Running head: PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING

Personal Philosophy of Nursing

Brianna Terry
University of Central Florida

Nursing is a profession which is filled with opportunities for both the nurse and the
individual that he or she cares for. The nurse has the power to make great changes in the lives of
inviduals under their care. These changes can be accomplished by focusing attention on nursing
practice aimed at meeting the holistic needs of the individual. These include spiritual,
psychological, emotional, as well as physical needs. The nurse can also greatly benefit the patient
by caring for the patients family members. In my personal nursing career thus far I have had
wonderful experiences, such as being thanked by an individual under my care. This individual
appreciated me for taking the time to speak with her and have case management assist her. My
actions were simple and far from demanding, and yet this individual was so appreciative that she
told me it is my destiny to be a nurse.
Nursing is rooted in compassion and empathy, and is extremely versatile. Nurses have the
option to choose the population they care for, in which setting, and for how long. Nurses can care
for one individual throughout the entirety of their care, for multiple individuals, or even for a
community at large. Nurses can obtain higher education and expand their practice to allow for
greater autonomy and impact.
According to Kristen Swanson (1991) (1993) (1999) in her theory of caring, caring is a
nurturing way of interacting with others whom an individual feels a sense of responsibility and
commitment to. Swanson (1993) postulates that care of the biopsychosocial and spiritual needs
of an individual is an integral and significant component of satisfactory nursing care. She
identified maintaining belief, knowing, being with, doing for, and enabling as the five basic
processes of caring (Swanson, 1991). Maintaining belief as a concept is the support of the
individuals future, and encouraging faith in the ability of the individual to make it through
whatever situation/diagnosis/prognosis they are facing. This involves supporting the individual,

believing in them, maintaining hopefulness in attitude, assisting the individual to find meaning,
and remaining optimistic about realistically achievable outcomes. Knowing as a concept is the
idea that the nurse should avoid assumptions, attempt to understand the meaning of the current
situation to the individual, promote the individuals self-knowledge, and make every effort to
truly know and understand the individual under their care. Being as a concept implies that
nurses should be present physically and emotionally, to be welcoming to communication, and to
be willing to support the individual. Doing as a concept implies that the nurse should care for
individuals in a manner that is consistent with how they would want to be cared for. Such actions
include anticipating the individuals needs, providing competent and skillful care, and protecting
the individual and preserving their dignity. Enabling as a concept implies that the nurse must
act as a facilitator to the individual under their care. This means that the nurse should guide the
individual through life transitions and unfamiliar events. Swanson (1991) recommends strategies
for achieving this such as focusing on the event, educating, supporting, validating feelings,
constructing alternatives, thinking things through, and providing feedback. Swanson states that
each of these 5 basic processes of caring are not separate entities or strategies, but rather
overlapping resources and tools that are a necessary component of a caring relationship. Also
according to Swanson (1999) knowing, being with, doing for, enabling, and maintaining belief
are essential components of the relationship between the nurse and the individual under their
care.
Swansons theory of caring (1993) defines the metaparadigms of nursing in the following
ways. A person is viewed as an individual coming into being, whose completeness is expressed
through their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. This is similar to my personal view on a person,
which is a multifaceted individual who is comprised of biopsychosocial traits and qualities, and

possesses spiritual, physical, social, emotional, and economic needs. Environment is viewed as
any context impacted by or impacting the individual. This is also very similar to my personal
view on environment as the location where any nurse-individual relationship takes place. Health
is described as well-being, or the highly subjective experience of wholeness, which is complete
and free expression of all traits an individual possesses. This is also very similar to my personal
view on health as being a state of wellness and an absence of barriers to achieving satisfaction
with life. Finally, nursing is described as informed caring for the well-being of individuals. This
is extremely similar to my personal view on nursing as a skillfully trained and highly educated
profession in which the nurse cares holistically to the full extent of their capabilities for all
components, needs, and desires of the individual and their family under the nurses care.
(Masters, 2015)
My personal philosophy is similar to that of Kristen Swansons theory of caring (1991)
(1993) (1999). It is my personal belief that nursing is a profession of excellence. Researchers,
educators, and clinical nurses all focus on improving the lives of others. I am proud to be an
upcoming member of the nursing profession. I aspire to make a difference in the lives of each
and every one of the individuals that I care for. I aspire to also further my education to become as
knowledgeable as I possibly can be, so that I can provide the utmost caliber of care. It is my
belief that if I can forever remain as passionate and dedicated to caring for others as I currently
am, that I will make this difference. I will continue to take the extra minute to hug someone who
is grieving, or explain something confusing to a patient who is having a hard time understanding.
If I continue to strive to be the kind of nurse that I would want caring for me, then there will
never come a day when I will not be a compassionate, dedicated, and enthusiastic nurse.

References
Masters, K. (2015). Framework for professional nursing practice. In Nursing Theories: A
Framework for Professional Practice (2nd ed., pp. 47-87). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Swanson, K. (1991). Empirical development of a middle range theory of caring. Nursing
Research, 40(3), 161-166. doi:10.1097/00006199-199105000-00008
Swanson, K. (1993). Nursing as informed caring for the well-being of others. Image: The Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 25(4), 352-357. doi:10.1111/j.1547-5069.1993.tb00
Swanson, K. M. (1999). What's known about caring in nursing: A literary meta-analysis.
In Handbook of clinical nursing research (pp. 31-60). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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