Healthcare Philosophy

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          My healthcare philosophy evolved from a desire for authentic caring that leaves people better than they were found .  It requires mercy, generosity, love and grace which supersedes lawfulness, beneficence, non-maleficience, respect for autonomy, fairness, truthfulness and justice.  This philosophy is informed by personal and professional experiences.  

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          My first patient was a young newly married male college student with a brain tumor who failed research treatment.  I prayed daily, “Let them have a miracle.”  The day his wife decided to withdraw life support, the tears came.  Years later, as a member of an Ethics Committee, the best (not perfect) recommendations were delivered with care.  In 2008 my son was diagnosed with a brain tumor 10 months after he married.  We all suffered.  We experienced warm quiet caring to extreme dismissal.  These experiences taught me that client systems need care delivered expertly and altruistically by those they trust.

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          Persons are more than their medical problems.  People define themselves by their goals and beliefs about the world around them. People present with unique resources or lack thereof, various gender identities and may not always fit within an anticipated developmental level, culture or community.   When persons interact with their environment, their perception is paramount to demands they encounter (i.e.  loss, illness etc).  How the person perceives his internal and external resources determines the quality of outcome.   This multifacited view of the person and context requires fluidity and  broad expertise if a professional resource option is chosen to augment efforts to meet each person's unique demands.

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          A Nurse Practitioner(NP) is a person's professional helping resource option that can be chosen when (s)he perceives health demands cannot be met alone. As a coach-educator, the NP is in a unique position to re-frame, educate and refer to assist patients in meeting demands.  The NP becomes a viable option by being prepared with appropriate education, experience, socio-cultural sensitivity and expertise.   An essential prerequisite is that the nurse must possess professional integrity and ability to genuinely care for the client system. NP primary care practice is an external resource to be accessed when persons seek trusted expertise to help meet demands.

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          Trust is partially established by staying current with valid, reliable evidence.  Steven Covey (2004) instructs that trust is strengthened by demonstrating congruence in words and actions in protecting the best interest of others over time. Exercising integrity has the potential to shape the persons perception of self-efficacy in executing recommendations.  Keeping commitments and consistently providing quality patient-centered care that is economical while communicating candidly and transparently while allowing time for active listening to input and concerns solidifies trust.

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          A fluid altruistic informed practice in partnership with client systems and medical teams has the potential to produce optimum outcomes within judicial economic boundaries. Trust and love is foundational to this philosophy.  It is intended to be infectious.  This philosophy establishes professional integrity recognizable to client systems, medical teams and communities.

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