As a nursing student, I hold some beliefs, assumptions, and values that I feel will help me become the nurse that I aspire to be. I believe that working through a holistic, culturally safe, patient-centred care is critical in nursing and will aid me to establish trusting therapeutic relationships with my patients. Looking at the patient as a whole means that I need to attend to not only their ailments but also their psyche, their families, their values and belief systems as well. I assume that if I put my patients first and work with them then I will be able to establish strong therapeutic relationships with them that will yield better outcomes and improve patient care.
I believe in equity and social justice and I also know that to be able to become the nurse that I aspire to be, I need to live with the assumption that not everyone gets the same opportunities in life and that having a social justice perspective will help me in advocating for my patients that might not have a voice in society. I value providing unconditional positive regard to my patients, being transparent and having utmost honesty, continuously prioritize lifelong learning and intentionally working on self-care. These values are crucial in becoming a nurse that will go above and beyond in providing high quality care for patients. I also value respect, compassion and providing autonomy and agency to patients. I know that if I live by these BAV’s, I will be the best nurse I can be and will be able to provide first class care to my patients.
Being accepting of every human being for exactly who and what they are. Being able to show empathy and step into someone else’s shoes and be able to feel what they are going through is very important to me. I believe that as a nurse, it is important to not allow my own preconceived notions and biases to cloud or interfere with our work with our patients. This also allows me to achieve the best culturally safe and patient-centred care.
Having integrity means you have to be honest. Honesty is to always speak the truth and the ability to accept responsibility and own our mistakes not only to our colleagues but also to our patients. Working with integrity and taking responsibility for our actions is crucial in establishing trusting therapeutic relationships in our work. Without trust, it becomes that much more difficult to work with patients as well as colleagues.
As nurses, we have to be committed to continuous learning new things that will help us do our work more efficiently. I believe that learning never ends. As healthcare professionals working from evidence based practice is important and the only way we can keep up with new information is staying informed.
Prioritizing ourselves and taking care of our physical as well as mental wellness is very important. Nursing is fast paced and we can burn out quickly if we do not take care of ourselves. In order to be able to take care of our patients we have to be at our optimal. I believe that self-care is important in maintaining work life balance. Making intentional efforts to make sure that we stay healthy through keeping active, eating well, sleeping well, hydrating and maintaining social connection will aid in our self care.