Watson’s Theory of Nursing
We live in a fast moving environment with longer tiring days. When we are ill we go to the doctor’s office or emergency room and expect fast and reliable service. Data is collected that is measuring satisfaction from the service and, of course that data helps to improve the service. Companies keep track of statistics, like income, housing, children, and cars. I also like numbers and statistics, and like the idea that everything can be measured and have a number associated with it. However, I am wondering if everything can be quantified. Can we reliably measure happiness, love, and care of one person for another? Attempts are made to quantify happiness in some countries, Bhutan and Great Britain, to name a few. Consider health care, we are counting admissions, discharges, hospital-days, and patient satisfaction scores, but this statistic does not reflect how a patient feels. How often was the patient scared, depressed and lonely in his statistical hospital room somewhere between his admission and discharge? Did anyone care about this person? Watson's theory of caring concentrates on human aspect of nursing and gives nurses opportunity to connect and to care for patients.
Background of Watson’s Theory of Caring
Watson admits that her original intent was not to create a theory; she was only trying to solve some conceptual and empirical problems with nursing education, practice, and research. Her 1979 book, Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring, was, in fact, an essay on nursing (Watson, 1999). Over 30 years, from 1979 to 2008, Watson develops and finalizes her Theory of Caring. She starts with her textbook for an integrated nursing curriculum at the University of Colorado. The theory starts wi...
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...e. Easier, of course, to perform assigned task, but we know that in human interaction and especially in health care many more factors affect the outcome but not just well performed task. Watson’s theory gives a special attention and concentrates on the humanistic aspect of nursing.
Works Cited
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She proposed that caring and love are universal and mysterious (Wagner, 2010). Watson believes that health professionals make moral, social, and scientific contributions to humanity and that a nurses' caring ideal can affect human development (Wagner, 2010). Watson believes that it is imperative in today's society to maintain a caring ideology in practice (Wagner, 2010). Caring is a concept that focuses on having a respectful, non-judgmental, supportive attitude that contributes to the healing process. Watson's theory, in relationship to the metaparadigm of nursing, focuses on the relationship between the nurse and the patient (Wagner, 2010). According to Watson's theory, the nurse and patient form a caring relationship where both the patient and the nurse promote healing (Wagner, 2010). In general, the theory of caring reminds us that a nurse can have a great impact on the life of a patient. If I were to add a new conceptual metaparadigm, it would be the concept of caring since I firmly believe that without caring it will be almost impossible to have wellness at all. If I were to choose one metaparadigm concept to eliminate, I would opt to remove the concept of health since I think that in the concepts of caring and nursing the individual's health should be fully
In the field of Nursing, the role of caring is an important, if not the most critical, aspect involved to ensure that the patient is provided with the most proficient healthcare plan possible. Jean Watson developed a series of theories involved with transpersonal relationships and their importance, along with caring, in the restorative process of the patient and healing in general. Although all of Watson 's caritas processes are crucial to the role of nurses and patient care, the fourth process is incredibly essential as it outlines the importance of the caring nurse-patient relationship. This paper serves to identify Watson 's fourth caritas process, how it can be integrated in nursing care and how it can be developed by current nursing
In conclusion, Jean Watson’s theory of caring, a middle-range theory, provides essential framework and guidelines in nursing shortage problem. Nurses who exposed to caring theory have moral and ethical obligations to care for others during challenging situations. Patients, families and other professionals depend on nursing profession, their expertise and knowledge for best patient
Watson conceived her Theory of Human Caring while she was teaching at the University of Colorado in 1975 to 1979 (Conway et al, 2011). It evolved from her personal views on nursing and merged with her learning and experience from her doctoral studies in education, clinical and social psychology. With the publication of her first book, Jean Watson developed the initial ideas of her theory and came up with 10 “carative” factors. Her actual theory was published in 1985, after which she further developed the corresponding nursing curriculum. In those years, Watson also extensively traveled in Asia and Australia while practiced. The prevailing influences in the nursing field at the time were those of Carl Rogers, Florence Nightingale and Leininger. Main psy...
Watson first published her theory of caring in 1979 in a book titled, Nursing: Human Science and Caring. Watson and other researchers have built upon this theory and caring theory should continually be evolving as the delivery of patient care evolves. This theory focuses on care between the nurse and the patient. This interaction is defined as setting mutual tasks, how a spiritual force may help the interaction and when caring in the moment of true healing may occur. When the nurse and patient are on the same level spiritually self-awareness and self-discovery occur. There are ten themes identified in this article essential to caring in
Watson views the concept of a human being as a person that should be valued, cared for, respected, nurtured, understood, and assisted (Nursing Theories, 2012). Every human being should be treated as a person instead of an object and receive the opportunity to have their distinct needs cared for. Health is viewed as a high level of physical, mental, and social functioning, ability to adapt and maintenance with daily living, and the lack of illness or the efforts that lead to the lack of (Nursing Theories, 2012). Watson’s theory believes that the environment determines the values that influence your behaviors and the goals you wish to pursue. It also influences how well a patient copes with the situation and how the nurse should be supportive and considerate towards the patient. Watson defines nursing as “a human science of persons and human health-illness experiences that are mediated by professional, personal, scientific, esthetic and ethical human transactions” (Nursing Theories, 2012, para. 4). Nursing should be more than just providing medical care, it should establish a relationship and build trust. Watson’s other concepts of her theory include the caring occasion, transpersonal caring, phenomenal field, self, and
McEwen, M., & Wills, E. (2011). Theoretical Basis for Nursing (3 ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.
The Theory of Human Caring was initialy based on data about variety of aspects of caring, collected through open – ended quistionnaire. The purpose of this research was to evaluate different points of view, expressed by both the clients and registered nurses. In addition to this data, Watson’s theory uses broadly recognized work from other disciplines. Specific philosophers cited by Watson, as sources are Rogers, Whitehead, Gadow, Yalom etc. Furthermore, she also recognises the contribution of the east...
Watson, J. (2012). Human caring science: A theory of nursing (2nd ed.). Sudbury: Jones and Bartlett Learning.
Tomey, A.M., & Alligood, M.R. (2006). Nursing theorists and their work (6th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Saunders Elsevier.