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Reflections on Nursing Philosophy

Submitted to:

Elizabeth (Betty) Asher, RN MA

NURS360 The Professional Nurse

10-29-09

Submitted by:

Paula Steigauf, RN

Bethel ID#: 224745

Cohort: BNQ

This paper will reflect many perspectives. Persons, the meaning and purpose of life will

be defined; my understanding of health and illness, including concepts of suffering and death

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will be outlined; beliefs regarding nursing and nursing care will be reviewed; and a personal

experience which exemplifies my philosophy of nursing will be provided.

Perspective of People and the Meaning and Purpose of Life

As a Christian, I believe strongly in the sanctity of life from birth to natural death. Psalm 139:

13-15 states “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made, your works are

wonderful, I know that full well.” Genesis 1:27 declares “so God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” This writer ascribes that

since we are all made in His image we all carry – professed or not – a spark of God, thus we are

all divine in spirit and should be treated with the utmost dignity and respect. “Spirituality is an

innate, universal aspect of being human. Everyone has a spiritual dimension. This dimension

integrates, motivates, energizes, and influences every aspect of a person’s life” (Taylor, 2002).

According to the Greek philosopher Socrates, one of the noblest accomplishments in life is

for an individual to “know thyself” (Williams, 2005). This writer believes a foundational piece

which to begin the search for meaning and purpose is to start with the first two commandments

found in the Bible which call us to love God with all our heart, mind and soul, and to love thy

neighbor as thyself. Fowler recognized faith as a universal human phenomenon that leads

persons to need and find meaning, an understanding of themselves in relation to their world

(Taylor, 2002). If we quiet ourselves long enough to listen and discern, we will be led by God to

that which is our purpose. Often, when we walk in accordance to His Will, opportunities and

support will arrive unexpectedly; conversely, when we are not pursuing the correct direction, we

struggle and endure negatives which cause us to lose our direction or focus. Jeremiah 29:11 says

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm

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you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Nouwen (1989) writes “but when we are securely

rooted in personal intimacy with the source of life, it will be possible to remain flexible without

being relativistic, convinced without being offensive, gentle and forgiving without being soft,

and true witnesses without being manipulative.” Simply, I believe we are called to love God,

love our neighbor, discern and live out our purpose here on earth, and finally go home to heaven.

Beliefs about Health and Illness

Personally, health is a balance of the biological, psychological, social and spiritual systems

within the body which are balanced on a continuum and function much like a computer. When

all the systems interact cohesively there is optimal health. Illness or diseases occur when any part

of the whole system becomes unbalanced or overtaxed. After completing anatomy and

physiology class I spoke to the instructor about how wonderful and complex our bodies are

designed, what a wonderful design job God produced, and how often we take that automatic

functioning for granted. It seems that only when we experience illness or disease that we

appreciate having health. Additionally, having lived with a person who experienced several

chronic health conditions I am always considerate of teaching and maintaining optimal health.

Professionally, I agree with Taylor (2002) which outlines “many nursing theorists

recognize clients as bio-psycho-social-spiritual beings, and while some have developed ways to

categorize various human dimensions, all recognize multiple aspects of being human and

advocate the provision of holistic care.” While medical doctors put signs and symptoms together

to form and treat medical diagnoses, we, as nurses, treat the patient’s mind, body, and spirit.

Moreover, we often treat the family as part of the “extended patient,” which adds another

dimension and challenge to providing optimal patient care.

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Beliefs about Suffering and Death

Pain and suffering have afflicted humanity throughout history. It is human to question “why

me?” when negative, unexpected life or health challenges occur. I believe personally and

professionally no one welcomes pain but, rightly faced, it can bring about great good and

maturity. Triumph and victory instills unimagined self-growth. Job 36:15 states “but those who

suffer he delivers in their suffering: he speaks to them in their affliction,” and 2 Corinthians 4:17

states “for our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding

and eternal weight of glory.” All of our patients suffer. Taylor, 2002 reveals that suffering does

not necessarily occur in the presence of uncontrolled pain but when that pain is viewed as

meaningless, unfair, or a deterrent to accomplishing life goals.

What we call death comes eventually to every one of us. Personally, death, far from being the

end, is but a door to an existence more glorious than our minds can fathom. “No eye has seen,

nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love Him”

(1 Corinthians 2:9, NIV). Death is just a transition. Professionally, my faith influences my view

of death. However, now having walked the final journey with my mother-in-law, I view the

death as the process of preparing the patient (and family) for the spiritual departing from the

physical body. Advocating and administering care when all involved are very fragile is, for me,

walking on holy ground.

Philosophy of Nursing and Nursing Care

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Both personally and professionally my philosophy of nursing can be summed in the words of

my favorite church song, The Servant Song, found in our Gather hymnal:

Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you; pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant, too. We are pilgrims on a journey, we are travelers on the road; we are here to help each other walk the mile and bear the load. I will hold the Christ-light for you in the night-time of your fear; I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear. I will weep when you are weeping; when you laugh I’ll laugh with you, I will share your joy and sorrow ‘til we’ve seen this journey through. When we sing to God in heaven we shall find such harmony, born of all we’ve know together of Christ’s love and agony. Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you; pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant, too.

I am but a vessel to be used by God to care, reach and teach my patients as He beckons. “It is

Jesus who heals, not I; Jesus who speaks words of truth, not I; Jesus who is Lord, not I”

(Nouwen, 1989). Nursing is a sacred covenant with God to provide respectful, dignified, quality

care to all who present for care. As a professional nurse “we are privileged to share some of the

most intimate moments in life with total strangers. In these moments, we walk in the sacred

space and participate in holy acts “(Taylor, 2002). I concur with Hood and Leddy (2006) who

write “a nurse-client relationship is a commitment characterized by intentionality, authenticity,

trust, respect and genuine sense of connection. The nurse is a knowledgeable, concerned,

facilitator. The client is responsible for choices that influence health and healing.”

Professional Role and Goal

As an Intravenous (IV) Team member, my job is to make the IV start as quick and painless as

possible, evaluate and work with central lines, and place peripherally inserted central catheter

(PICC) lines. Additionally, I endeavor to reach and teach the client during the few minutes I’m in

the room by encouraging them to deep breath, maintain pain management for optimal healing,

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and drink water for hydration. Often I will inform them that I will pray for their recovery and this

brings a smile to many of their faces. Time-permitting, I will leave them with a joke to brighten

their day, listen to their pertinent concerns, admonish them to have a great night. Even though I

have very little time to spend with them, my ultimate nursing goal is to be Jesus to my patients.

Personal Nursing Philosophy Experience

Deacon Dan Nalenzy was diagnosed with colon cancer seven years ago. A church colleague,

we often worked together as I served as Mass Coordinator every other Sunday. I would greet him

and his wife, Joni, as they endured rounds of chemotherapy and radiation at Mercy Hospital. He

endured his suffering quietly and when asked for help would only ask for prayers. “Is any among

you afflicted? Let him pray” (James 5:13, NIV). Watching the deterioration over time often

brought tears and anguishes as I implored God to heal this holy man. Much to my amazement I

had the privilege of starting his IV several times as time grew short. Demonstrating care for both

Dan and Joni was awkward at first, as they are very private people and I felt totally inadequate

ministering to a Deacon, however they came to welcome my hugs, hand squeezes, and spiritual

talk as I encouraged them and let each know they were so very loved. Unwittingly, I had

employed many of the spiritual caring strategies outlined in chapter 11 of Taylor (2002). A visit

to see Father Mike Van Sloun, our parish priest, also provided the opportunity to mention

professional to professional that Dan was in the hospital readying himself and his family for

hospice care. He immediately contacted the family, spoke at length with Dan regarding final

wishes, anointed Dan and his family, and phoned St. Paul to arrange a visit from our Bishop.

Dan’s wake was a beautiful representation of the tall, quiet, Godly man I will forever remember.

His funeral was attended by many. The week after, I received a thank you note from Fr. Mike

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expressing thanks for what had, upon reflection for him, turned out to be a life changing

experience sharing the final days with Deacon Dan and Joni. O’Brian (2003) asserts “that in

spiritual ministry to the sick ‘the deepest and richest human experiences are those which are

shared between persons’; that is, those in which the minister is able to touch the heart of another

person.” I, with the grace of God, was able to minister to both Deacon Dan and his wife Joni at a

pivotal time in their journey of life. This exemplifies how I endeavor to provide nursing care.

Conclusion

In closing, this paper, and in fact this whole course, has afforded me much growth as I learn

about becoming a professional nurse. It has enabled me to articulate my philosophy of nursing

and review future goals which have aided my journey with all of life’s recent changes. “I leave

you with the image of the leader with outstretched hands, who chooses a life of downward

mobility. It is the image of the praying leader, the vulnerable leader, and the trusting leader”

(Nouwen, 1989). This writer, Paula, feels she is being called to be that servant leader.

References

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Batastini, R.J. (Ed.). Gather. (2nd ed.). Chicago, IL: GIA Publications, Inc.

Hood, L.J., & Leddy, S.K. (2006). Leddy & Pepper’s conceptual bases of professional nursing. (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Nouwen, H.J. (1989). In the name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian leadership. New York, NY: The Crossroad Publishing Company.

O’Brian, M.E. (2003). Spirituality in nursing: Standing on holy ground. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Peale, N.V. (1994). Words that inspired him: Norman Vincent Peale. New York, NY: Inspirational Press.

Taylor, E.J. (2002). Spiritual care: Nursing theory, research, and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Williams, M. E. (Ed.). (2005). Constructing a life philosophy. New York, NY: Greenhaven Press.