Luisa Marin

"My goal as a nurse is to help reach and maintain a harmonious physical and mental state, and to help patients work on themselves and improve their relationship with the environment."

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” My name is Luisa. I was born in Colombia, but I moved to New York eight years ago. Like most people, I would find myself sometimes worrying about what I should do with my future and the purpose of my existence. Consequently, I started to think about what I like to do professionally, and what would give me satisfaction in life. After much thought, I reached the conclusion that there are two things that gave me joy in life. One of them was finding a way to make money and have a successful life. The other thing that made me happy was helping others. Helping other people makes me feel as if I am doing something good for this world. Serving others makes me feel useful. More importantly, I can see and understand my true self better when I am doing something good for someone else. As a result, I decided that nursing was the right path for me. I graduated with an Associate’s Degree in December 2021, and I am currently preparing to take the NCLEX to continue doing what I genuinely enjoy. 

I see nursing as the art of caring for other people. The American Nurses Association states, “Nursing can be described as both an art and a science; a heart and a mind. At its heart, lies a fundamental respect for human dignity and an intuition for a patient’s needs” (ANA. n.d. para.3). Nursing is about incorporating desire and knowledge into the care of those in need. Nursing has existed since the advent of humankind. Before nursing was considered a profession, sick people were cared for by family, friends, and those who were believed to possess healing powers. Nursing has continually evolved throughout the years. Now it is seen as a profession that is practiced by well-educated people.  

I practice nursing because it enhances my knowledge and allows me to give something positive back to society. Nurses are benevolent people who are willing to give their love and guidance to people in need. People who have been helped by a nurse or are willing to accept a nurse’s help are considered current patients or potential recipients of our care. Other healthcare providers work in conjunction with the entire healthcare system to take care of the emotional and physical needs of patients. The patients, nurses, and all healthcare givers form a community where the goal is to support one another and maintain an acceptable quality of life. 

When I think about the domains of nursing, Jean Watson’s philosophy of science and caring comes to my mind. I agree with her definition of a person as a holistic being who needs more than physical care. Health, also referred to as healing by Jean Watson, is the complete harmony between the body and the mind. Additionally, the environment is seen as, “a vibrant field integral with the person where the nurse is not only in the environment but also ‘the nurse IS the environment’” (Masters. 2020). 

My goal as a nurse is to help reach and maintain a harmonious physical and mental state, and to help patients work on themselves and improve their relationship with the environment. My biggest challenge as a caregiver is to maintain professional distance with my patients, and not to get too emotionally involved as I tend to do with the people I care about. My vision for nursing in the future is that nurses are going to have more independence because they have become an essential part of the healthcare system. I hope one day I can become a family nurse practitioner, so I can augment my knowledge and be more independent professionally. 

References

What is nursing & what do nurses do? ANA. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2022, from https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/workforce/what-is-nursing/ 

Masters, K. (2020). Role development in professional nursing practice. (5th ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning. 

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