NURSING: WHAT IS IT?

A nursing career can be quite broad, so defining it isn’t always easy. As a profession, nursing encompasses the care of sick and well people of all ages, families, groups, and communities. This includes promoting health, preventing illness, and caring for the sick, disabled and dying.

What is the role of a nurse? Is she just a doctor’s aide? Are nurses just people who take care of other people medically? It is generally accepted that nursing is a science, but why is it considered a form of art by so few people?

The art of nursing

Based on Rodger’s evolutionary perspective, nursing is “the intentional creative use of oneself, based on skill and expertise, to transmit emotion and meaning to another.” However, that definition is somewhat ambiguous, so what does it mean?

Thus, the whole idea is pretty subjective, since different people interpret it differently. To be a successful caregiver, you must use imagination, be sensitive to others, and interpret their feelings. As a result, they will have a more satisfying care experience.

Nursing is more of an art than a science, and that’s why this aspect is considered an art. The right way to deal with a person cannot be guaranteed scientifically. The needs and desires of each person a nurse cares for depend on their identity and personality. Even if you say that there is a science to determining what these personalities are, you still can’t say, “this is the right way to emotionally care for them every single time.”

Ultimately, a nurse’s ability to easily connect with a patient is what sets her apart from a doctor. On the scientific side of things, a doctor may be able to do the heavy lifting. Nurses, however, are the faces patients see most often, offering them a friendly, personable connection and putting them at ease.

Many people do not consider nurses as relevant as doctors, but the importance of that connection cannot be overstated. The goal of medical care is not just to solve a patient’s physical problems, but to assure them that everything will be alright as well. Nursing is a form of art and one that does not receive enough recognition for its value.

The Art of Nursing: What Is It?

Therefore, nursing is primarily concerned with tending to patients’ emotional, psychological, and personal needs. However, that’s quite a broad statement. What does such a definition actually include?

It is pertinent to consider several factors. It is very vital to understand the patient’s needs and desires. Establishing trust with them. Compassionately responding to their cognitive, psychological, and emotional concerns. In caring for their patients, nurses must apply not only the physical science of healing but also the philosophies and virtues of healing. A patient must also be able to understand and be assured of the treatment explained to them. We’ll discuss some of this in more detail later.

• An understanding of the patient’s needs and desires – the nurse must understand the concerns and assurances the patient wants in a medical assessment: medical care begins with reassuring them.

• Having the trust of the client is perhaps the most essential requirement in the medical field of all professions: nurses, doctors, and the entire hospital must be trusted by patients. A refusal to receive treatment may result in them refusing to receive it.

• Patients have psychological, emotional, and cognitive needs that must be met with compassion: most of the time, these are not things that can be addressed by medical science, but rather by a compassionate soul. It is true that not everyone gets into medicine purely for altruistic reasons. Usually, it is the nurse who makes customers feel like their needs are most relevant to the healthcare professionals caring for them. There should be no feeling of unimportance in a place dedicated to saving lives.

• Explicitly explaining the plan – needing medical attention can be quite a scary experience, and the unknown is often the scariest part: they don’t know what’s going to happen. Nurses are usually responsible for clearly explaining the situation and providing comfort and reassurance while describing the plan for care. Despite bleak outcomes, nurses should understand that everyone wants comfort even in dire circumstances.

As a nurse, you must meet many requirements, most of which fall under the field of art. As further proof, just consider the qualities required to achieve all that has been mentioned: integrity, empathy, leadership, responsibility, emotional intelligence, etc. Despite not completely being removed from science, these traits are often much more relevant to art. As such, nursing is a hybrid profession that blends science with art, as are many medical fields.

Nurses are medical professionals, so they are scientists. In addition, nursing is an art form due to the requirements of the field: nurses must have empathy, integrity, emotional intelligence, and social awareness in order to care for all patient needs, even those that are not strictly medical. In such situations, a caregiver must empathize with the patient, explain the plan of care clearly and confidently, and provide solace and comfort to the patient.

As a result of all these reasons, nursing can no doubt be considered both a science and an art profession.