About the Nature of Nursing

Nurses General Nursing

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A unitary view of the human as a unique, valued, and precious person in and of himself-or herself to be cared for, respected, nurtured, understood and assisted; in general, a philosophical view of a person as a whole person, honoring the unity of mind-body-spirit, continuous with the larger environmental field, the planet Earth,and the cosmos infinite field of life itself.

...[Florence] Nightingale indicated the care for the body can never be separate from the care of the soul. This view of humanity honors the fact that we each belong and relate to the broader infinite field of life itself: the great mystery, the great void, the source of life , the energy-spirit-consciousness-cosmic love, which is greater than any person.

Dr. Jean Watson, Human Caring Science: A Theory of Nursing

Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
Who, me? The OP? Jean Watson? Hahaha!

All I know is that we got a "caritas room" grant out of our embrace of the Caring model about 10 years ago. That grant bought our ER staff a massage chair and a little Zen fountain in a small quiet room. :D

It's my Cinderella test...if the shoe fits...;)

I intended my comment towards Jean, but if she is dishing out massage chairs I could be persuaded...

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Specializes in ED, Cardiac-step down, tele, med surg.

I don't have a problem with it as a philosophical opinion. It's not based in fact, but her view of humanity and nursing. At least that's my take on it. It's like the belief or disbelief in "God" or something greater than the flesh. Who knows what came before the big bang. It's philosophy. I like to think about these things sometimes. I think caring is part of human nature, not exclusive to nursing or the desire to nurse someone. Nursing for me is primarily a job that I get paid to do and at times I'm intellectually stimulated by some of what I see. Sometimes I feel good about the work, that I have helped another human being and I think to myself that my time was well spent. I remember when during a code the doctor held the patients hand a few minutes before he called time of death. I have seen other doctors express caring towards patients so I don't believe it's limited to the nursing profession.

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Although I'm not understanding the point of this post, either... now all of the follow up posts leave me curious who this Jean Watson person is!

I'll go check it out and get back to y'all.

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Specializes in Dialysis.
You owe me one keyboard and a cold glass of milk I laughed so hard I just spewed milk all over my laptop.

Me too!

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Specializes in Dialysis.
We had a patient drink his own urine tonight.

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Actually, yoganurse, I love the whole holistically spiritual approach to nursing and we do need to be reminded of its tenets from time to time.

Keep on keeping on!

However, right now I'm more concerned with trying to keep an eye on this patient and prevent him from consuming his own excretions.

My sides are aching from laughing at this!

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Therapeutic urine drinking is actually an Ayurvedic practice called "Shivambu Shastra," though I doubt the patient referenced above had that in mind...

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Specializes in SICU, trauma, neuro.
I have read the post three times......well.....actually I read the first two sentences three times and couldn't go any farther.:sleep:

You didn't miss much by skipping it, except for the time you'd never get back. :eek:

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

I can't escape it! So in my class I made a post about my beloved Benner, bless her and her very grounded framework, and the response from my professor was to ask if it aligned better with the totality or simultaneity paradigm, and why. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?! Hahahaha!! I really do like my professor, but my brain is going to pop. Maybe I'll talk about energy and unitary beings and how in a parallel universe I could be an expert but in this one I am merely competent. Or I will fall back on my tried and true strategy: haiku.

O Great Professor

Can it not align with both?

My paradigms blend.

Send help, and caffeine. Thank you.

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Specializes in Pediatrics Retired.
I can't escape it! So in my class I made a post about my beloved Benner, bless her and her very grounded framework, and the response from my professor was to ask if it aligned better with the totality or simultaneity paradigm, and why. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?! Hahahaha!! I really do like my professor, but my brain is going to pop. Maybe I'll talk about energy and unitary beings and how in a parallel universe I could be an expert but in this one I am merely competent. Or I will fall back on my tried and true strategy: haiku.

O Great Professor

Can it not align with both?

My paradigms blend.

Send help, and caffeine. Thank you.

You need a paradigm beers and a lava lamp...

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.
You need a paradigm beers and a lava lamp...

I just posted my haiku in response to my professor. LOL. She'll either think I'm a complete weirdo or she'll love it.

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All I know is that we got a "caritas room" grant out of our embrace of the Caring model about 10 years ago. That grant bought our ER staff a massage chair and a little Zen fountain in a small quiet room. :D

Did it come with a masseuse?

I will say, however, "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" was HUGE back in the day. We were assigned it in English class back in the 80s, and not by some far-out hippie teacher, either--the most stuffy, buttoned down person I ever met either in school or out.

It was a good book, though.

I have to look up Jean Watson, now...

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Specializes in Critical Care and ED.

Definition of Nursing Theory: [gob-uh l-dee-goo k] Gobbledegook, gibberish, doubletalk, bosh, mumbo jumbo, nonsense, foolishness, babble, gabble, drivel.

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