Tiffany Cole

Professional Nursing Philosophy

My nursing philosophy is to provide my patients with the care, support, and factual

information they need to safely promote their health. I believe that every patient is different and

therefore they should be provided with the resources they need so that they can be an active

participant in their healthcare decisions. This is similar to Helen Ericksons nursing theory.

According to Erickson, The patient is the expert in his or her own care, and knows best in how

he or she should be cared for to get back to health (Modeling and Role Modeling Theory, nude).

No one knows a patient's body the way they do and with the ability to form their own treatment

plan, with the information provided to them, they will have better long-term outcomes.

When first starting out in nursing school, I remember doing activities to identify own our

values and beliefs. At first, I didnt understand why but after working in the nursing field for a

couple years Ive realized this is because you interact with many different people from different

walks of life. Many of these people have values and beliefs that are different from yours and in

order to provide unbiased care you should know your own. When looking at my own values, I

would say at the top of my list is honesty. I believe that no matter what the situation people

should always tell the truth. When caring for my patients and they ask me questions about a

procedure or medication side effects I always make sure I tell the truth. I feel like your patients

will respect and trust you more when you are honest with them which helps facilitate a strong

nurse patient relationship. After thinking about my beliefs regarding nursing, I believe that as

nurses we should be our patients number one resource and after providing them with the

information they need we should support them in any decision that they feel is best.
 When I think of lifelong learning I think of the saying "You learn something new every

day". There is always something new to learn you must have the desire to further your

knowledge. I believe it makes you a better person, mother, father, nurse, etc. To me lifelong

learning means not being "stuck in your ways" or doing something because thats the way it's

always been done. Being in the health care profession, there is always someone trying to

research a different way to do something that will produce better results. I will strive to not only

use my own experiences, but to also incorporate the research done by others to learn the most I

can on how to deliver the best care to my patients. There are also many opportunities to provide

your patients with lifelong learning. The nurse plays a big role when it comes to educating their

patients about their disease process and treatment plan.

The nursing theory that most fits with my values and beliefs about nursing is the

Modeling and Role- Modeling theory developed by Helen Erickson. Walsh, VandenBosch, and

Boehm (1989) stated Assisting people in replenishing, developing, and using their resources for

movement in a healthier direction is a prime nursing responsibility (p. 758). This fits with my

nursing philosophy because I believe that as a nurse, I should provide my patient with whatever

they need to promote their health. Whether I provide them with coping mechanisms to use when

they are stressed or provide them with the information on how to obtain a walker or can to assist

them with their ADLs. Additionally, I believe that a patient knows what is best for them and they

know what they need in order to return to optimum health. Often time providers want to push a

patient to do what they think is best which causes resisitance from the patient. The Modeling and

Role Modeling theory emphasizes At some level a person knows what has made him or her

sickor interfered with growth and what will help heal and optimize his or her effectiveness and

promote his or her growth (Walsh et al., 1989).

 When it comes to personal wellness, I believe that a person (no matter what profession

you are in) must take care of themselves first before they can help someone else. In reference to

nursing, I would like to think that our patients look up to us and we must set good examples for

them to model. A nurse cannot tell a patient about the effects of smoking on their health and give

them the resources and support to quit their habit when they are smoking themselves. I feel as

though this breaks the trust of the patient. One of the five goals of the Modeling and Role

Modeling theory is to build trust (Modeling and Role Modeling Theory, n.d.). If your patient

sees you out in public smoking a cigarette after giving them all the information about how

smoking negatively effects their health, their trust they had in you will diminish. My nursing

philosophy relates to spiritual personal wellness because I must refrain from judging someone

based on their beliefs or choices and provide them with the same nursing care I would to anyone

else. The Modeling and Role Modeling theory states that the nurse must accept the patient

unconditionally (n.d).

My conflict management style is collaborating. This style is when everyone walks away

from the issue with a positive outcome. Although this style is very time consuming, I believe that

this is the best way to deal with conflict because in the end there are no hard feelings and

everyone gets what they want. This management style promotes trust because after the situation

is over, there will be no concern about that person trying to get back at you because everyone

walks away with a favorable outcome. This will impact my role as a professional nurse because

conflict in the workplace is inevitable. There will be times when you and another employee

disagree on things and if you can use the collaborating style to resolve these issues, there wont

be any tension in the future and this will help promote a healthy work environment.
 I believe that keeping patients safe should be the number one priority of all healthcare

providers. My nursing philosophy addresses patient safety by practicing with the value of

honesty. I will always tell my patients the truth and provide them with the correct information to

help them promote their health. I will also advocate for them. If there is something that I dont

feel is right regarding their care, I will be sure to speak up and not allow my fears or insecurities

to hinder their promotion of wellness.

In my nursing profession, I will strive to be the nurse that I would want to take care of my

family members. Leadership isnt always about just telling people what to do, it is about

modeling the behavior that you would like for people to look up to. I will always make myself

available to aid anyone that needs help and if I am unable to help them I will provide them with

the means to obtain the help that they need.

Modeling and Role Modeling Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved October 01, 2017, from

http://www.nursing-theory.org/theories-and-models/erickson-modeling-and-role-

modeling-theory.php

Walsh, K. K.,VandenBosch, T. M., & Boehm, S. (1989). "Modelling and role-modelling:

integrating nursing theory into practice." Journal of Advanced Nursing 14(9): 755-761.

Retrieved October 01, 2017 from <http://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/74308>