Running head: PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING

Personal Philosophy of Nursing

Brian Farabaugh, RN
Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing
Transition to Baccalaureate Nursing
NUR3240
Karen Schultz
June 26, 2016
I Pledge
Personal Philosophy of Nursing
The simple definition of nursing is (Merriam-Webster, n.d.) the job of taking care of
people who are sick, injured, or old. I found this to be amusing in its simplicity, especially in
terms of reflecting upon my own philosophy of nursing in the 25 years since becoming a
Registered Nurse. Even as a very young and inexperienced nurse I was fully aware that being a
nurse was far more complicated than that. One of the main reasons I decided to become an RN
was to help people, I knew that I wanted the career I choose to be about that deeper personal
connection that comes with being a nurse even though at the time I did not know how to properly
define that connection. Jean Watsons philosophy and science of caring as described by Masters

(Masters, 2009) discusses the 10 carative factors Watson believes are essential for helping the
nurse attain a higher level of harmony within the mind-body-and spirit with their patients and I
would like to show how just a few of these relate to my own philosophy of nursing.
Watsons first carative factor (Masters, 2009, p. 50) the practice of loving kindness and
equanimity with context of caring consciousness is broken down nicely in our online lecture of
Watsons theory ("NUR 3240 Transition to Baccalaureate Nursing," 2016) and discusses the
practice of loving kindness to self and others, having respect for self and respecting others by
authentically listening to them and caring for them. This correlates with Bon Secours value of
Respect ("Bon Secours Health System," n.d.) and their commitment to treat all people well, self,
patients, and all member of the health care team. This is the value I relate to the most as I have
always had the philosophy to treat everyone as I would like to be treated.
In Watsons 8th carative factor (Masters, 2009, p. 51) she discusses how the nurse should
provide the patients basic needs with intentional caring kindness. Recognizing the nurse as a
part of the overall healing environment this intentional caring kindness provides the foundation
for the spiritual connection needed for both the patient and the nurse to thrive. Correlating to Bon
Secours value of compassion ("Bon Secours Health System," n.d.) defined by Bon Secours as
experiencing empathy with anothers life situation embodies the spiritual connection between
the nurse and the patient as discussed by Watson.
One example of a specific patient encounter that comes to mind as I contemplated my
own personal philosophy of nursing is from several years ago when I had worked as a home
health nurse for just a few months during a transition from one part of the state to another during
a time of personal family crisis. I had the privilege of caring for an elderly gentleman who was in
the end stages of Sarcoidosis and the deep spiritual connection that I experienced with this

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING

gentleman and his family was indeed healing for myself as well as my patient and his family. In
the few short weeks that I visited him and helped him with basic needs as well as assisting him
and his family through the pain of his final days I discovered for the first time that while it can be
difficult at times to lose patients they also bring healing to me personally as this encounter
helped me to step outside of myself and the difficult time I was experiencing in my own life and
put who I am and what I am called to do in proper perspective.
My values and beliefs, especially those discussed in my own personal philosophy of
nursing and in treating others as I would like to be treated have not changed but have certainly
evolved as I continue in my nursing career. Interactions with patients like the gentleman and his
family I cared for as a home health nurse have strengthened my empathy for others and have also
taught me valuable lessons in the necessity of caring for myself in order to make the connections
I have with patients and families more healing for all of us. As I continue to grow and learn, the
application of knowledge gained about the delivery of my nursing care, especially in terms of
how it relates to specific theories of nursing like Watsons will hopefully help me to be even
more effective as a nurse in the future.

PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING

References
Jean Watsons theory of caring. (2016). Retrieved June 12, 2016, from
https://bsmcon.blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-115887-dt-content-rid671337_1/courses/NUR3240-201516-SU/Jean%20Watson%203240.pdf
Masters, K. (2009). Role development in professional nursing practice (2nd edition ed.).
http://dx.doi.org/. Retrieved from
Merriam-Webster (n.d.). Merriam-Webster. [Merriam-Webster.com]. Retrieved from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nursing
Our values. (n.d.). Retrieved June 27, 2016, from http://bshsi.org/about-us-our-mission-ourvalues.html