Nursing Philosophy Essay

782 Words4 Pages
NUR/403 University of Phoenix

Nursing Philosophy

A nursing philosophy is a conceptual model or framework providing a guide of reference for nurses to direct thinking, observations, interpretations, and practices (Seedhouse, 2000, p. 155). Since the work of Florence Nightingale there have been many nursing philosophies and theories or “specific framework designed to organize knowledge and explain phenomena in nursing” (“The Free Dictionary”, 2013). Today these theories have been put to use in nursing practice around the world. Although the approach to nursing care may be different in each theory, the concepts within each theory are parallel. Many nursing theorist have devised a different way of approaching patient care by defining the meaning of each part of the nursing metaparadigm: the nurse, the environment, the patient, and health.
Nightingale’s philosophy is environmentally oriented. The focus is to keep the patient dry and clean at all times, to maintain the noise level in the room and surrounding area, and to keep the patient in ventilated room. Although Nightingale’s model seems linear, it has been observed that the nurse initiates mutuality of care as well as the outcome between the nurse and the patient (Selanders, 1998, p. 24).
Betty Neuman’s theory of wellness has a holistic approach to the patient. The patient’s energy, any potential patient defenses, resistances, and reactions are included in the assessment process. She suggests the patient care and caregiver approach to it by comparing perceptual differences. The nurse makes a diagnosis from information collected during the assessment and sets the goals to match the desired outcomes based on the assessment and the perceived patient need. According to Betty Neuman, the goals have to be stable and suitable. In the plan of care she uses primary, secondary, and tertiary preventions, which are

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