Week 1 Class 1 Term D Class Thread

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Instructions: Reply to 2 of your peers below.  Must be 250 words or more.

For each thread, students must support their assertions with at least two scholarly citations in addition to the Bible in APA format. Each reply must incorporate at least one scholarly citation(s) in APA format. Any sources cited must have been published within the last five years. Acceptable sources include the textbook, the Bible, and scholarly articles.

Review your classmates’ threads, and respond through considering:

Classmates’ Tread 1.

Nursing is both a science and an art.  First of all, medicine is a science of its own and nursing is a direct reflection of the scientific method.   As a nurse you have to know the mechanisms of the body and their response to different interventions.  Science is about trial-and-error to see what interventions work to produce a certain outcome.  The body is the same way, as medical professionals, we conduct different interventions to see what outcomes work the best for each individual patient.  In the same manner, nursing is also an art.  Every person is different and responds a different way.  It takes a certain art to know how to respond to each person differently to form the best relationship with them to get them to relate and trust you.  I personally do not have much in the way of talents other than bargain shopping but I always considered my job as a nurse a talent and artform.  It requires patience, understanding, knowledge, compassion and empathy.  These are not traits that always come easily or naturally to people and can be hard to project while in stressful situations.  Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Guideposts, n.d.). 

 Define words 

Ontology- study of concepts related to life and reality 

Extant- means to survive 

Epistemology- the theory of knowledge 

Empiricism- the belief that experience is fact that needs to be verified through scientific methods.  

Logical positivism- philosophy that scientific knowledge is the only factual knowledge 

Post-positivism- philosophy that not everything is knowable 

Received view- learning through being told.  

Perceived view- learning through direct observation and experience  

Paradigm-  a widely accepted view or belief (McEwan & Wills, 2019) 

The metaparadigm of nursing, which is comprised of the concept of person, environment, health and nursing.  I would agree with this concept but would maybe add the addition of education.  The education of the nurse and the education of the patient impacts significantly the quality of care the patient receives and the quality of health the patient receives (McEwan & Wills, 2019).  

Up until now I really did not think much about nursing theory and how it impacted my nursing career.  But now that I think about it, nursing theory does play a significant role.  Really everything in medicine starts off as a theory and then is experimented to see the cause and effect.  As a labor and delivery nurse, I use nursing theory every day to connect with my patients and to understand how my nursing care can impact their healing and emotional psyche.  For example, Mercer’s Maternal Role of Attainment helps us to understand the process of a mother transitioning from singlehood to acceptance as caregiver.  Knowing the process of maternal role attainment helps me as a nurse know what the normal mindset of a new mother is and how I can help a mother to further proceed in her process.  It also helps to identify signs of postpartum depression or if a mother needs more support and nurturing to feel prepared for her role as caregiver. 

Classmates’ Tread 2.

Nursing is a science, an art, and a practice discipline and involves caring (McEwen & Wills, 2019). When it comes to nursing, I believe that the profession is both a science and an art. The goals of nursing include care of the well, care of the sick, assisting with self-care activities, helping individuals attain their human potential, and discovering and using nature’s laws of health (McEwen & Wills, 2019). In nursing school, the focus is more on the science of nursing including nursing theories and evidence based practice but nursing can also be an art as well. The art of nursing relates to the care and compassion that we express in our everyday interactions and care for our patients.

Ontology is the study of being what is or what exists, the nature of reality. Extant means currently or actually existing. Epistemology is the investigation of what distinguishes justified belief from opinion. Empiricism is the theory that all knowledge is derived from sense experience. Logical positivism is a form of positivism, which considers that the only meaningful philosophical problems are those which can be solved by logical analysis. Post-positivism is a metatheoretical stance that critiques and amends positivism.  A received view denotes that an individual learned by being told or receiving knowledge. Perceived view refers to a collection of prior experiences and interactions with individuals and the environment. Paradigm is a typical example or pattern of something, a model. It is an outline of various ideas.

Nursing metaparadigms are classified into the following categories: person, environment, health, and nursing (Deliktas et al., 2019). The human factor meta paradigm refers to individuals in a definite culture, family, and society. The environment metaparadigm characterizes all regional, national, and global cultural, social, political, and economic conditions related to human health. The health metaparadigm defines processes of life and death. The nursing metaparadigm describes the nursing profession, nursing practices, and nursing objectives and results (Deliktas et al., 2019) . This framework outlines the many values and concepts that are used in nursing practice. I believe the nursing metaparadigm is important because it’s important for nurses to not only use their experience, but to use conceptual and theoretical knowledge. I would agree with this global representation of nursing. In Bible, 2 Timothy 2:15 says “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” Nurses should work from an understanding of the self as embodied and are concerned with how we relate to one another and function in the world through our bodies (Shelly & Miller, 2006).

Yes, the nursing theory has been very important to my nursing practice. Nurses, even during our busiest days, know we are doing more than just checking boxes. We synthesize a broad range of knowledge, research, and critical thinking to address patient needs. Whether we know it or consciously stop to think about it, individual nurses and hospital groups are constantly using models shaped by theory to guide patient care (Quinn & McDonough, 2019).