It is hard to imagine this world and health care, in particular, without nurses. Nurses aim at promoting health, preventing diseases, and assisting patients and their families in their intentions to cope with their health problems. Nursing had become one of the main research topics since the mid-1800s when Florence Nightingale changed the role of this practice and underlined the importance of education for nurses (Black, 2017). Nowadays, nursing is not only a practice where people have to demonstrate their skills and knowledge in communicating health. It may be defined as a distinct profession, like Medicine, Law, or Psychology, with a number of theories, philosophies, and standards to be followed. This paper aims at defining nursing and proving it to be as crucial and effective as many other distinct professions today.
Nursing has a long and rich history and spreads around the whole world. Though Florence Nightingale, with her Italian-British roots, is called the founder of nursing, it is wrong to believe that nursing UK research is the only one that contains fair and sophisticated information. Nursing is thoroughly investigated in the Middle East countries, proving that nurses do all inpatient work and contribute health care the same way other clinical workers do (Wilbur & Kelly, 2015). Asian studies are used to prove that nurses, as well as the representatives of such branches as medicine, psychology, or law, have to deal with the challenges of retaining, unfair working conditions, employer-sponsored benefits, and leadership (Chang et al., 2015). Therefore, the definition of nursing should not be prejudiced by a geographical location of a person.
There are many approaches on how to define nursing regarding current demands, standards, and expectations. Grace, Willis, Roy, and Jones (2016) admit that nursing as a discipline is at its professional crossroad, and the direction dramatically depends on the decision made by leaders and scholars. Still, despite a variety of thoughts and attitudes to this occupation, it is correct to define nursing as a distinct profession, a part of a healthcare system, with its focus on people and their readiness to define, understand, and maintain health and life quality. It has to be separated from medicine and health care as it has its own function (promotion of health), products (patient satisfaction and awareness), and doers (nurses with a variety of degrees).
As well as any other profession and discipline, nursing has to be investigated and improved from different perspectives. Nurses should follow a number of commitments and remember that the way of how they understand their purposes and functions define the outcomes of health and medical care (Chang et al., 2015). Nurses should also influence patients’ decisions concerning self-care and other types of care that can be offered to people in hospitals and healthcare facilities (Black, 2017). Finally, nursing is usually more than an ordinary profession. It is a chance for people to learn more about their health, understand doctors’ ideas, and realize personal contributions to disease prevention.
To conclude, it is necessary to say that nursing has to be defined as a distinct profession because it has clear goals, participants, and functions. It aims at improving human health and giving explanations to those people who are in need of additional help and support. Nursing is a profession with its own concepts, challenges, and outcomes that have to be respected the same way medical, legal, or psychological issues are.
References
Black, B. (2017). Professional nursing: Concepts & Challenges (8th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Chang, H. Y., Shyu, Y. I. L., Wong, M. K., Friesner, D., Chu, T., & Teng, C. I. (2015). Which aspects of professional commitment can effectively retain nurses in the nursing profession? Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 47(5), 468-476.
Grace, P. J., Willis, D. G., Roy, C., & Jones, D. A. (2016). Profession at the crossroads: A dialog concerning the preparation of nursing scholars and leaders. Nursing Outlook, 64(1), 61-70.
Wilbur, K., & Kelly, I. (2015). Interprofessional impressions among nursing and pharmacy students: A qualitative study to inform interprofessional education initiatives. BMC Medical Education, 15(1), 53-60.