The dynamic holistic view of the human individual as a biological, psychological, social, and spiritual being is the foundation of most nursing theories (Puchalski, 2006). Integral in these models of care is the recognition that the client is more than their physical being (Puchalski, 2006). To ensure the patient and family receive the most compassionate, comprehensive care, the consideration of spirituality is essential (Puchalski, 2006). According to Govier (2000), spirituality affects and embraces all that we are and do. Addressing spirituality is necessary to provide the experience of holistic care (Noto, 2006). It is imperative to attend to the spiritual dimension of the client in order to deliver nursing care that is compassionate and …show more content…
Spirituality is often confused and intertwined with the concept of religion, causing health care professionals to flee (Govier 2000). It is important to avoid the stereotypical view of spirituality being purely religious, and recognize that spirituality affects all that we are and do; regardless of religious affiliation, or lack of (Govier 2000). In instances in which nurses endorsed the importance of spirituality many were still unsure as to how to go about providing such care (Nixon et al., 2013). Education and guidance facilitating the implementation of spiritual care is limited; lack of adequate training and education is evident (Nixon et al. 2013).Common in more instances, spirituality is just not seen as a priority within the healthcare system with which nurses work (Nixon et al., 2013). Spirituality continues to be seen as a burden; financially, economically, and politically (Nixon et al., 2013). Inadequate staffing and economic constraints of the highly pressurized work environment place the focus of nursing care back to the physical domain rather than the holistic, despite recognition of its importance (Nixon et al.
Due to the growing issue dealing with the aging baby boomers generation, gerontology has been brought into immediate attention in the health care system. We are still learning and discovering about the anonymities behind the aging processes. Aging and death is a normal stage of life, even though there is an increase in technology and knowledge that would lengthen your existence, bringing the body back to youth is not possible. As one ages it is very common for one to go through physical, psychological and mental degeneration of the body. In the gerontological setting, it is important for nurses to commit to caring and providing a good quality of life. This is done by providing a dignified death instead of simply sustaining life. In order to make this happen it is important to incorporate Jean Watson’s caritas processes into the care plan. By providing good person to person care a nurse can improve the quality of life of patients and their family members. This paper will focus on the use of caritas process number 9 in the gerontological setting to develop a healing relationship with my client, use of professional knowledge needed to assist my client in his/her needs, a nursing action that helped my client’s needs and the difference the care made to my clients healing. In the gerontological setting, “spirituality must be considered a significant factor in understanding healthy aging” (Touhy, Jett, Boscart, & McCleary, october 2011, p. 98). Gerontological nurses have to put spirituality of an older adult in priority, because as you age spirituality is very important to them and it is source of hope and helps them in adaptation of their illness. Findings of a Canadian community health sur...
A difficulty that has occurred commonly is that a definition of spirituality cannot be agreed on. In a broad explanation of both religion as well as spirituality, religion constitutes the organization of faith, implementing prayer, ministry and theology. Spirituality could be viewed as a more individualized experience with a higher being, creator or idea (Walker et al., 2004, p. 70). These expressions allow a vision of client diversity that is found in all counseling classifications. While defining religion and spirituality properly seems trivial, when training counselors to properly apply the use of such variables in their therapies, a concrete explanation is imperative.
Every person’s needs must be recognized, respected, and filled if he or she must attain wholeness. The environment must attuned to that wholeness for healing to occur. Healing must be total or holistic if health must be restored or maintained. And a nurse-patient relationship is the very foundation of nursing (Conway et al 2011; Johnson, 2011). The Theory recognizes a person’s needs above all. It sets up the conducive environment to healing. It addresses and works on the restoration and maintenance of total health rather than only specific parts or aspect of the patient’s body or personality. And these are possible only through a positive healing relationship between the patient and the nurse (Conway et al, Johnson).
A hospital needs to first care for their patients as well as their employees (Eberst, 2008). If employees are mistreated this will not promote quality of care for patients. They need to promote a trustworthy environment where patients can be comfortable and trust their physicians and doctors. It also is essential to allow patients to sleep (Eberst, 2008). This environment also promotes and encourages the patients to regain their health which includes spiritual and religious beliefs. This component of the healing hospital aligns well with spirituality because a healing hospital considers the spirit or soul as part of the healing environment. Every person has a spiritual part of them because they are made in the image of God (Shelley, 2006). A healing hospital takes this into
This paper will discuss three different religions that a health care provider may care for in the nursing field. It will discuss the spiritual perspective, as well as the critical components of healing, such as through prayer and meditation. The writer will give a brief summary of each religions belief. The three religions that will be discussed in this paper are Native American, Hinduism, and Buddhism. This paper will discuss what is important to people who are cared for of a particular faith by the health care provider who may have an entirely different belief system. The writer will discuss how a patient may view a health care provider who puts aside his or her own beliefs in the interest of the beliefs and practices of the patient that is being cared for. The writer of this paper is of Christian belief and will compare her beliefs of faith and healing with the three previously mentioned religions.
Holistic nursing focuses on promoting health and wellness. It is care that is based on the theory of a balance between the body, mind and spirit. Its goal is to heal the body person as a whole. Holistic assessment is a practice that is specialized on nursing knowledge, theories, expertise and intuition to guide nurses in becoming therapeutic partners with their patients. It recognizes and gathers information about the totality of the human being, the interconnectedness of body, mind, emotion, spirit, socio-cultural, relationship, context, and environment. This paper is based on a holistic assessment of a patient from my job. A 72 years old Caucasian.
Developing a sense of wholeness and having an established relationship with their creator, can assist the individual with maintaining stability during times of illness, stress, or when a cure is not possible. This can facilitate a source of healing within, which will promote the health of members in the faith based community. “To promote healing, the nurse builds on strengths to encourage the connecting and integrating of the inner spiritual” (Stanhope, Marcia, & Lancaster, 2012, p. 972). Connecting with the inner spiritual is an important aspect because it can assist the individual with making healthier lifestyle choices. By making healthier lifestyle choices, the individual will achieve their optimal health or wellness and this will be beneficial for the individual and faith based
The career of nursing has countless aspects that are imperative for the effectiveness and overall satisfaction of care for the average person. These aspects include physical care, mental health care, and spiritual care. The aspect of spiritual care includes the nurse assessing her clients’ spiritual health and creating a plan for complete treatment. Spirituality may be a specific object or person the client connects with, so nurses must be aware of each client’s spiritual preference. The United States has a vast diversity of people where every client the nurse encounters will value something completely different. More religious people might value a cross or a bible in their room. Some might want their family to frequently visit. Others might prefer a certain type of music playing at a certain time of the day. With violent protests, mass shootings, and threat of war looming over the Unites States’ head every day, spiritual care is going to be on a major upsurge in the health career fields.
I am grateful to be at an institution of higher learning that understands and respects faith. My philosophy of nursing cannot be explained without God and Jesus. They are a part of each one of us. The reason that someone goes into a healthcare professional is usually to favorably treat a patient’s health. Spirituality of mind and body cannot be separated completely in my nursing philosophy. In this vein, nursing cannot be wholly separated from faith.
Robinson, S. B., Weitzel, T., & Henderson, L. (2005, November/December 2005). The Sh-h-h-h Project. Holistic Nursing Practice, 19(6), 263-266.
...locking out the idea. Spirituality also assists in fostering a healthy patient. Many individuals believe in a higher power and therefore we as nurses should encourage that connection when we see it being made. Spiritual connections are a way to give the patient an outlet. They are able to express themselves and rely on something other than physical care and diagnoses. They are about to look to this higher being for encouragement, peace, and healing.
When someone hears holistic nursing their mind may immediately jump to a form of hippie nursing with little to none scientific background or accuracy in the quality of care. This belief however is extremely inaccurate as to what holistic nursing really is. Holistic care can be defined as to when the nurse honors the patient’s wishes and takes into consideration the social, physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the patient’s life (American Holistic Nurses Association, n.d.). Holistic nursing is growing in popularity amongst patients because of its open communication between nurse and patient, its unique approach to health and healing, as well as the comprehensive care it can provide.
On the down side there are a limited number of educational programs that adequately deal with the issue of incorporating religion and spirituality in therapeutic/counseling settings. This can be attributed to the fact that counseling is based in psychology, a scientific field, which has traditionally neglected issues of a spiritual nature (Nelson, Kirk, Ane, & Serres, 2011) as well as the practice used within the United States to separate education and religion (Cashwell and Young, 2011). This then results in a significant portion of therapist and counselors who are not prepared to address the issue of spirituality and religion with their clients. One would think that with the value many Americans place on the topic of religion and spirituality that there would come a time when a client would want to address this topic during his or her session.
According to Mary Fran Tracy, holistic care means providing care that encompasses a person as a human being, mind, body and spirit. Holism involves a deep understanding of each individual patient, appreciating that the disease does not define the patient, but that the person is embedded in a transient unfolding life.2 I will apply this to my practice by integrating the Shuler Nurse Practitioner practice model which is based on a “holistic understanding of human health and illness in older adults that integrates medical and nursing perspectives.”3 I will apply this to my practice by attempting to understand why my patient is not taking their blood pressure medication instead of immediately labeling them as non-compliant. Some religions believe that disease is a punishment from God and only he can give or take away the illness. I will integrate the whole person, mind, body and spirit in order to better my practice and increase patient...
In the early 1970’s, Betty Neuman created a holistically based, open-system theory to aid nurses in organizing the voluminous information needed to deal with complex client situations (Meleis, 2007, p.307). One component of the Neuman Systems Model is spirituality, which is described as being related to beliefs and influences that are spiritual. It should be noted that this was absent in her initial conceptualization and was developed later (Meleis, 2007, p.307). While utilizing the Neuman framework for client assessment, religion is often applied as a spiritual factor. Using this theory as basis one might conclude that religion and spirituality are synonymous in concept. This begs the question: Are they, in fact, equal in meaning or at the very least required of each other for synergistic forward movement? I am not certain that the answer is clear-cut and I believe that personal observations will allow for objective thought for argument – pro or con.