Humanistic Nursing Philosophy

The philosophy of Holistic Patient Care focuses on healing the whole person. There are countless considerations that involve an individual’s health. The nursing practice should be focused on the multitude of components that affect a person’s health rather than care limited to the direct sickness being treated. It is imperative to be compassionate, knowledgable, and analytical in the nursing profession. Nurses must not only be aware of their patient’s physical status, but furthermore their mental, emotional, and relational states. The combination of these elements are instrumental to the patient's long term outcome. A holistic nursing philosophy encompasses a comprehensive and aggregated approach to individual patient care. In the upcoming paragraphs, this paper will explore the various ways in which one can be an affective and holistic nurse. According to the Humanistic Model of Nursing, a category of holistic patient care, nurses should place great importance on fostering their patient's mental and emotional well being. Dr. Josephine Paterson developed the humanistic model of nursing with Loretta T. Zderad. Together they published the book, Humanistic Nursing in 1976. …show more content…
The nurse and the patient must mutually agree on realistic and achievable goals to create a better quality of life for the patient. To be an effective nurse, one must be conscious of the patient’s desire to get well, ability to take care of themselves, and the support system around them. An important part of this process is the nurses encouragement to their patient's autonomy. They have a right to be informed about their medical care and make their own decisions regarding their care. The nurse must act as an advocate for their patients desires and health goals. A nurse can affectively advocate for their patients by considering the many factors that influence their patients over all