it the Nightingale oath in honor of Florence Nightingale. It was last reviewed by the American Nurses’ Association in 1985. Florence Nightingale was a nurse, a philosopher, a statistician, a politician, which is why she is now considered the founder of modern nursing. Applying as an autonomous profession, convincing public opinion that it is an art, elevated to the rank of disciplinary profession, respected and practiced by qualified healthcare professionals who continue to enrich their knowledge and that work-based work is based on teamwork and the elimination of individualism.
In the past nursing was thought through clinical practice in the medical establishments as there was no theoretical base for knowledge. In nursing are many ways of knowing and Caper (1978) identified four principals of knowing in nursing: empirics, aesthetics, personal knowledge and ethics. All these principals are helping nurses to develop their clinal knowledge and to use them in multiple situations. Carper’s fundaments of knowing are meant to give us a better insight between the relationship of the practical skills and the theoretical knowledge. A nurse can acquire a variety of clinical skills in practice, but in the same time they need to see how they interfere with the theories of nursing, so we have a better understanding of the needs of the patients.
The first pattern that Carper developed is the empiric knowledge also known as the science of nursing which relays on the factual and descriptive of nursing and is based on observations and experiments. Empirical knowledge is gained through researches and evidence-based practice. These ways of knowing can be considered according to Chinn and Krames (2005) a science of nursing.
The second patterns of nursing is aesthetic. This pattern is meant to give us a better understanding of the conditions of the patients we care for and how to make a smoother transition in the healing process with help from art. Putting a flower on the table of the patient , playing music or simple things like a bed near the window for a nice view can bring a tremendous benefit for the patient as art has always been part of the therapeutic process. According to Angus and Foux (1995) music can distract and alleviate patients pain during the change of a post-operative dressing. In this process it is very important that the patient is involved in choosing his favorite music. Another form of expressing art is humor and laughter. It has been found through researches that booth has a psychological effect upon patients and can help them with stress relief. Humor and laughter are the natural gifts we can offer to people in pain, hoping that this will uplift their mood for the time in the hospital.
The third pattern defined by Carper as personal knowledge is one of most important fundaments. These approaches the self to create a therapeutic relationship with the patient and to be able to see the person behind the patient. In nursing there is a lot of planning involved in the treatment of the patient and in order to accomplish this the use of self plays a great role in empathizing with the emotions and feelings involved in the treatment. The aim of this concept is to create a genuine relationship between the nurse and the patient through the experiences and reflections. In order to achieve this paradigm nurses should point on all the important aspects: body, mind and spirit.
The fourth pattern of nursing is ethics: the moral component. This pattern aims to use the moral judgment of nurses in different situations encountered in practice. The roots of this pattern spreads over normal codes and ethics of nursing, a great influence being also the context and situation. Nurses has to take a variety of decisions and in order to determine what is right for the patient and good. These decisions are based on correctness and morality. Nurses sometimes are having the role of a mediator for the patient, to make sure that the best treatment is in place for the patients. All these processes can have a great influence upon ethics and values of nursing.
Ethic is built up as a theory of morality, as a science that studies the whole set of requirements, skills, attitudes and habits that are specific to the nursing activity and which are manifested in facts, in a way of comprehension within the medical profession. In nursing ethics actually means confronting responsibilities, finding solutions when duty requires it to be followed. Deontology designates that part of the ethics that was dealing with the study of moral duties, origin, nature, and forms of this, as its essential component of the moral conscience of men. Through ethical and deontological behavior, we understand the set of attitudes and actions required by moral norms and technical-professional standards, without which it is not possible to practice the profession at the level of society’s exigencies. Through years nursing became a powerful voice in the ethical debate. The nature of nursing implies frequent contact with people, more than usual, that’s why nursing is seen as one of the most ethical profession. In nursing ethics are based on collective moral principles, usually what is accepted by the society. They are used in every day practice and applying ethical principles nurses will be able to understand issues and have a better approach in the future. Nurses should have an understanding of their own feelings and thoughts in order to consider ethics about a situation. According to Tingle and Cribb (2002) ethics is a process of stepping back, reflecting continually and disagreement. Sometimes conflicts can occur because of the words used in a discussion and ethics is also concerned with the values attributed to words. These values can be cultural, personal, professional. Ethics has been recognized in practice and became an integrated part of nursing courses. According to Thompson et al (2006), if nurses have a good understanding of ethics they will be able to make a change and bring a contribution to the debate. Ethics are based on respect and compassion for every patient regardless any individual characteristics.
Nurses have a responsibility and accountability for the health being of the patients and the integrity of the profession and the integrity of their own person. When ethical issues are encountered it is very important what kind of response we have as this can change the course of actions. Sometimes nurses do not realise the involvement of ethical issues but when this comes alive it brings with him a new set of skills and new ways of thinking that can guide through confusion. Accountability is part of the role as a nurse and part of this is raising concerns that could effectively affects the ethical values of the profession. The role of the nurse includes also being an advocate for the patient, when needed, this way being achieved the maximum of involvement in the treatment of the patient. Nursing started to be regulated in 1919 by the Nursing Registration Act and it has been changed and improved over the years until his final form of today, the National And Midwifery Council, initially founded in 2002.In order to practice all nurses need to register with NMC (Nursing and Midwifery Council) and obtain a Personal Identification Number (PIN). Now days nursing is regulated by policies and procedures imposed by NMC in accordance with patient needs and resources provided they set out certain standards that represent the golden standard to follow (NMC, 2015).
Politics:Nursing involvement in politics is very strong because the government is directly responsible for the well fare of the patients. Influenced by the policy’s development as it is important to have safe patients and staff in hospitals. The involvement of nurses in the political picture is important in order to deliver their work with maximum impact and to educate the legislators regarding nursing and health care problems (Traynor 2013). Having the public health service in the hands of the state, the tittle of the profession is protected by the government, offering more support for the practitioner. Nursing is regulated by NMC and his predecessors but during the evolution of the profession through history, politics had a strong influence. National Health System (NHS) was first founded in 1948 by Aneurin Bevan. He designed a system based on three principles: that is available to people, it is free at the point of delivery, and is also based on clinical needs, not means to pay. Bevan sustained the idea that care should be delivered equal, so poor people can have access to. NHS had many shapes since 1948, and it is constantly developing to become better. NHS encountered a big change through Margaret Tacher who promoted a neoliberal style and involved business fundaments in the well-fair of the patients this way creating health inequalities. In Blair era the medical system reborn, after finding ways of boosting the budget for the health sector.
Conclusion: Medical systems are evolving rapidly and constantly changing, and nurses being part of this system should have a contribution on how policies are formulated in order to control better their activity. Due to the ethic value of the profession nurses have unique and valuable views of nursing. Nurses should actively be involved in political decisions that are affecting directly patients, families, the nurses themselves and the whole health system.
Nursing can no longer be considered a profession only for women, this change came in the 4th century when male nurses started to be accepted as caregivers and apparently (men why ? ) they were no longer judged by the public eye (Christman, 2001; Sullivan. 2000). In nursing, we encounter a great variety of situations and that’s why nurses need appropriate education and to be able to demonstrate good clinical skills and through qualification towards the nursing degree and to be aware as well about the holistic side of nursing. Through time nurses should always improve their knowledge and to stay up to date with the modern technology.
