The Nursing Profession

Question

How do you define yourself professionally? Compare your definition to the AMA description (1869) and the Nightengale Pledge. What has changed in our profession in the last century? Please include an example from your research and/or your practice, cited per APA.

Answer

The Nursing Profession

As a nurse, I define myself professionally in terms of attitude and behavior in addition to dress code and professional training. To get to grips with my responsibilities as a nurse, I need to have acquired the right kind of training. However, being a professional goes beyond training to encompass adherence to the code and standards of conduct outlined for nurses, the ability to live up to the expected performance levels, and the relentless pursuit of ethical behavior. As a professional nurse, I regard the code of ethics as the foundation of good nursing practice because its guidelines are designed to safeguard the public’s health and wellbeing.

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It is important to compare this definition with both the AMA description of 1869 as well as the Nightingale Pledge as a way of determining the various ways in which the profession has changed during the last century. In the AMA description (1869), nursing is viewed as a distinct discipline that exists in a complementary relationship with medicine (Lobster, 2011). The description also emphasizes the need for nursing education provided in hospitals to address historical issues relating to power relations and professional boundaries. These views were identified as critical turning points for the professionals outlined in the findings of the 1869 AMA Committee on the Training of Nurses. On the other hand, the Nightingale Pledge emphasizes faithful practice of the nursing profession devoid of mischievous and deleterious behavior (McBurney & Filoromo, 1994). In this Pledge, nurses are called upon to do all they can to elevate the profession’s standing in society by providing optimal care to patients, aiding other physicians in their work, and to maintain confidentiality of the personal information entrusted to them.

Many steps aimed at promoting the values that were espoused in the AMA description (1869) and the Nightingale Pledge have been made during the last century, and many of them have turned into towering success stories. For example, the status of nursing as a profession that is founded on the work of caring of others has been maintained (Manojlovich, 2007). Moreover, nurses the world over continue to play the critical role of not only providing care but also aiding physicians and administrators in elevating the health and wellbeing of patients.

References

Lobster, M. (2011). Lessons learned from a history of perseverance and innovation in academic–practice partnerships. Journal of Professional Nursing, 27(6), 76-81.

Manojlovich, M. (2007). Power and empowerment in nursing: Looking backward to inform the future. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 12(1), 2-15.

McBurney, B. & Filoromo, T. (1994). The Nightingale Pledge: 100 Years Later. Nursing Management, 25(2), 181-192.