Reflection essay# 3 (Statement of Philosophy, e.g. Advanced Nursing Practice)
Title of Essay: “How my Statement of Philosophy evolved from the beginning and towards the completion of my program of study.”
Based on your Statement of Philosophy (below) what changes have occurred since you began the program, what courses, experiences, and course artifacts influenced the evolution of your current Statement of Philosophy. Use your courses and artifacts as evidence to substantiate the changes when you write this essay. Include what you wish to improve on, as well as those that you believe you can continue to enhance.
Write a 2-pages essay that addresses the 5 following questions:
- What is the relevance of your philosophy to your specialty in the Master of Sciences (MS) Program?
- What was your philosophy of nursing (Education, Administration, or Nurse Practitioner) when you started the program, and how does this compare to your current philosophy of nursing?
- What is the essence of the role of the MS-prepared nurse in the ongoing development of nursing and in meeting society’s needs for quality health care?
- How do you envision integrating being a leader and change agent in the evolving future of nursing education and nursing practice?
- What strategies will you use to contribute to the future of nursing?
Use the following courses, artifacts and, personal philosophy to write 2 pages Reflection. Please follow the above instructions and clarification. Focus on the topic on what the professor looks for. Do not develop unnecessary theory, focus to the point
Courses: Nursing informatics, Health promotion, and disease prevention, Evidence–based practice
Artifact: RFIDs, EMRs, Telehealth
Personal statement or philosophy statement relating to my role as an advance practice Nurse
Nursing is an art that will never be defined in one word or way. I remember before I decided to enroll in nursing school, I cared for an old lady through a home health agency. She kept telling me how wonderful I was to her, how patient, compassionate, and always willing to assist her with her daily activities. She kept saying it is not about doing it; it is how you do it. She made me realize how much I could enjoy being a nurse, and she always encouraged me to pursue a career in nursing.
When I enrolled in nursing school, it was not a smooth journey either because it was a tough and demanding program, but I learned a lot. It was then I realized nursing was not all about giving medication and helping someone to the bathroom. I learned about the importance of establishing rapport with a patient as soon as you assume care with them.
I completed my BSN program, and the idea of nursing grew even more. Working as an RN made me realized at times, I may have to provide care to the family member maybe a little more than the patient him/herself. I learned daily that nursing is way more than just what you learn in books and school and completing the care plan interventions.
Nursing, to me, is all about the relationship you establish with your patients, understanding them from their perspective. Asking them what they think is going on with their health or what has been changing in their body. I like to ask, how do you feel? What do you think? Asking these questions to my patients gives me a door to see them holistically. It helps me as a nurse to understand if their symptoms are just physical or are psychological as well. Someone may be experiencing a lot of life stressors and not eating right or not drinking a lot of water. As a result, they start experiencing a lot of headaches. Instead of thinking, it is a migraine and heavily medicate them. It is fair to give this person a little does of Tylenol. Encourage them to perform some relaxation exercises, eat well, and drink plenty of water. I have come to learn that food, water, and our brains are what makes us or breaks us. If we think positively, we excel and do better in every aspect of our lives, including our health. If we think of them negatively, the vice versa will occur.
Another thing I learned from being a nurse is that we should always be reminded that we are advocates for our patients both verbal and nonverbal patients, but we do not have the last say. Most times, we know more things related to the healthcare field compared to our patients. Our patients look at us and establish a lot of trusts before you decide to do anything to them like giving them medication, sticking a needle on them, putting them on some times of the machine. They establish some kid nog trust. So, we should always be willing to educate our patients on what we think is going on with them and why we are doing specific interventions on them. Advocacy also comes with utilizing the ethical principles in our nursing care like autonomy, respect, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice
I currently hold a full time position as a floor RN before that, I worked as a home health, rehab, and long-term acute care. Nursing was not the same in all these areas. I took care of different kinds of patients in their different stages of life. While all was very interesting, I really love working as floor nurse. The floor is the combination of all in one visit or sometimes in part of the visit. We do a lot of patient teaching, stabilizing, and referrals. We do not necessarily see the same patients every day, and that Is what makes me grow as a nurse. I was amazed how wonderful working with all age groups can be. I am always curious and willing to learn more about nursing and wanting to do more for my patients. I decided to enroll in Psychiatry Mental Health Nurse Practitioner- program because I knew the program will give me all what I mentioned and more
The PMHNP program will not only allow me to earn the knowledge of what will make me a great nurse practitioner but also it has a research part that will allow me to research on the current issue related to health care and/ or the nurse practitioner role in the society. As nurse practitioners we see a lot of patients from hospital to home setting and understanding research is vital to improve the care we provide to the communities we serve. Research in nursing is what bring about evidence-based practice which is the best way of practicing our daily nursing activities.
I took a Frameworks For Advanced Nursing Practice class in the spring 2018 when I began my PMHNP course and I was amazed how all the nursing theories were pretty much what makes modern nursing better today. One of my favorite theories was “The Theory of Planned Behavior ICEK AJZEN” and in informatic “the Theoretical Aspects of Ethics as Applied in the Use of Technology” are very helpful to nurses as we carry out our responsibilities. The rapid proliferation of computer systems that swept the world during the last two decades caught many organizations, administrators, and employees by surprise. This was the period in our economy when many lost their jobs, as they were taken over by automation and computerization. Many argue that nurses will always be needed but we are seeing some signs that even our discipline is susceptible to this take-over, i.e., creation of the robots, computer on wheels (COWs), pop-up screens on the EMR that provide us with the algorithm, protocol or guidelines. What do nurses need to do to make sure that we continue to remain current and a necessary part of the workforce. Think out of the box and imagine what visionary measures we should take to prevent the surrender of nursing to automation. (Note that those who lost their jobs two decades ago DID NOT SEE this coming). Do we see it in our horizon too? Support your arguments with relevant literature and examples. How do DSS relate to EMRs and being able to conduct data analytics? Be specific in your responses.
The Master of Sciences class has also allowed me to learn the importance of cost-effectiveness and how nurse practitioners can be more cost-effective compared to primary care physicians in providing their care. Learning all this information also allows me later as a nurse practitioner to be a great mentor to staff nurses and student nurse practitioners as well. Encouraging them on the constant use of evidence-based practice during direct patient care. And explain all the whys that they may have so that they feel better and understand what they have to care for the patient(s) in a different way compared to what they are already used to base on the current evidence and research at the time.
Having all that said, I believe nursing is an art that can never be explained in one simple word. The art of nursing is fulling to both patients and nurses themselves. Being a nurse practitioner will allow me to continue to advocate for my patients and do more for them like diagnosing and treating their symptoms in a cost-effective manner, adhering to the ethical principle, and the holistic approach at all times. I will also continue to learn more about nursing, medicine, and all the current evidence base studies to ensure I provide the best care to my patients.