Nursing Career, Research Paper Example

Assignment 1: What Does a Nursing Career Mean to You?

Introduction

In professional nursing, acquiring insight into core values and beliefs regarding nursing practice and the commitment to excellence in patient care is critical for success. Many different experiences support independence and focused analysis to make decisions that are in the best interest of all patients. Adversity and important challenges have provided tools that are necessary to make informed decisions regarding patient care and nursing practice as a whole. Earning Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing supports personal and professional growth to achieve the desired results. It is important to develop the appropriate skillset to provide care and treatment to patients in community-based settings and other environments to improve the scope of nursing practice over time, using such alternatives as preventative medicine and vaccinations to achieve the desired results.

Analysis

Nursing trailblazers and theorists such as Florence Nightingale and Jean Watson made significant strides in an effort to shift nursing practice in a new direction. These actions support how nurses thrive and support patients in the modern era. Past nursing experiences are substantial in providing direction and focus. Career aspirations grow and thrive because the role of nursing and patient care is suitable to an individual’s strengths. Individual personalities and approaches to the professional career align with the needs and core values of nursing practice in many different ways. Commitment and dedication to patients will not waver and will facilitate the development of mutually beneficial relationships to improve the scope of nursing practice in different ways. The International Council of Nurses (ICN) supports the successful development of nursing practice in all areas, including legislative regulations, core competencies, and education to define this scope in a practical manner across organizations (ICN).

Nurses must adhere to all established Codes of Ethics to serve the practice in a successful manner. These opportunities provide a means of exploring new ideas and concepts in an ethically responsible manner to improve patient care and treatment as best as possible. In this role, nurses must make informed decisions that are in the best interest of all patients, while also considering new and other feasible alternatives to improve practice. Ethical approaches throughout nursing practice are essential to the discovery of new ideas and approaches to achieve desirable results, and this is best achieved in the context of the continuum of care and how patients are supported through nursing activities (Nortvedt et.al, 2011). With an expanded approach to ethical principles, nurses will achieve optimal success with direct patient care as well as the educational endeavors that they pursue. These efforts are critical to the continued success of nursing practice and the overall direction and scope of the practice as a whole. The American Nurses Association supports a framework which is based upon ethical principles in the spirit of providing optimal care and treatment for patients at all times (Lachman, 2012). The organization values the human being as the center of nursing practice and the development of personal connections to patients to improve outcomes (Lachman, 2012).

By using theoretical approaches, nurses demonstrate the value and contribution of nursing in different ways. Jean Watson has forever transformed nursing practice through her approach to caring, which positively impacts patient wellbeing because nurses are focused and develop a passion for nursing practice in many areas (Watson, 2009). The concept of caring science has emerged as a means of influencing the scope of nursing practice through expanded attention paid to patients in community-based settings without access to routine healthcare services, as well as in rural settings where healthcare access is also limited. Watson’s approach has a scientific basis because she believes that caring is part of a much larger clinical picture, whereby there must be a focus on clinical treatment and pharmacological needs, in addition to providing emotional support and compassion for patients (Watson, 2009). Nurses must balance their emotional ties to patients with clinical treatment objectives to ensure that their needs are met without difficulty. Nurses must act in a dual role as clinicians and caregivers so that patient needs are accommodated in a manner which is consistent with all required practice guidelines and regulations.

For nurses, their interest in the nursing profession continues to grow with each and every experience. Patient care and treatment are the key priorities for nurses, including priorities associated with testing, evaluation, and pharmacological treatments. However, they must balance these objectives with other responsibilities to accommodate the breadth and scope of nursing practice in an effective manner. In this capacity, organizational and negotiation skills are essential in addition to critical knowledge and an understanding of the serious and immediate nature of patient care in modern healthcare settings. Each of these factors has facilitated an even greater interest in the nursing profession and what it has to offer, and has facilitates the potential for future contribution as a Registered Nurse. Making decisions in this capacity is one of the most intriguing aspects of nursing and is a strong motivator in improving core strengths and knowledge in this important field. Nursing must play several roles, including a well-defined opportunity to perform clinical functions and applications in a manner which is consistent with their original objectives, and in supporting the emotional and contextual framework of nurses as caregivers and proponents of ethical responsibility.

References

International Council of Nurses. Scope of Nursing Practice. Retrieved from http://www.icn.ch/images/stories/documents/publications/position_statements/B07_Scope_Nsg_Practice.pdf

Lachman, V.D. (2012). Applying the ethics of care to your nursing practice. MedSurg Nursing, 21(2), 112-116.

Nortvedt, P., Hem, M.H., and Skirbekk, H. (2011). The ethics of care: role obligations and moderate partiality in health care. Nursing Ethics, 18(2), 192-200.

Watson, J. (2009). Caring science and human caring theory: transforming personal and professional practices of nursing and health care. Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, 466-482.