Running head: CARING THEORY

Watsons Professional Caring Theory: Safety and Quality Kelli J. Koop Ferris State University

CARING THEORY Watsons Professional Caring Theory: Safety and Quality One of the most influential theorists in nursing history was Jean Watson of 1979. The main idea behind Watsons theory is professional caring for the patient. According to the Fundamentals of Nursing by Carol Taylor, Jean Watson focuses on nursing providing holistic care to promote humanism, health, and quality of living (Taylor, pp. 75, 2011). Two major aspects that go along with the professional caring theory are quality of care and safety of the patient; the nurses caring characteristics directly influence the patients quality of life and safety. Watsons Professional Caring Theory: Safety and Quality focuses on the nurses contribution to healthcare. According to the American Nurses Association (ANA), nurses are one of the main contributors to the patients quality of care; this is done through a variety of actions. Some pertinent ways nurses improve quality of care is through increasing safety, creativity, innovation, effectiveness, and organization

(American Nurses Association, pp. 52-53, 2010). The nurses thought process and actions must exceed past the basic day to day activities of caring for the patient. For the nurse to make his or her efforts go above and beyond the standards of care, they must have a professional caring manor towards patients. By not paying special attention to the patient, the nurse may overlook pertinent information that could improve their quality of care. For example, a nurse may learn their patient has certain foods they eat with their medications by taking time to sit and listen to the patient, caring about their preferences. This type of practice will help the patient take their medications efficiently and with little difficulty. Healthcare medications are important to promote health and prevent illness from occurring. If the nurse listens carefully to the patient, they will actually tell the nurse their

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health status or needed interventions (Cherokee Uniforms, 2013). Therefore, professional caring will not only improve the patients quality of care, but in turn give the nurse pertinent information to diagnose and treat the patient. Quality of care is not reached by simply preventing physical or mental illness, but also includes the patients social, emotional, and spiritual wellness. For example, encouraging family members and friends to be part of the patients care will usually lift their spirit and promote healing Faster healing increases the quality of care given to the patient by resuming them to their optimal health status. A nurse assumes a counseling role when professionally caring for the patient holistically. Counseling is the interpersonal process of helping patients to make decisions that promote their overall well-being (Taylor, pp. 486-487, 2011). Counseling involves caring about the patients quality of life; this does not mean the nurse should make decisions for the patient based on medical advice. Rather, the nurse should balance the patients desires and medical recommendations. Holistic and professional caring must be implemented into the plan of care to create a caring connection between the patient and nurse, which should be the goal of every nurse according to Watson's Theory of Transpersonal Caring: Factors Impacting Nurses Professional Caring (Vandenhouten, 2012). Nurses are taught the General Systems Theory during their first semester of nursing school; how separate systems come together to create a broader system (Taylor, pp. 71, 2011). This same concept can be applied to quality of care; professionally caring for the patients spiritual, emotional, physical, mental, and social needs will make it possible for their maximum quality of life to be reached. In addition to quality of life, every patient has a right to safety and security.

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While the patient is in the care of the hospital, the nurse is responsible for their safety and security. According to the Fundamentals of Nursing, patients should not be in fear that harm will come upon them, but feel protected from any actual or potential injuries (Taylor, pp. G-18, 2011). Safety includes physical prevention such as safety rails, sterile technique, and gate belts, along with safety precautions of the patients private information. Nurses have the responsibility of keep patients records confidential, preventing anyone who is not involved in the patients plan of care access to their personal information. Professionally caring for the patient and quality of care are directly related to safety; without safety, the nurse cannot maintain quality of care, while maximum quality of care cannot be reached without professional caring. As stated in Watson's Theory of Transpersonal Caring: Factors Impacting Nurses Professional Caring, with decreased quality of care comes an increase in safety violations (Vandenhouten, 2012). Safety precautions do not only pertain to the patient, but also to the employees. Taking precautions, such as using sharps containers or hazard bags and signs, protect fellow employees from harm. Using safety guides may be more time consuming and take more effort, but caring about the safety of other members of the healthcare team is definitely more important. In conclusion, quality of care depends on the safety of the patient and the professional caring theory. This shows nurses must consider holistic care when providing care to patients. Theories of nursing are found in all areas of the nursing field and can help improve the practice if applied correctly. Through practice and experience, a successful nurse will continue to apply different nursing theories to their patients holistic plan of care, individualizing each experience.

CARING THEORY Reference Page American Nurses Association (2010) Nursing: Scopes and Standards of Practice. Silver Spring, MD: Nursesbook.org. Cherokee Uniforms (Producer). (2013). A Nurse I Am. [DVD]. Available from http://www.anurseiam.com/video/

Taylor, C., LeMone, P., Lillis, C., & Lynn, P. (2011). Fundamentals of Nursing: The Art and Science of Nursing Care. Wyoming: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Vandenhouten, C., Kubsch, S., Peterson, M., Murdock, J., & Lehrer, L. (2012). Watson's Theory of Transpersonal Caring: Factors Impacting Nurses Professional Caring. Holistic Nursing Practice, 26(6), 326-334. doi:10.1097/HNP.0b013e31826ed0e8