celine boutin- nursing philosophy

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Nursing is something that can be defined very broadly depending on who you ask. To me nursing can be defined as hard work, devotion, and a desire to care for others. I see nursing as both a science and an art because nursing mixes together a world of knowledge and technology into therapeutic communication and careful interventions. Most importantly however, nursing is about compassion and care. I believe that being a nurse means doing my best to make sure that I am compassionate, dedicated, and focused so that my patients can receive the best care possible. For me nursing is the perfect profession because it combines my love of science with my desire to care. I want to be a nurse so that I can do what I love. I know that I will be a good nurse one day because I am thoughtful, driven, responsible, and empathetic. While I am excited to be a nurse one day, I did not always know that nursing was for me. When I began my career as a student at The University of New Hampshire (UNH) I was enrolled in both philosophy and pre-medical classes with the intention of becoming a pediatrician. As my classes progressed I realized that I was not satisfied when I thought about my future in medical school and eventually as a pediatrician. I wanted to be in a field where I could work with patients sooner and where I could really build a relationship with my patients when I saw them. This is when I started to think about the UNH Nursing program. I had a few friends in the nursing program who really enjoyed the program so they encouraged me to try it. I decided that I was going to take the most nursing courses that I could as a philosophy major and then apply to transfer. I ended up loving the classes that I took so I submitted my application and in March of my sophomore year I found out that I had been accepted into the nursing program. I was ecstatic because I knew that nursing was right for me. Now that I am a nursing major I have been able to spend a lot of time observing older nursing students and observing nurses. I have found that I frequently look to older nursing students for

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Nursing Philosophy

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Page 1: Celine Boutin- Nursing Philosophy

Nursing is something that can be defined very broadly depending on who you ask. To me

nursing can be defined as hard work, devotion, and a desire to care for others. I see nursing as both a

science and an art because nursing mixes together a world of knowledge and technology into therapeutic

communication and careful interventions. Most importantly however, nursing is about compassion and

care. I believe that being a nurse means doing my best to make sure that I am compassionate, dedicated,

and focused so that my patients can receive the best care possible.

For me nursing is the perfect profession because it combines my love of science with my desire

to care. I want to be a nurse so that I can do what I love. I know that I will be a good nurse one day

because I am thoughtful, driven, responsible, and empathetic. While I am excited to be a nurse one day,

I did not always know that nursing was for me. When I began my career as a student at The University

of New Hampshire (UNH) I was enrolled in both philosophy and pre-medical classes with the intention

of becoming a pediatrician. As my classes progressed I realized that I was not satisfied when I thought

about my future in medical school and eventually as a pediatrician. I wanted to be in a field where I

could work with patients sooner and where I could really build a relationship with my patients when I

saw them.

This is when I started to think about the UNH Nursing program. I had a few friends in the

nursing program who really enjoyed the program so they encouraged me to try it. I decided that I was

going to take the most nursing courses that I could as a philosophy major and then apply to transfer. I

ended up loving the classes that I took so I submitted my application and in March of my sophomore

year I found out that I had been accepted into the nursing program. I was ecstatic because I knew that

nursing was right for me.

Now that I am a nursing major I have been able to spend a lot of time observing older nursing

students and observing nurses. I have found that I frequently look to older nursing students for

Page 2: Celine Boutin- Nursing Philosophy

inspiration because it is so easy to see myself in them. I also look to practicing nurses for inspiration

because I think that there is a lot of learning that happens outside of nursing school. I especially look to

my aunts who are nurses because throughout time and challenge they still love their work and give it

their all. This is how I want to be in the future, I do not want to be burnt out or pessimistic after working

in the nursing field for a while. I also look to my aunts to see how they are able to balance patients and

time. I hope that when I am a nurse I am able to remain focused on individuals instead of time; I want to

remain dedicated to patient centered care.

Patient centered care is when nurses focus on the patient above all else. This means that nurses

take patient views and values into consideration and work with these instead of against them. I think

patient centered care is valuable because it also works to improve the nurse-patient relationship. I think

that relationships are essential in nursing because I believe that patients are more likely to take health

advice from someone they trust and respect. I have often heard health defined as the absence of disease,

but to me it is much more than that. To me, health is the balance and harmony of one’s body, mind, and

spirit. Being healthy is eating well and exercising, but also setting aside time for activities that stimulate

the mind or relax the spirit. It is important to acknowledge that as humans we are more than a body and

therefore we have to care for more than just our body.

Another important piece of this idea of health for me is one’s environment. One way to be

healthy and to truly care for one’s self is to be in a positive and appropriate environment. When

someone has to stay at a hospital or a nursing home I think that it is important to create a positive and

suitable environment for them. This can be accomplished by focusing on the patient and applying patient

centered care techniques. By asking patients if they are comfortable or what they like and dislike I think

that I can not only improve patients’ environments’ but my relationship with the patient. When I am a

nurse I want to make sure that I am aware of my patients’ environments’ as well as my own. I want to

Page 3: Celine Boutin- Nursing Philosophy

make sure that I work in an environment that I truly enjoy whether that is delivery, or pediatrics, or even

a specific hospital. I think that if I am able to truly enjoy my environment then I would be more likely to

provide better care. In general, I believe that self-care is just as important as the care of others.

In summary, there are quite a few teachings that guide me as a nurse. First of all, as I mentioned,

I want to make sure that I am always putting the patient first. The reason that there are nurses is because

there are patients that need to be cared for. Secondly, I want to always care to the best of my ability. At

the end of the day I want to know that I gave my patients the best care possible. Finally, I want to make

sure that I take care of my self. If I want to care for others I have to make sure that I am also caring for

my own mind, body, and spirit. Throughout my education and career as a nurse I know that if I keep

these guidelines in mind practice I will not only be a successful nurse but a nurse who can be proud of

my own work and accomplishments.

Bibliography

Berwick, D. M. (2009). What ‘patient-centered” should mean: Confessions of an extremist. Health

Affairs, 28(4), 555-565.

Fadiman, A. (1997). The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Iseminger, K., Levitt, F. & Kirk, L. (2009) Healing During Existential Moments: The “Art” of Nursing

Presence. Nursing.theclinics.com, 44(1), 447-459.

Leebov, W. (2009). Nursing communication: How to make sure patients feel our caring. Allnurses:

General Articles About Nursing. Retrieved from http://allnurses.com/nurse-colleague-

patient/nursing-communication-how-378288.html.

Nightingale, F. (1957). Notes on Nursing. London: Harrison and Sons.