Nursing has been viewed as both a science and an art (Price et al., 2007, p. 155). A logical progression of ideas and theories as well as evidence-based research supports the varied interventions and rationales that the nurse must effectively use to provide safe care (McCrae, 2011). Human touch, compassion, creativity and moral values characterise the artistic nature of the nursing profession, which can promote personal satisfaction and growth (Finfgeld-Connett, 2008, p. 383). However, similar to any other line of work, nursing is not without its dangers as seen by examples of errors and negligence (Tingle & McHale, 2009; Young, 2009). Hence, the National Competency Standards for the Registered Nurse were formulated by the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council (ANMC) as the core competency standards used to assess and evaluate the performance of a registered nurse in Australia (Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2006). Moreover, these standards provide the public with information on the expected actions and behaviour of a nurse, emphasising the latter’s accountability and responsibility. Integrated into the nursing curricula, these standards orient and guide the student nurse on the many aspects of nursing practice focussing on quality health care and professional development amidst changing times (ANMC, 2006). These competency standards have had a large impact on my nursing studies particularly in this unit, NURS5084. One major component is the domain of professional practice. According to Muller (2010, p. 232), “a profession is made up of people who are members of an occupational group who share a common body of knowledge and set of skills that have been gained through a formal course, which has resulted in a qualif... ... middle of paper ... ...f Advanced Nursing. Muller, S. (2010). The profession of nursing. In S. Hart (Ed.), Nursing: Study & Placement Learning Skills. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. Price, S., Arbuthnot, E., Benoit, R., Landry, D., Landry, M., & Butler, L. (2007). The Art of Nursing: Communication and Self-Expression. Nursing Science Quarterly, 20(2), 155-160. doi: 10.1177/0894318407299577 Stephen J, O. C. (2007). Developing professional habitus: A Bernsteinian analysis of the modern nurse apprenticeship. Nurse Education Today, 27(7), 748-754. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2006.10.008 Tingle, J., & McHale, J. (2009). Specialist healthcare law for nurses: an introduction. British journal of nursing (Mark Allen Publishing), 18(1), 38-39. Young, A. (2009). Review: The legal duty of care for nurses and other health professionals: REVIEW. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 18(22), 3071-3078.
Nursing’s development from an occupation to a profession follows the devotion and sacrifice of many amazing women throughout history. Considered to be one of the oldest professions, women have performed what could be considered nursing duties since the beginning of time. Although there have been many events and many individuals who have contributed to nursing’s evolution from the occupation it was once considered to the profession that now exists, the development of formal education opportunities and scholarly resources and the women who created them is what fascinates me most. Without knowing, each of the following five women helped lay the groundwork for what Lucie Kelly, RN, PhD, FAAN, eventually termed the eight characteristics of a profession
Taylor, C. (2011). Introduction to Nursing. Fundamentals of nursing: the art and science of nursing care (7th ed.). Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Walsh, M. (1997). The Nature of Nursing. In M. Walsh (ed.) (1997). Watson’s Clinical Nursing and Related Sciences. 5th Edition. London: Baillière Tindall.
Furthermore, nursing action guided by the theory and principles of moral and legal rights complements excellent nursing care. Nurse’s awareness of moral and legal codes helps them control the complicated scenarios encountered and direct the nurses in the best possible action answerable by law (Lachman, 2006). In this essay, the author will rationalize the relevance of professional, ethical and legal regulations in the practice of nursing. The author will discuss and analyze the chosen scenario and critically review the action taken at the expense of the patient and the care workers. In addition, the author will also evaluate the strength and limitations of the scenario in a broader issue with reasonable judgement supported by theories and principles of ethical and legal standards.
As a nurse we are responsible for the safety and overall health promotion of our patients. Competency in the nursing field is what ensures patient safety and decreased hospital acquired injury. Continued competence ensures that the nurse is able to perform efficiently and safely in a constantly changing environment. Nurses must continuously evaluate their level of skill and find where improvement needs to be made in order to keep up to date with the expected skill level set by their
Burkhardt, M. A., & Nathaniel, A. K. (2014). Ethics & issues in contemporary nursing (4th ed.). Stephan Helbra.
Our course, Transition to Professional Nursing, is barely two weeks old and already I am being enlightened and challenged to expand my experience of nursing. I will attempt to explain my personal journey and experience thus far including how and why I got here, my beliefs about nursing and related values, and my visions for the future.
Parker, M. E., & Smith, M. C. (2010). Nursing theories and nursing practice (3rd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: F. A. Davis Company
McIntyre, M. & McDonald, C. (2014). Nursing Philosophies, Theories, Concepts, Frameworks, and Models. In Koizer, B., Erb, G., Breman, A., Snyder, S., Buck, M., Yiu, L., & Stamler, L. (Eds.), Fundamentals of Canadian nursing (3rd ed.). (pp.59-74). Toronto, Canada: Pearson.
Nursing is an art: and if it is to be made an art, It requires an exclusive devotion as hard a preparation, as any painter’s or sculptor’s work; for what is the having to do with dead canvas or dead marble, compared with having to do with the living body, the temple of God’s spirit? It is one of the Fine Arts: I had almost said, the finest of Fine Arts. (Masters, 2005 (p.186)
Competence in nursing is having the knowledge, judgement, skills and experience to carry out professional duties correctly and effectively (RCN, 2009). All nurses must prove their level of competence before they can become registered as a nurse. They must do this by showing their competencies in all fields of nursing, and by proving their specific competencies in their own field of nursing, without doing this, they will not be allowed to practice. This ensures that all practicing nurses have a high level of competency. The nursing and midwifery council also states that to protect the public they ensure that they set standards for education, training and conduct, and by ensuring registered nurses keep their skills and knowledge up to date.
Benner , P., Tanner, C., & Chesla, C. (1996). Expertise in Nursing Practice, Caring, Clinical Judgement and Ethics. New York, New York: Springer.
Hood, J. (2010). Conceptual bases of professional nursing. (7th ed. ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
In every nurse's career, he or she will face with legal and ethical dilemmas. One of the professional competencies for nursing states that nurses should "integrate knowledge of ethical and legal aspects of health care and professional values into nursing practice". It is important to know what types of dilemmas nurses may face
This journal is a reflection of my experiences and lessons learned thus far within this course. Upon my reflecting, there were lessons that stood out the most. Also, there are nursing practices in my associate’s degree of nursing program (ADN) that correlates with the standard of care that was recently discussed. This reflection also prompt me to consider more in depth the necessary skills and attributes to become a competent nurse.