CU-MSN-6

Apply holistic philosophy to enact advanced practice role

The holistic philosophy that is offered in the Capital University Master of Nursing program was one of the reasons that I decided to attend this college. The holistic approach is an area that I knew very little about but hoped it would be extremely beneficial when entering into leadership. Throughout this program, learning about the holistic philosophy was valuable in all areas of my life. I will take what I have learned about the holistic approach and continue to use and grow from it. I hope you can see my improvement in this area throughout the work I have completed and the benefits from it, which I will use in the advancement of my career.

My philosophical holistic journey advanced when I entered NURS 515. Knowing very little about holism and the practice of holism, this course introduced me to a new area of nursing for the first time. The health and wellness assessment opened my eyes about the work I needed to accomplish on myself, before I could fully utilize it in my current employment. My initial results showed me that I needed to evolve in the categories of life balance and satisfaction, relationships and environment. I discovered that working on these categories resulted in me being more present in the moment because I was giving my body physically and mentally what was needed to succeed as a person. By learning this and focusing on personal improvement, I found that I could have an impact on more individuals that I worked with and led. As a result, it helped them to open up to me so they could be more successful in their personal and work life. By observing individuals succeeding in this manner is the ultimate reward.

INTEGRATIVE_HEALTH_and_WELLNESS_ASSESSMENT_Denz 1102020_Final.docx

Narrative Summary - Denz Final 12 Jan 20.docx

Narrative Summary - Denz 13 Apr 20.docx

Reflective Journals_NURS_515.docx

I believe the reflective journals that were completed led to the growth I achieved in myself and my career. Learning the nine mindfulness attitudes impacted me in multiple ways. Different situations involving gratitude, patience, non-judging, non-striving and genuinely being in the moment with others led me to being a better person and leader. An example of how these mindful attitudes helped me was when I experienced a tough work environment. I knew that I needed this work experience, even though I did not enjoy the work environment. The manager asked me how I could come back to work each day after everything that had occurred. I replied, “Each day is a new day to try and make it better than the day before”. I learned from the previous day’s journal, to reflect on things that had happened, such as the way people treated me, and find something positive from that day. Each one of us has struggled and one bad experience from someone might have been the reason for the toxic work environment. By understanding positive mindful attitudes, I realized that this knowledge is irreplaceable for my future as a leader.

Healing Narrative 1 Denz Jan 27 2020.docx

Healing Narrative 2 Denz 23 MAr 20.docx

During NURS 515, I applied the holistic philosophy that I learned and knowledge that I gained throughout the semester into my work assignments. I approached it from two different perspectives. One was from the nurse to nurse point of view and the other was from the nurse to patient and family point of view. I determined that when I applied this thought process and interacted with others nurses, it opened an opportunity for negative perspectives to be decreased. Secondly, understanding the patient and family point of view, a nurse can provide compassion showing that they care for their loved one, stop and take the time to hear from the family using empathy and learn about the life of the patient allowing for a greater trust and open relationship to evolve. This ultimately results in finding information that I can incorporate into the patient’s care, which I would not have learned if I did not take the time with the patient and family. Learning to lead and communicate with an open mind using empathy is not an easy task because it takes changing your mindset on how to care for someone. Using this knowledge moving forward in my career will allow me to lead the way I want to lead, which is by taking time to know the people I manage and helping them to grow in their life and career.

The destination postcard allowed me to focus on improving myself, as well as improving my communication and understanding with co-workers and patients. Utilizing the Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Bound (SMART) goal format, I focused on time management for my personal life. This was important for me because I never had a time management issue with work, but in my personal life this has always been a constant struggle. Initially my goal was to have one day off a week; however, I found it was not feasible at this time in my life, so I revised my goal to accomplishing course work until 5 p.m. on my days off and until 10 p.m. on work days. From this experience, I realized that I needed to communicate with my teams, such as my family and friends, for them to understand I was not going to be as available as I had been in the past. This allowed them to understand my goals and why I had to change my priorities. I also had an inner conflict with this experience that I had to overcome. I recognized that every goal that I established would not be completed, as I had initially planned. Focusing on my end goal, which was to finish my degree(s), kept everything in perspective. Thus, putting your needs first is not always a bad thing in life and others will understand and will help you achieve your goal.

Destination Postcard-Denz-4Apr2021.docx

Final Paper NURS 640 Brittany Denz (1).docx

My final paper from the NURS 641 course exemplifies all of what I have learned holistically throughout this program. I found myself empathizing with the staff during the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) project and self-reflecting by putting myself into their shoes to understand how big of a change this might encompass and the fear of the unknown. I believe this is what led to the formation of a handbook for the unit and different approaches to be used by the staff to alleviate fear and stress for the LPN change.

Given that the holistic approach is not utilized as widely throughout our society and the nursing profession, I plan to utilize the holistic philosophy once in a leadership position and pass this knowledge onto other nurses. I have found inner peace in situations that I normally would not have in the past. I also initiated ways to communicate with others and to find the bright spots in each day. Currently, with the shortage of nursing professionals that the medical field is experiencing today and will continue to experience for years, I know the knowledge I gained will be helpful in working through this time period. Recently, extreme change was occurring over the past few months at my current place of work and many individuals became frustrated. I found utilizing holistic knowledge with an advanced practice role, and by speaking in a different tone and talking about the positives, helped others to gain a better perspective. Prior to this, I probably would have viewed the situation the same as them, but now having this knowledge provided me with a better outlook on life and the ability to work in difficult situations that arise in my career.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse