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Development Of Nursing Philosophy essay
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Philosophy has played a major role in the development of nursing throughout history. Philosophy shapes who we are as nurses, what we believe and how we practice. Butts & Rich (2011) describe philosophy as an application of your beliefs to different situations that may arise whether known or unknown. In nursing we are faced daily with unpredictable and sometime predictable situations, it is our philosophy along with our experiences that guides us to make certain decisions in our careers. These decisions are forever evolving and progressing based on how we grow as nurses and overtime how our individual philosophies of nursing have changed.
One philosophy of Science is Positivism. Empiricism and positivism have often been linked together describing a viewpoint that reality can be studied and understood through research and science (Bally, 2012).Although Empiricism was able to describe events it lacked being able to explain them and describe the “why” in situations. While positivism was an early paradigm that was adopted by nursing, it seemed in contrast with nursing ideals and what nursing sought to be. Critiques of Positivism indicated that it lacked the subjectivity; social and spiritual aspects of individuals which were not in align with the focus of nursing (Clark, 1998).
Thomas Kuhn was a contributor to Historicism in nursing and provided insight into knowledge development which was lacking from the positivism philosophy (Butts & Rich, 2011). Kuhn argued that theories and knowledge should be understood within their historical context ( Rodriguez & Kotarba, 2009). Historicism falls into the paradigm of perceived view. Perceived view is based on the belief that facts and principals are embedded in history or cultural settings (Giuliano, Tyer-Viola & Lopez, 2005). In addition, historicism argues that the influence of history of science guides scientific progress (Giuliano, Tyer-Viola & Lopez, 2005).
Yet another philosophy of science is hermeneutics. Nursing itself is hermeneutic or interpretative in nature. Through hermeneutics, beliefs, values and commitments can become known (Charalambous,2010). The nurse can be seen as an interrupter of the patient’s story. Vital signs and subjective clues such as body language can be interpreted by the nurse to better care for the patient. Reading patient’s histories which draws into effect the historicism philosophy can also play an importance in interpreting the patient or using clinical hermeneutics. Patients are not objects waiting to be interpreted, however including hermeneutics into nursing may prove to be useful to move away from more objectified theories in nursing such as positivism (Charalambous,2010).
Another philosophy of nursing that sways away from the objectivity of positivism is that of feminism and critical social theory. Critical social theory which incorporates feministic ideals seeks to liberate individuals from conscious and unconscious restraints (Wilson-Thomas, 1995). Critical theorists seek to understand and study society along with critiquing and changing society. Health care providers utilize critical theory through social mandate and the development of health care knowledge (Doucet, Letourneau & Stoppard, 2010).
Worldviews that guide nursing are typically opposite to those in the medical system (Turkel, Ray & Kornblatt, 2012). That being said, nursing is not just about focusing on a disease but also about a person’s wellness which includes the patient’s spirituality and culture. Three worldviews are at the center stage of nursing. Reciprocal worldview embraces holistic nursing incorporating spirituality, cultural, psychological and social aspects into nursing care (Smith 2005). In simultaneous worldview the person’s inner experiences, feelings and thoughts are of interest (Fawcett, 1996). In regards to spirituality in simultaneous worldview the nurse would be sharing the experience with the patient and aim to be present for them through their suffering (Smith, 2005).The reaction worldview however is more align with the medical model and positivism philosophy; by focusing on the promotion and health of the disease whereas simultaneous focus on the wellbeing of the person and quality of life ( Barrett, 2002).
Development of nursing philosophy
Theory development was introduced as early as 1859 with the writings of Florence Nightingales Notes on Nursing: What it is and What it is not. It was nearly a hundred years before nursing theory and philosophies took cen……………………………….
