The Importance Of Empathy In Nursing

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Having a career with a purpose that one loves is vital to the wellbeing of an individual. Everyone has a calling for a job whether they realize it or not. In one’s job, one will have specific philosophies about how they deemed their job should be done and how they should approach it. I personally found my calling to nursing when I was young. However, it wasn’t until nursing school when I figured out how I was going to approach nursing in my own way. There are a variety of nursing theorists who have come up with their own views of how one should approach the nursing practice. Though no one way is right or wrong, it is essential as a nurse to grab from the different theorists to see what fits best for your own personal philosophy.
My Philosophy …show more content…

Empathy is defined as the capacity to experience the feelings of another as one’s own (Walker & Alligood, 2001). It is important as a nurse to know what to say, the techniques to express empathy and different approaches to patients when using empathy (Walker & Alligood, 2001). The skill of empathy is being taught across nursing schools, including Loma Linda, because of how vital it is in the nurse patient relationship. Patients are at a vulnerable state when they are in the hospital and sometimes taking the time to listen and empathize with the patients makes all the difference as well as strengthen the relationship. In the article by Alligood and May (2012), it mentions that empathy is hand in hand with the respect for individual rights, concern for welfare of the individual and a “human knowing” of the nurse-patient relationship. Empathy helps focus on a psychosocial aspect which nurses tend to forget when providing care (McCrae, 2012). Providing empathetic care is providing holistic …show more content…

I do feel as though this should be addressed the same as actual physical cares would be. Betty Neuman looks at a patient as a system that focuses on the whole person (Neuman, 1996). When using the Neuman Model, I look for potential or actual stressors my patient has and address them as needed. This includes providing psychosocial care. It is important to engage with the patient and talk with them (Scott, Matthews & Kirwan, 2014). Some nurses will go in and do cares but not actually engage with the patient and this can cause increase stress, anxiety or lack of trust with the nurse. If a patient is anxious or stressed, it does not promote optimal wellness for the patient. The goal for nursing is to maintain and provide cares that provide optimal

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