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The Watson Theory
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The Watson Theory
There has been advancement in the nursing knowledge due to continuous experience, research and learning processes. The knowledge required for re-licensure includes coordinated comprehension of various components of patient-focused care. The nurses needs to understand the patient’s, household’s or the local community’s inclinations, values and coordination of care information, correspondence, and education on how to provide physical and emotional support, an association of family members in change and progression of patients (Altmiler, 2019).
Nurses should also learn how to show far-reaching comprehension of the ideas of suffering and sympathy, including physiologic models of pain and solace. Besides, nurses should know how to analyze the wellbeing, how the quality and cost viability of medical services can be improved through the dynamic inclusion of patients and families (Maier et al., 2018). In addition, they need to know how to talk about standards of viable correspondence, portray essential means of agreement building and compromise and analyze nursing jobs in guaranteeing coordination, reconciliation, and congruity of care. One of the area that can be improved in my area of work is the use of evidenced based practice and the lack of continuous medication education that leads to patient’s dissatisfaction, and poor patient outcomes (Maier et al., 2018).
The Watson theory argues that caring is crucial in the regeneration of the life energies and potentiates people’s capabilities. It promotes self-actualization at a personal and professional level. Caring has numerous benefits to the nurse, the patients and other health care professionals (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022. The theory emphasizes that people should care for themselves first before they take care of others as it promotes self-healing and it rejuvenates energies and replenish the blank spirit. It affirms the humanity and unveils the feelings, attitudes, true thoughts that enables people to live authentically in relationships. In nursing the Watson theory has been proven to promote patient outcome and improve their satisfaction. Caring is contiguous and promotes as caring attitude other people, it endure relationships and human connectedness and has a positive and inspiration effect (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022).
Numerous core concepts of human caring apply to the practice nurse. They include relational caring for self and others, caring occasion, transpersonal caring relationships, and multiple ways of knowing, meditative and reflective approaches (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022). The theory advocates for caring for oneself before caring for others. A caring occasion is a focal space and time where a nurse and the patient come together to create a human caring moment. A transpersonal caring relationship requires a nurse to provide compassion to their patients and their families to ease their suffering and the nurse’s actualization. Finally, the meditative and reflective approach in human caring theory entails coming up with different ways of dealing with patients (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022). Other concepts and services provided under the human caring theory include inclusive, circular, and expansive care, the culture of groups and their environment, and caring changes self, others, and the culture of groups (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022). The culture of the environment includes the total attitudes, knowledge, practices, and behavior portrayed by the nurses in patient care. Caring as an inclusive entail caring for oneself, caring for other people, caring for patients, and caring for the environment and the universe. This is because caring results in many changes in self, others, and the culture environment (Watson Caring Science Institute, 2022).
The Carative processes in Watson theory include cultivating sensitivity to oneself and others, expressing feelings, negatives and positives, establishing helping relationships, and promoting interpersonal teaching, faith, and hope (Sitzman,, 2017). The cultivation of sensitivity to one’s self and others helps in the development of genuine sensitive feelings towards others and encourages self-growth. Expression of feelings helps in the awareness of feelings that help the understanding of behavior toward health. Establishing helping and trusting relationships develops a strong mode of communication. Interpersonal relationships understand the perception of a person’s situation. Finally, faith and hope develop a sense of wellbeing (Sitzman, 2017).
The other curatives of Watson theory include the practice of loving-kindness, authenticity, developing relationships that are helping-trusting, forgiveness, and having a healing practice. Love and kindness are healing that experiences and impact everyone (Wei & Watson, 2019). Authenticity entails being true to the practice of nursing. The development of relationships cultivates heart-centered relations, which is essential for human-to-human connections. Forgiveness gives them wisdom and freedom in acknowledging the nurses’ and other people’s feelings, understanding their perspectives, and the process of their emotions. Finally, developing a caring-healing environment is crucial as it helps the patients heal and develops trust between the patient and the nurse (Wei & Watson, 2019).
The theory emphasizes relationship management, which is crucial for the patient and their family engagement. The theory emphasizes that nurses build caring relationships with patients, supported by scientific evidence that social relationships affect various health outcomes (Sitzman, 2017). A nurse should engage their emotions in caring relationships while looking after the patient’s health and physical needs while not close to new spiritual and emotional experiences. Cultivating caring practice in nursing is crucial for peace of mind for the nurses as nurses face frustration and morally destroying situations in their work environments (Sitzman, 2017). The human caring theory is a useful guide in the improvement of the nursing practice. It teaches the necessities required for human growth and healing through providing a holistic care approach (Wei & Watson, 2019). It provides practice nurses with a rewarding outcome to their practice. It is based on logical based on broad assumptions, which provides a supportive framework. It promotes self-actualization at both a professional and personal level. The Watson theory emphasizes that nurses should take care of themselves in order to take care of others. It also emphasizes self-healing to rejuvenate their energies reserve and replenish the spiritual bank (Sitzman, 2017).
In conclusion, Caring is essential in nursing as it is a crucial nursing component that influences patient recovery process and outcomes. It encompasses nursing ethics such as altruism, integrity, autonomy, social justice and human dignity. Caring in nursing should be its own body of knowledge because caring is a central and unifying feature (Karlsson & Pennbrant, 2020). The health process in individuals can be strengthened by creating authentic caring relationships between the stakeholders involved. This body of knowledge can be applied in situations where fast responses and high technological care will improve the outcome of patients as they will receive the best care and promote their satisfaction in nursing care (Karlsson & Pennbrant, 2020).
References
Karlsson, M., & Pennbrant, S. (2020). Ideas of caring in nursing practice. Nursing Philosophy, 21(4). https://doi.org/10.1111/nup.12325
Maier, C. B., Budde, H., & Buchan, J. (2018). Nurses in expanded roles to strengthen community-based health promotion and chronic care: Policy implications from an international perspective; A commentary. Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13584-018-0257-5
Sitzman,, K. (2017). Evolution of Watson’s human caring science in the digital age. International Journal of Human Caring, 21(1), 46-52. https://doi.org/10.20467/1091-5710.21.1.46
Watson Caring Science Institute. (2022, June 20). Watson’s caring science & theory. https://www.watsoncaringscience.org/jean-bio/caring-science-theory/
Wei, H., & Watson, J. (2019). Healthcare interprofessional team members’ perspectives on human caring: A directed content analysis study. International Journal of Nursing Sciences, 6(1), 17-23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnss.2018.12.001