Human Caring Case Study

Introduction

Nursing is a process of care related to human life experiences and has a long heritage as a caring profession. In the nineteenth century, Florence Nightingale, conveyed a belief that caring for the sick is grounded on the understanding of each individual and his or her environment (McEwen & Wills, 2014). Caring has always been contemplated as a fundamental aspect of nursing. The human caring theory developed by Watson in the late 1970s states that the objective of nursing is to help persons achieve a higher level of harmony within the mind–body–spirit through transpersonal caring driven by caritas processes (McEwen & Wills, 2014). Swanson’s defined caring as a “nurturing way of relating to a valued other toward whom one feels a

She received a bachelor’s degree in nursing, a master of science degree in psychiatric–mental health nursing, and a doctorate in educational psychology and counseling. Watson has written many international books, chapters, and articles about the science of caring(McEwen & Wills, 2014). Watson founded and directed the Center for Human Caring at the Health Sciences Center and she has been the receiver of many awards and honors. Jean Watson is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and was the president of the National League for Nursing (McEwen & Wills,

During the theorist’s doctoral education, the concept of caring went to the foreground of her professional endeavors and since then, caring has turn out to be the emphases of her research. Swanson’s theory of caring was developed inductively by observing or living through phenomena and then reaching definite conclusions that led to the development of a middle range theory of caring with five distinct caring processes: knowing, being with, doing for, enabling, and maintaining belief (Peterson & Bredow, 2013). Swanson (1991), indicated that she drew on diverse philosophical and theoretical sources to develop her theory of caring. She also accredited several nurse researchers for shaping her beliefs about caring. She recognizes Dr. Jacqueline Fawcett for aiding in her understanding of the distinctive role of nursing in caring for others. Swanson also acknowledges Dr. Watson for urging her to study caring inductively. Finally, Swanson gives credit to Dr. Kathryn M. Barnard for urging her to test and apply her theory in randomized clinical trials (Swanson,