My philosophy for advanced practice nursing

My philosophy for advanced practice nursing (APN) is an extension of the philosophy of my nursing practice. I plan to form a partnership with my patients in which compassionate, holistic, evidence based care will lead to the patient maintaining optimal health and wellness. Advance Practice Nurses focus entirely on the patient by compassionately addressing every aspect of the patient’s needs. My goal is to educate and encourage the patient to become responsible for his/her health by working diligently with the healthcare team.

An APN’s primary focus should be to address and remove the underlying cause of illness rather than to merely alleviate the presenting symptoms. This can be done by addressing underlying issues that can hinder the healing process and establish a plan to remove these obstacles in order to promote holistic healing.

I value treating the whole patient (emotional, genetic, environmental, social, physical, spiritual, and other factors) and offering means of wellness in conjunction with traditional options (Nightingale, 1954).

Nurse Practitioners provide the patient with a holistic care that includes not only exercise, nutrition, environment, and stressors, but also considers the client’s cultural world view (Dossey, 2010). When this approach is taken, each patient is able to experience an individualized plan of treatment.

As I step out of the role of bedside nurse and embrace the role of an APN, I look forward to the additional responsibilities of diagnosing and treating patients which will afford me a greater role in the improvement of my patient’s health. This advanced role in designing and implementing plans of treatment empowers the APN to provide complete patient care.

The APN role also allows me the opportunity to educate my patients, their families and the community on measures to improve health and prevent future illnesses. I look forward to advancing as a professional because, as I do so, I can make a difference by implementing and improving patient care and teaching others.

References
Dossey, B. (2010). Holistic nursing: from Florence Nightingale’s historical legacy to 21st-century global nursing. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 16(5), 14-16. Nightingale, F. (1954). Notes on nursing: What it is and what it is not. In L.R. Seymer (Ed.), selected writings of Florence Nightingale (p.123-220). New York: Macmillan. (Original work published 1859).