Nursing Theory and Philosophy, Thesis of Nursing

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Personal Philosophy Paper Ashlie Charles Saint Joseph’s University NU 500: Theory Bases/Advanced Practice Nursing Professor Jaclyn Lamonica October 2nd, 2025

Abstract This paper highlights my personal philosophy of nursing. It focuses on the thoughts, feelings, and beliefs that guide the way I practice nursing overall in a caring manner. It addresses the essential concepts of the nursing metaparadigm which include but aren’t limited to person, health, client, environment, culture, and education. It describes my definition of said concepts and how they come together to produce what I practice as wholesome nursing. It highlights how my personal philosophy directly aligns with a well-known theorist, Kristin Swanson. Personal experiences and reflections illustrate how practicing my philosophy has shaped me as a nurse. This paper concludes how nursing is caring and caring is my way of being and that a good nurse with compassionate characteristics can only give the best care to any patient under her supervision.

experiences, it allows me to connect and engage with my patients producing better nursing care from me. Nursing Metaparadigm of Person The definition of person is the individual or individuals receiving care. I view these individuals as vulnerable and in need of support or care that they are unable to provide for themselves. They are unique, come from different walks of life and cultures and no two are ever the same. People/clients should be cared for with respect despite their differences. According to my philosophy of nursing care, giving respect and support lets the person/client know and feel seen as a human individual regardless of what their needs for medical attention may look like. Nursing Metaparadigm of Environment Environment is often defined as your surrounding area such as your home, community, hospital or even society. These places are all exposed to internal and external factors such as light, warmth, cleanliness, fresh air, quietness. All factors have an impact on health and healing. Depending on your environment, they can facilitate your state of health by improving or

declining it. One’s perspective is also key. Per my philosophy of caring, a nurse’s role is to make sure one’s environment has whatever is needed for the most healing to occur. Nursing Metaparadigm of Health Health is defined as how well a person is physically, mentally and socially. It highlights a person’s quality of life and how well they can function. These characteristics are different for every individual and determine whether someone is considered healthy as opposed to being unhealthy. Health, according to my philosophy, does not necessarily mean that an individual has an ailment, disease or condition. Health to me embodies how you are feeling from head to toe. It includes how you take care of your body like exercising at the gym, playing a sport to keep in shape or running a lap daily. Reading books of pleasure, doing crossword puzzles and listening to music are also examples of healthy mental activities that align with my philosophy. Social health to me involves occasional alcoholic beverages, no use of tobacco, adequate sleep and having genuine reliable loving safe relationships. My nursing philosophy is to care for people, so they are able restore their independence which brings them to their optimal level of health. Nursing Metaparadigm of Nursing The nurse’s role is to care for a person on their healing journey. According to my philosophy, for a nurse to do so she would need to be

Other Nursing Metaparadigm: Education Education according to my philosophy is defined as learning new things. There are constant new developments in medicine, new evidence-based practices, tools, and documentation technology. As a nurse, in an ever- changing world, we would be doing an injustice to our clients if we weren’t continuously educating ourselves. Acquiring education allows provision of the best possible and safe care to our clients. We can’t do great if we don’t know what new developments are present to help our jobs go smoother and our clients heal optimally. Kristin Swanson’s theory of caring has been the foundation for numerous research studies, master’s and doctoral dissertations, and scholarly projects of undergraduate and graduate nursing students. (Peterson & Bredow, 2020) Conclusion In conclusion, my personal philosophy of nursing is rooted in caring. Caring to me is the true essence of nursing along with compassion. My belief is that caring and compassion are vital to be able to support individuals in return for their best state of health. This caring philosophy of mine directly aligns with theorist Kristin Swanson and the continental school of thought. I value building meaningful connections, contributing to healing environments and expanding my knowledge all to better care for my patients. As I continue to

grow in my nursing career, I will continue to keep the caring and compassionate foundation, for they are my purpose for being a nurse. References Butts, J. B., & Rich, K. L. (2022). Philosophies and theories for Advanced Nursing Practice. Jones & Bartlett Learning. Libretexts, & Johnson , Frances Mary. (2023, February 3). 2.2: The nursing metaparadigm. Medicine LibreTexts. https://med.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Nursing/Nursing_(Ulutasdemir)/ 02%3A_Choosing_Your_Philosophical_Slat/2.02%3A_The_Nursing_Metaparadigm Peterson, S. J., & Bredow, T. S. (2020). Middle range theories: Application to nursing research and Practice. Wolters Kluwer.