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Maxine Audet
“I pledge…”
PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING 2
Definition of Nursing
many different areas, beyond a patient’s medical diagnosis. In my opinion, nursing can be
defined as caring and tending to a patient and their family and the physical, medical, social, and
spiritual needs of said patient. Throughout my nursing education, these aspects of nursing care
have truly been driven home. The Bon Secours nursing program outlines five tenets of nursing
education. These tenets include nursing, nursing education, caring, health, and service. The
mission statement goes on to explain its philosophy on each of these tenets in much greater
detail. While all of the tenets fit into my personal definition of nursing, three of tenets truly seem
The Bon Secours tenet of nursing touches on nurses as part of the interdisciplinary health
care team, treating the patient holistically, and both the art and science of nursing care. I believe
that nursing is truly about treating the patient as a whole, not just a diagnosis and that you have
to help everything to heal in order to completely care for person. Nurses are truly the eyes and
ears for the doctors and most of the health care team, it is our job to make sure we advocate for
our patients and play a truly active role in order to provide the best care possible. Additionally, I
truly do believe that nursing is both an art and a science. Yes, we are taught anatomy,
pathophysiology, pharmacology, etc., but none of the science can really prepare you for taking
care of another human being, that requires a completely different set of skills. Each patient is
different, and nurses must use all of their skills to create different plans of care which are tailored
to each individual patient and that is where the art of nursing lies.
encompasses not only ways that nurses can express care in through their practice, but also ways
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that nurses must care for themselves. Caring plays a huge part in the nursing role and should
again, include caring for all aspects of the person. In order to express caring I think the nurse has
to tailor the care to each individual patient and if things arise use the ability to think critically and
quickly to alleviate the situation. We’ve been told all throughout our education that nurses must
adapt and I think that goes hand in hand with caring. The tenet also touches on the idea of self
care. Self-care is something that is so often forgotten, especially within the nursing profession.
Nurses so often put others before themselves and are stressed, overworked, and overtired. It is
critical to take the time to care for oneself in order to provide the best possible care for others.
The tenet of health touches on how health is a dynamic state of being and goes beyond
the physical. As I’ve stated before I believe that nursing deals with all aspects of a person beyond
their diagnosis. I agree that health is dynamic and ever evolving, it is never too late to become
well again and as nurses we have the means to facilitate that, through the traditional medicinal
means, but also through education and alternative therapies. As nurses, we also need to
understand that everyone has a different definition of health throughout different times in their
lives and even though we may not always personally agree with that definition, as nurses we
Personal Philosophy
I try to portray my personal philosophy of nursing every time I am given the opportunity
to practice nursing. I always try to learn more about my patients then simply what brought them
to the hospital. In more cases than not, there is something important that I need to know about
that will affect how I care for the patient that they might not have shared with me otherwise.
Currently, I am doing my immersion on the labor and delivery unit and there are many other
factors that come into play when providing care for patients besides helping them through the
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labor process. We need to know about family dynamics, living situations, economic status, as
well as cultural needs. Sometimes we have to come straight out and ask client questions, but
often these things are revealed when we take the time to get to know the patient, their partner and
other support systems, and hear about their lives. I think all of this helps to provide the best
possible care for patients and this simple act can be transferred beyond labor nursing to all areas
of nursing.
As a student, advocating for your patient to a physician can be intimidating, to say the
least. However, soon we will be nurses out on our own and advocating is a huge part of the
nursing role. When appropriate, I have had the opportunity to speak with physicians regarding
the patient and tried to make note of something I thought was important or emphasized
something that I thought might be helpful for them. Also, as students we have the unique ability
to advocate for our patients to their primary nurses. We can discuss with the primary nurse ways
in which nursing care can be improved and we can provide a more holistic approach.
When working a 12-hour shift where you are responsible for caring for multiple patients
and their needs at a time, it can be difficult to take a minute for yourself. Although I think that is
truly important in order to be the best nurse that you can possible be. Taking time for yourself is
an act of self-care that is so important when caring for others. This does not have to be any huge
gesture, it could be taking a few moments to center yourself before walking into a patient’s room
or actually taking that 30-minute lunch break that you are allotted. I think even those small
moments give you an opportunity to recharge and be a better nurse. In the hospital now, I usually
always take a few moments to myself, usually prior to the start of shift just to take a few deep
There is one patient that comes to mind as an excellent example of how my personal
philosophy was applied. I was helping to care for a postpartum patient whose infant had been
transferred to the St. Mary’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for complications related to
premature birth and placental abruption prior to delivery. As the patient had delivered at
Memorial Regional (MRMC) and was recovering at MRMC, it was very difficult for her to be
away from her infant. While she was in our care, we did the best we could to communicate with
the NICU nurses at St. Mary’s so that she could have frequent updates regarding how her child
was doing. We were able to advocate for her and went to the nurse manager to see if we would
be able to transfer her to St. Mary’s for the rest of her recovery so that she could be closer to her
baby. As this arrangement was being organized, we found out that in order for her to be
transferred to St. Mary’s she would need to be transported by rescue squad to the hospital and the
cost for this would most likely, fall on the patient. From taking the time to speak with patient and
get to know her, we knew that she was currently experiencing financial hardship and would not
be able to cover the cost of the rescue squad. We then called St. Mary’s to discuss other options
available to her. We were able to arrange for her to be discharged completely and stay at the
Ronald McDonald House room located within St. Mary’s and we helped her find pharmacies
near the hospital that would fill her prescriptions at a low cost.
From completing the very simple task of getting to know our patients a little better and
truly listening to her, we were able to provide her and her child with the best possible plan and
ease her mind in terms of the financial cost of healthcare. Without us advocating for her to stay
in the Ronald McDonald House, she may not have been able to stay and see her infant as often as
she was able to while staying in the hospital. Additionally, we presented her with all of her
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possible options so that she could retain her autonomy and feel empowered by making an
informed decision about the best discharge plan for her and her infant.
and beliefs would differ greatly from what they are now. However, after rereading my paper, I
am happy to say that they are just about identical. At first, I was a little surprised to see that
pretty much everything lined up, but after taking a moment to reflect, I really shouldn’t be
surprised. I think that values and beliefs describe who you are as a person, almost down to your
core. While of course things have changed in a certain regard, at the basic level of who I am and
what I think is important in the overall scheme of life and how I can use those things to be a
better nurse, those things have not changed, and possibly never will. My beliefs include treating
everyone equally, caring, listening to patients, presence, and self-care. I have touched on all of
these beliefs through my discussion of my personal definition of nursing. My values list things
like humor, honesty, integrity, independence, knowledge, and teamwork. I still value all of these
things and believe they play an integral role in life as well in nursing care.
Benner’s Theory
Benner’s Theory of skill acquisition is based on the Dreyfus Model of skill acquisition
developed in the 1980s. Benner was able to take this model and apply it to skilled nursing
practice. Benner describes five stages of skill acquisition; novice, advanced beginner, competent,
proficient, and expert. She goes on to describe the characteristics of each of the different levels
as well as the teaching and learning needs. She states that nurses move through the different
stages as they progress from nursing student to seasoned nurse. These stages are also fluid and
Benner describes the novice nurse as those who have no experience and tend to think of
things objectively and in more of a textbook format. Benner describes the student nurse as well
as nurses who are transferring clinical areas as novices. The next stage of skill acquisition is the
advanced beginner. Benner describes the advanced beginner as a nurse who has the ability to
demonstrate acceptable performance and have had enough experience to begin to critically think
through some situations. Following advanced beginner comes competent. The competent nurse
typically has been in the same sort of job setting for a period of two to three years and can see
their actions and how it effects more long-term goals. The proficient nurse is the fourth stage in
skill acquisition. The proficient nurse is able to see situations as a whole and can understand
long-term goals. The proficient nurse has learned from previous experience and typically knows
how many types of situations may play out. The fifth and final stage is the expert stage. The
expert nurse does not rely on rules or guidelines to direct their understanding, instead they guide
their actions on their extensive background in their area of nursing. (Benner, 2001).
Skill Acquisition
between novice and advanced beginner. Benner describes the novice as someone who has little
to no experience in the situations in which they are to perform. I have had experience in the
hospital, but as I begin my nursing career, I am sure that many situations will arise where I do
not feel comfortable or that I have never been in before. In these situations, I may act according
to more textbook type procedure and will look to my more experienced coworkers for guidance.
However, based on my experience in the hospital and with caring for a variety of patients that I
will be able to draw on these experiences to determine the “aspects of the situation” (Benner, p.
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22, 2001). I feel that in certain instances I could be categorized as an advanced beginner, but in
expert nurse. In an effort to move forward, I will actively seek out learning experiences in
situations I have never been involved in, in order to use critical thinking and learn the proper
course of action in this situation. I will seek out help and guidance from more advanced nurses,
so that they can possibly pass some of their knowledge down to me. Finally, many new grad
positions offer an extensive training and residency programs. I feel that these are excellent
resources and sources of support for new grads as we try to find our place within the unit and the
hospital system.
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References
Benner, P.B. (2001). From novice to expert: Excellence and power in clinical nursing practice.