bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Learning Caring: The Student’s Experience
Authors: Drumm, Judith , Chase, Susan K.
Published: September 2018

Caring has been identified as essential for baccalaureate nursing education across all programs of study. This study investigated the lived experience of students learning caring in a college of nursing grounded in a caring philosophy. Two major themes were identified from the research data: Innate Knowing of Self as Caring and Caring in the Curriculum. One student shared this thought, “I knew who I was and I knew I could care about people, but I didn’t know how to use caring in nursing. The educational process helped me to transfer caring to nursing.”
Home Care Encounters in a Multicultural Context - A Diverse Space for Caring
Authors: Lundgren, Solveig M. , Holmberg, Marie , Valmari, Gudrun , Skott, Carola
Published: September 2018

The aim of this study was to explore care encounters in homes of patients living in a multicultural area. The shadowing method enabled researchers to closely follow nurses in their everyday work. Complexities in the care environment, ambivalent roles played by the family, and varying meanings of care encounters were found. Despite difficulties in communication, nurses and patients created mutual space for caring. Regular meetings were essential for creation of trust, support, and consolation. Nurses’ sensitivity regarding patients’ needs and awareness of diversity of space for caring gave insights into the complexity of home care encounters in multicultural contexts.
A Caring Leadership Model for Nursing’s Future
Authors: Williams, Randy L. , McDowell, Judy B. , Kautz, Donald D.
Published: September 2018

This article describes the McDowell-Williams Caring Leadership Model that brings together the caring theory of Watson (2008) and the leadership theory of Kouzes and Posner (2007). This model provides institutional guidance for continuing the effective shared governance by the nurses at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (WFUBMC), as well as strategies for leaders to use with staff as they make their workplace the best place to work and the best place to receive care.
Emotional Intelligence, Caring, and Generational Differences in Nurses
Authors: Codier, Estelle , Kamikawa, Cindy , Freel, Michael , Morrison, Penny
Published: September 2018

Evidence that nurses’ interactions with hospitalized patients lack expressive caring invites questions about the workforce providing care and the specific skill sets required to provide emotional care effectively. As discussion of care protocols and other means to evaluate caring outcomes are developed, specific skills that support such outcomes need to be identified. This study examined the multigenerational nature of the current nursing workforce by exploring one set of abilities essential for caring, those of emotional intelligence. Despite stereotypes to the contrary, study findings indicated no difference in measured emotional intelligence abilities among the study generational cohorts.
Coming to Know Cultural Competence: An Evolutionary Process
Authors: Campinha-Bacote, Josepha
Published: September 2018

This paper focuses on the use of physical touch in nursing care in facilities for short-term stay. Extant research (Foy & Timmins, 2004; Mcilfatrick et al., 2006; Nystromö et al., 2003) has raised the questions, How can nursing care best be tailored to meet the patient‘s overall needs, both physical and emotional? and How to strike an optimum balance between caring and instrumental aspects of nursing? This paper discusses how the exchange of physical touch can be seen as an epitome of caring in nursing care in facilities for short-term stay; it is connected to psychological and spiritual aspects.
Caring for the Nurse in the Hospital Environment
Authors: Clerico, Elizabeth , Lott, Tanya F. , Harley, Christi , Walker, Raquel Kelly , Kosak, Erin , Michel, Yvonne , Hulsey, Tara
Published: September 2018

This study was conducted to examine the nurse’s perception of being cared for in the hospital work environment. A survey design was used with a modified questionnaire based on Watson’s (2008) caring theory. Physical needs, spiritual needs, intellectual stimulation, and authentic relationships were domains measured. Results indicated an overall perception of caring (5.27 on a 7-point scale); however, there is significant variation in perception of caring among units within the hospital. Additional research is recommended for tool refinement and the development of a language of caring to help promote more meaningful communication among staff and patients.
Empathy and Nursing Education From Mirror Neurons to the Experience of Empathy: 21st Century Nursing Education
Authors: Kelley, Kevin J. , Frinzi, Christa
Published: September 2018

Empathy has long been understood to be a significant issue acnas the healing arts. In this article we briefly review our emerging understanding of the neurological basis for the human capacity for empathy and the various ways in which empathy has been conceptualized and defined. For nursing education, the transformative power of empathy is found only when a nurse can accurately communicate an empathetic connection to his/her patient. To that end, several empathy-enhancing strategies are presented designed to provide nurses with methods by which to foster greater empathy for patient experiences.
Framing Client Care Using Halldorsdottir’s Theory of Caring and Uncaring Behaviors within Nursing and Healthcare
Authors: Bailey, Denise Nagle
Published: September 2018

This continuing education article examines Halldorsdottir’s (1996) theory of caring and uncaring behaviors within nursing and healthcare and explores the five basic modes of being with another: Biogenic or life-giving mode; bioactive or life-sustaining mode of being; biopassive or life-neutral mode of being; biostatic or life-restraining mode of being; and biocidic or life-destroying (or life hurting) mode of being with another. The modes function within the theory as a continuum of caring and uncaring dimensions that clients experience as recipients of nurse caring. The metaphorical abstractions in Halldorsdottir’s theory, the bridge and the wall, are discussed in relation to client care, as are applications of the formulation to nursing education, administration, and research.
Comparing Empathy Levels in Students at the Beginning and End of a Nursing Program
Authors: Lovan, Sherry R. , Wilson, Maribeth
Published: September 2018

Researchers of a mid-size regional university in the United States used a survey to compare and measure the empathy levels of first semester baccalaureate undergraduate nursing students with students at the end of the same nursing program using the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (Nursing Student Version). They found nursing students graduating at the end of their baccalaureate undergraduate nursing program do not have significantly different empathy levels when compared to nursing students at the beginning of the program. Implications for nursing educators include incorporating teaching strategies to improve nurses’ empathy.
A Concept of Caring Aiming at Health
Authors: Söderlund, Maud
Published: September 2018

This article aims to explore and describe the lived experiences of nurses, patients, and relatives in caregiving contexts. The findings presented emerge from the reanalysis of three previous qualitative studies performed by the author. Reanalysis is a documented method that extends existing knowledge and generates new understanding about experiential phenomena. the article demonstrates a triangulation of approaches, including phenomenographical, phenomenological, and hermeneutic reanalysis. This reanalysis describes the phenomenon of caring, conceptions of caring, and the effect caring has on people’s being in the world. By using abduction and applying hermeneutics as an overall design, a concept of caring is drawn.
Using Reflective Journaling to Establish a Holistic Nursing Practice Council
Authors: Brathovde, Angela , Bodine, Joyce , Cagliostro, Joseph , Lopresti, Loukia , Perumpail, Lina , Palisoc, Vilma
Published: September 2018

Reflective journaling in professional nursing is a tool to foster self-awareness, as a self-care practice, to process the lived experience of nursing, and expand learning objectives by empowering nurses to challenge traditional pedagogy through self-discovery, increase critical thinking, and promote professional development. This article describes utiliizng reflective journaling for members of a newly established holistic council at a 500-bed teaching hospital on the East Coast. Reflective journaling sessions were incorporated into the council meeting structure for 6 months as a self-care practice, to facilitate self-awareness, and to foster meaningful change in their nursing practice.
Caritas Language: Nursing Terminology to Capture the Essence of Nursing
Authors: Schlagel, Lisa C. , Richards, Jennifer Lynn , Ward, Amber
Published: September 2018

Caring is the essence of nursing, yet there has been no standardized language by which nurses can capture this integral part of their professional practice. The nurses at Winter Haven Hospital, a community hospital in central Florida, recognized and changed this. Committed to infusing Watson’s theory of human caring throughout their organization, they developed a caritas language with the support of Dr. Watson. The language was assimilated into their electronic documentation system and nurses were trained on documenting a caritas assessment, the caritas intervention(s) used, and the outcomes. This is now done on admission and each shift. Since then, 40- and 16- character standardized condensed versions of caritas language are posted on the Watson Caring-Science Institute’s website.
Relationship-Based Care as an Intervention of Caring for Vulnerable Adults in Home Care
Authors: Nelson, John , Tinker, Allison , Smith, Susan
Published: September 2018

Relationship-Based Care (RBC) was the intervention used to instruct nursing staff (N = 34) in Rotherham, England how to use social and technical dimensions of their work environment and concepts of caring to care for self and for patients at risk for readmission to the hospital. Pre-post RBC implementation survey results and regression equations were used to understand the relationship between the work environment and caring for self and others. Results revealed an improved work environment and caring from pre- to post-RBC. The work environment predicted 14.4% of nursing staff self-care (alpha .15) and 11.4% of caring competence (alpha .05).
Mentoring Clinical Adjunct Nursing Faculty
Authors: Gies, Mary Lou
Published: September 2018

Mentoring is a recognized means of enlisting and retaining employees in a profession. Expert nursing clinicians often begin in an educator’s role as adjunct faculty, at remote clinical settings that could deprive them of information critical for a successful start. Their job satisfaction may be threatened by unclear expectations of administrators. Novice nursing faculty can benefit from being part of a well-thought-out mentoring program. This review of the literature on mentoring of clinical adjunct faculty reveals that there is a minimal amount of information on their specific needs. The literature available identifies the benefits and vital components of a mentoring program. Use of these strategic methods to initiate a mentoring program could facilitate new initiatives for clinical adjunct nursing faculty success.
An Examination of Nurse Caring and Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers
Authors: Paull, Judy C. , Hanson, Patricia , Hasenau, Susan , Dunn, Deborah
Published: September 2018

The Nyberg Caring Assessment Scale (NCA) and the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) were used to measure nurse caring and hospital acquired pressure ulcers. This is an exploratory, descriptive, single-site study conducted in a large academic, trauma center, twice Magnet® designated in the southeast United States. Caring theory, the mechanics of pressure ulcer development, and wound prevalence between medical-surgical and critical care units was explored. No statistically significant differences in caring scores were identified between nurse groups, although pressure ulcer prevalence differed. Existing high standards of care and the tool itself are noted as factors influencing the results.
Teaching the Core Values of Caring Leadership
Authors: McDowell, Judy B. , Williams, Randy L. , Kautz, Donald D.
Published: September 2018

This article describes how the authors have taught the core values of the McDowell-Williams Caring Leadership Model to hundreds of nursing leadership staff at Wake Forest Baptist Health using one-page summaries. The model brings together the caring theory of Watson (2008) and the leadership theory of Kouzes and Posner (2012). The summaries stimulate discussion and provide opportunities for leaders to reflect on their own leadership within a caring framework, as well as to help light the fire within their staff as is illustrated by the exemplars of each of the core values that are included in this article.
Incorporating Caring Theory into Personal and Professional Nursing Practice to Improve Perception of Care
Authors: Desmond, Mary E. , Horn, Suzen , Keith, Kathryn , Kelby, Susan , Ryan, Dr. Linda , Smith, Dr. Janice
Published: September 2018

A one-day Watson’s caring theory educational seminar was presented to 10 staff nurses from a community hospital with the intent to improve patients’ perception of care. A quasi-experimental design was employed, using descriptive statistics and t tests to compare measures of perceptions of care pre and post the educational session. A statistically significant increase in nurse’s confidence in caring attitudes and behaviors was found as measured by the caring nurse patient interaction scale nurse version (CNPI-70N). Increases in Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and System (HCAHPS) scores for nurses, on treating patients with courtesy and respect and for nurses listening carefully to patients, were also realized for the majority of units involved.
Nursing “Caring” During Catastrophic Events: Theoretical, Research, and Clinical Insights
Authors: Manley Becky
Published: September 2018

The use of caring theories as frameworks for disaster nursing is extremely limited. This article describes the caring delivered to natural disaster survivors within the context of caring theories and perspectives. Natural disasters are frequent international phenomena and multidimensional events that can destroy or severely damage every aspect of human life. Nurses played significant roles during all phases of such catastrophic events. They described themselves as caring agents and contributed to the management of persons of all ages in settings including shelters, hospitals, schools, and other temporary relief settings. Implications for caring theories, disaster research, and practice are discussed.
Living in the Shadow of Humanity: Environmental Respiratory Threats to Migrant Backstretch Worker’s Employed at Thoroughbred Racetracks
Authors: Bailey Denise Nagle
Published: September 2018

Migrant backstretch workers are comprised of a group of itinerant laborers who care for horses across our nation’s racetracks. This vulnerable and marginalized group of individuals engages in an occupation that places them at considerable risk for developing health-related respiratory illnesses as a result of environmental factors. Workers are routinely exposed to equine dander, saliva, waste, and other environmental hazards, which are contributing factors leading to a decreased health status within this population, particularly as they present with increased incidences of allergies, asthma, and dermatological diagnoses. This article considers this unique population within the context of nurse caring and the environment, and explores the critical nature to which caring as an operationalized construct impacts vulnerable populations working in suboptimal environmental conditions that impart cumulative health risks. The theoretical framework guiding this program is Ray’s Transcultural Caring Dynamics in Nursing and Healthcare Model (Ray, 2010).
Military Nurses Caring for the Enemy
Authors: Thompson, Sharon , Mastel-Smith, Beth , Duke, Gloria , Haas, Barbara , Vardaman, Shellye , Yarbrough, Susan
Published: September 2018

Purpose: This phenomenological study described the lived experience and aftermath of U.S. military nurses assigned enemy detainees during Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom. Two themes emerged: Insurgent Assignments (subthemes included identification of and interactions with insurgents; training, precautions, and ethical issues, thoughts and feelings, coping, and meanings of insurgent care) and The Aftermath (subthemes were mental, emotional, personal, professional, and positive). Conclusions: Insurgent assignments caused ethical dilemmas and challenged theoretical constructs related to caring. Formal training is needed to prepare nurses for the practicalities of and responses to insurgent assignments.
Utilizing a Caring-based Nursing Model in an Interdepartmental Setting to Improve Patient Satisfaction
Authors: Dudkiewicz, Pamela B.
Published: September 2018

Caring is viewed as the essence of nursing. However caring is not a phenomenon exclusive to nurses. Hospitalized patients encounter numerous people in addition to nurses and each role and individual make an impact upon the care of the patient. These encounters can dramatically influence the level of satisfaction a patient feels about their hospital experience. The purpose of this study was to determine if implementing an interdepartmental caring-based approach based on Jean Watson’s theory of human caring could have a positive effect on patient satisfaction. It was determined that satisfaction levels did improve significantly following a caring-based intervention.
Slow Nursing–The Concept Inventing Process
Authors: Lillekroken, Daniela
Published: September 2018

This article aims to present and describe the developing process of the slow nursing concept. To date a universal definition of the concept slow nursing for the nursing and healthcare settings is missing from published healthcare research. Based on the literature search and the purpose of the concept derivation strategy, a definition of the concept slow nursing has been suggested. Slow nursing may provide new approaches to assessment or tool development for use in further research, theory development and clinical nursing practice. Slow nursing as a concept for use in clinical work may be innovative, positively influencing nursing care.
Parental Efficacy in Nursing Practice: A Concept Analysis and Derivation
Authors: Manila, Vanessa M.
Published: September 2018

This paper clarifies and develops the meaning of parental efficacy in nursing practice using Walker and Avant’s method of concept analysis. Analysis of the concept revealed various terms used to mean parental efficacy with common attributes such as perception, judgment, belief, capability, and behavior toward parenting role. Parental efficacy is a concept derived from the self-efficacy theory of Bandura. Construct limitations and the dynamic nature of nursing justified efforts to develop the concept to become applicable to the practice of nursing. The meaning of efficacy with the inclusion of components of transcultural caring theory by Leininger was performed. A conceptual derivation of parental efficacy in nursing practice meant an outcome of a culturally congruent nursing care where parents accomplish certain tasks beneficial to the state of health, growth, and development of the child. A model and contrary case explicates the attributes of the concept.
I Still Have So Much to Do – Struggling for Life When Time is Limited
Authors: Sæteren, Berit , Lindström, Unni Å. , Nåden, Dagfinn
Published: September 2018

The purpose of this article is to present findings from a major research project focusing on gaining a deeper understanding of health and suffering due to serious cancer disease from the perspective of patients. This study used a hermeneutic design and 14 qualitative research interviews of 6 Norwegian patients with advanced, progressive cancer are the basis for the interpretation. As a result of the hermeneutical process, patients’ life struggle appeared as a threefold battle against time and annihilation, toward being accommodated and confirmed, and to be restored and reconciled.
What Couples Choose to Focus on During Nurse-led Family Health Conversations When Suffering Stroke
Authors: Sundin, Karin , Pusa, Susanna , Lundstedt, Erika , Lundstedt, Erika , Östlund, Ulrika , Östlund, Ulrika , Lindh, Viveca , Saveman, Britt-Inger
Published: September 2018

The aim of this study was to illuminate which topics 2 couples, ages younger than 65 years old, where 1 partner has suffered a stroke, choose to focus on when participating in nurse-led family health conversations. Six conversations were audiotaped, transcribed, and analyzed by qualitative content analysis. Three categories emerged illustrating that the couples choose to talk about how they were affected on a personal and family level and, moreover, the importance of support within and outside the family. The altered way of living involved distressed feelings, gratitude, and hopes. This study highlights the importance of nurses viewing the family as a unit.
Advancing the Theory of Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing: The Universal Technological Domain
Authors: Manley Becky
Published: September 2018

Sophisticated technologies are accepted as integral with contemporary life, occupying a universal technological domain that is coextensive with humans and their environment. In human healthcare, the risk for depersonalization of persons receiving care renders the preservation of humanness as essential, particularly in technology-dense arenas. Nurses are challenged to sustain their caring nursing practice while responding to the complex technological demands of modern healthcare. This paper explicates a further development of the theory of technological competency as caring in nursing (TCCN) that embraces the universal domain of technology. Within the theoretic lens of the TCCN, 3 key elements demonstrate the fundamental process of knowing persons within the universal technological domain: technological knowing, designing, and participative engaging. Underpinning this process of nursing are concepts of human naturalness, human wholeness, and nursing technology connoisseurship. From the perspective of the TCCN, the nurse appreciates and knows persons more fully as active participants in their care rather than as passive recipients of care, and thereby advances the preservation of humanness.
Maintaining Caring Relationships in Spouses Affected by Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Grimaldi Carol
Published: September 2018

The purpose of this study was to uncover ways that spouses living with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) sustain engagement in their relationships. Coming to understand caring marital relationships when a partner is diagnosed with AD will help nurses to provide more effective support. Fifteen couples participated. Thirty conversations were analyzed with qualitative methods. Three overall themes of spousal caring were identified: engaging with compassion, patiently reaching out, and trusting in the existence of deep attachment. A central theme emerged: relating with compassion by reaching out and trusting in the existence of deep attachment strengthened by many years of marriage. Nurses have the opportunity to support caregivers struggling to find ways to connect with loved ones with AD. Understanding conversation patterns will help nurses provide support for caregivers affected by challenges of AD.
Responding to Sufferning - The Experience of Professional Nurse Caring in the Coronary Care Unit
Authors: Wallis Marianne C.
Published: September 2018

This phenomenological study of the lived experience of professional nurse caring was informed by data from seven coronary care unit patients in Sydney, Australia. A number of themes emerged which indicate that professional nurse caring is primarily experienced as a response to the individual which is tailored to his or her unique needs. This response is mediated through a relationship that is professional in nature alnd cariing in character. In this highly technical environment the professional coronary care nurse enacts this caring response through technical competence, nurturing, and providing structure.
The Meaning of Being Touched Deeply Inside in a Nurse- Patient Encounter-Excellent Nurse Encounter-Excellent Nurse Experiences
Authors: Bäck-Pettersson, Siv , Jensen, Kirsten Pryds , Segesten, Kerstin
Published: September 2018

This article explores the meaning to nurses of being touched deeply inside in a nurse-patient encounter. The manuscript reflects the caring perspectives of Pellegrino, Watson, Gadow, Carper, and Eriksson. Caring is viewed from a lifeworld perspective according to the phenomenological philosophy of Husserl and Merleau-Ponty. Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological method was applied and data were collected through open interviews with five excellent nurses. The analysis resulted in a general structure of the phenomenon sbtudied including four key constituents: witnessing patient exposed to suffering and unfairness; sensing closeness, understanding, and involvement in patient/person; experiencing extreme difficulties as a challenge to act accordingly; and growing professionally. The results are consistent with literature about moral sensing, and caring values and attitudes. Being touched deeply inside appeared to be crucial in fostering professional growth and excellence in nursing.
Emerging Innovations: Carting in Action
Authors: Iennaco Joanne DeSanto , Martin Sharon Dezzani
Published: September 2018

Community interventions are an important facet of nursing practice. This article offers exemplars of nursing students demonstrating principles of Watson’s (1988) Human Caring theory while performing community assessments and health promotion projects. Through collaboration students learn to involve communities as partners in the caring experience.
“The Last Bath”: A Reflexive Ethnography of Caring for a Prisoner-Patient
Authors: Bayuo Jonathan
Published: September 2018

Caring for the prisoner-patient has been noted to arouse several emotions due to its complexities. Thus in this article, the author highlights his personal experience with caring for a prisoner-patient using a reflexive ethnographic approach in which the self is the object of study. As the author examined the experiences, sources of conflict and areas requiring attention such as the need for nurses to acknowledge their feelings with the phenomenon and enhancing the availability of placement support systems are highlighted.
DASEIN: A Celebration of Caring Science Scholars in Communion
Authors: Maykut Colleen
Published: September 2018

I am proposing Communion, as the 7th C, vital for the development, nurturance, and expression of a holistic expression or being of Roach’s (2002) caring attributes. I am defining communion as humbly entering each other’s world—a shared journey of being in the world. As humans, our primary focus is on our potential—the possibility of authentic human expression, being in and concerning the world (Heidegger, 1962). I will explore the particular of Caring Sciences through my own professional “Dasein” as I attach meaning of my own reflective process to higher philosophical beliefs.
A Community of Caring Builds Resilience—An Exemplar of Grief and Loving-Kindness
Authors: Goldin Marlienne
Published: September 2018

Every 13.7 minutes, someone in the United States takes their own life, leaving behind friends and family. Suicide bereavement also been associated with psychiatric disorders, major anxiety, and depression in loved ones left behind. Can one develop emotional strength in the face of tragedy? What factors contribute to resilience? I would say it was acts of love, constantly displayed by a community of caring made up of friends, colleagues, and the leadership of the organization that I work for has enabled me to continue to live a productive life. Caring builds resilience.
Building a Caring-Based Hyperglycemic Crisis Prevention Model for Patients With Diabetes Mellitus, Thailand
Authors: Oba Nongnut , Barry Charlotte D. , Gordon Shirley C. , Pipatsart Rachada , Sirigulsatien Viruch
Published: September 2018

The purpose of this study was to understand patient experiences of hyperglycemic crisis (HC) and develop a caring-based, interdisciplinary model for preventing HC in Thailand. A 2-Phase approach was used. In Phase 1, qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 in-patients with diabetes mellitus who had experienced a HC. Four themes emerged: not knowing, depending on others for care, experiencing stress, and seeking help for self-care. In Phase 2, interdisciplinary, participatory team focus groups were conducted using data from Phase 1 to develop a model of hyperglycemic crisis prevention.
Emerging Innovations: Caring In Action
Authors: Ray, Marilyn A.
Published: September 2018

This paper on the future of caring in the challenging health care environment was the end-note address of the 20th anniversary of the International Association for Human Caring held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April, 1998. The focus of the future of caring is on social, transcultural, communal caring, which is a response to the economic corporatization of health care. The need now is for a universal health care system in the United States, to not only care for all citizens, but also to be an example for the rest of the world to heed the call of the Alma-Ata conference of 1978 to provide health care for all early in the new millennium.
Suffering - Reflection - Caring
Authors: Sigrídur-Halldórsdóttir,
Published: September 2018

There are many who suffer in our world and suffering has many different faces. It is concluded in this paper that a sufferer is faced with three major challenges: to break out of the silence which surrounds most suffering; to find meaning in the suffering; and finally, to open up to the healing light of love in order not to become bitter. Those who want to tend to sufferers must first know and tend to themselves. Through reflection on own suffering, woundedness, and vulnerability, greater awareness of another’s suffering
‘It’ Has Made a Difference, Hasn’t It?
Authors: Graham, Janet R. , Green, Mary , Stone, Sharon
Published: September 2018

This paper discusses the move made by nurses practicing on a surgical ward to use the Burford NDU Model: Caring in Practice and the impact that “IT” has made on the way that some of the nurses care for the patients. The paper is constructed around two stories unfolded by Mary and Sharon that were shared within a guided reflection group facilitated by Janet, their ward manager and senior nurse. It highlights how guided reflection and the use of a reflective model of nursing can help change how nurses view caring and how they can become more aware that within each busy day caring can take place. The validity of nurses’ feelings about their work and those they care for is acknowledged.
Aesthetic Expression: Private Psalms
Authors: Watson, Jean
Published: September 2018

This paper offers “Private Psalms”, as both a mantra and meditation for another way to find our way through the inner passages of caring and healing, helping to reveal deep truths of our shared humanity. This paper also shares some parts of an on-going sacred story resulting from this nurse caring theorist personaVprofessiona1 inner journey of surrendering to a life changing traumatic injuryltragedy (which could not be fixed or cured). In bowing down with humility, to both the pain and the praise of all of life’s lessons, writing “Private Psalms” became a way to reveal caring theory inside out and upside down, helping to mirror the mysteries and miseries, the pain, praise, and joy of life’s blessings and wholeness, in spite of suffering, despair, and loss of eye/I.

These “Private Psalms” become “Public Psalms” in that they are everyone’s Psalms, revealing the angst, the sacred, the holiness, and grace and mercy of life, inviting us to breath in the Psalms as we breath out our shared compassion and peace for ourselves, each other, and humanity itself
“The Ideal and Practice Concepts of ‘Professional Nursing Care’”
Authors: Post, Iréne von , Eriksson, Katie
Published: September 2018

The purpose of this article is to make a determination of the concept ‘professional nursing care’ and to demonstrate its specific features. Through an ontological and contextual determination, caritas emerges as the basic motive, as a prerequisite for ‘professional nursing care’, with its characteristics human love, charity, courage, and human being.

Human dignity comes out as the ethos of caritas and as the ethos of professional nursing care, as the ethical basic view. If we exclude ‘human dignity’ from professional nursing care, professional nursing care ceases to be professional.
Caring Connections: Self-Disclosure of Students’ Stories to Teachers in Nursing
Authors: Wilson Carol B.
Published: September 2018

This phenomenological study explored nurse educators’ experiences of human to human connection through students’ disclosures of their personal stories to them. Through interviews with nurse educators and analysis of texts, an interpretation of the meaning of the experience for the participants is described. The interpretation is illuminated in the three patterns that emerged. 1.) Creating The Context For Knowing describes patterns of caring and human connection that may create a context for self-disclosure by the student. 2.) Knowing: What Do I Do With What I Know? describes the ethical and moral dilemmas surrounding how the teacher responds to the information disclosed in the student’s story. 3.) Privileged Intimacy: How Knowing Affects Teachers and the Teaching-Learning Situation describes how the person to person connection experienced in hearing students’ stories affects teachers.
The Concepts of Caring and Story Viewed from Three Nursing Paradigms
Authors: Kiser-Larson Norma
Published: September 2018

The concepts of story and caring in nursing are inextricably connected. The focus of this article is to view various facets of the concepts and explore interpretations of story and caring from three nursing paradigms. The challenge for nursing is to refine methods of research and practice from each of the three perspectives. In the past, most of the nursing literature was written from a reductionistic or correlational view with little from the holistic view. Although in recent years more nursing articles have been written from a holistic paradigm, further development of holistic nursing research and practice is needed encompassing story and caring.
The Phenomenon of Confirmation: An Aspect of Nursing as an Art
Authors: Nåden, Dagfinn , Eriksson, Katie
Published: September 2018

This article presents a theory model, “When Nursing Becomes an Art,” and discusses one part of the results, the substantial category invitation and confirmation. Researchers wanted to answer these superordinate questions: (a) What characterizes nursing as an art? (b) What does it take to practice nursing as an art? and (c) What does the practice of nursing as an art result in? The questions were answered through (a) a discussion of theory, consisting of a review of the reference literature on caring and nursing; (b) a semantic segment, consisting of a semantic analysis of the concept of art; and (c) an empirical segment, consisting of observations and qualitative research interviews with patients and nurses. Researchers developed the results into a theory model. The basic categories of the theory model are (a) invitation and confirmation, (b) encounter, (c) actualization of values, (d) the act of good will, and (e) aesthetic communication.
Exploring the Boundaries of Caring: Is Tellington Touch Nursing?
Authors: Wendler, M. Cecilia
Published: September 2018

Tellington touch, or ttouch (L. Tellington-Jones, 1992,1995), is an emerging therapeutic intervention being used by nurses and is a form of healing communication administered through the use of gentle physical touch. Anecdotal evidence (TEAM News International, n.d.) suggests that this simple intervention may be useful in a variety of patient-care situations (L. Tellington-Jones, personal communication, July 6,1996). The purpose of this paper is to describe ttouch as an emerging modality; to compare attributes of ttouch with published criteria for caring touch; and to evaluate the appropriateness of providing ttouch to nursing clients. Diagrams of the techniques described are offered, a case exemplar is given, and implications for nursing practice and research are identified.
Call to Life: Exploring the Spiritual Dimension as a Dialectic Between Suffering and Desire Experienced by Coronary Bypass Patients
Authors: Råholm, Maj-Britt , Eriksson, Katie
Published: September 2018

This article tries to conceptualize the nature of spirituality from a perspective of suffering and desire. The conception of hermeneutics and interpretation applied in this study was inspired by H. G. Gadamer. In this study the method used involved 2 focus groups. The result shows that the participants’ experiences can be likened to a sacred journey into the universe of spirituality visible in different stages: explicit suffering; concealed, unrevealed suffering; the inner space; belief; and serving in love. If the spiritual dimension of life is ignored, the patients are deprived of their dignity as human beings. Ontological evidence implies that this theory is reflected in the care of the unique patient where the spiritual dimension is explicitly brought out.
From Nightingale to Beyond 2000: Philosophical Issues Related to Nursing Education
Authors: Williams, Gail B. , Taliaferro, Donna H.
Published: September 2018

Caring is a central concept within nursing practice and nursing education. During the past 3 decades, the nursing profession has undergone a paradigm shift in which the care model has replaced the cure model. This paper focuses on the philosophical issues related to nursing education from Nightingale to beyond 2000. Nightingale’s vision of the 1800s is presented along with Kuhn’s scientific revolution of the 1970s. Caring theories as used in nursing are explored, and the educational needs of nurses are discussed in light of the changes in health care demands. Reflective practice along with caring theory is presented as a consideration in the development of new curricula in nursing.
Looking for “Caritative Teachership”: A Journey of Exploration in the History of Ideas
Authors: Matilainen, Dahly , Westerlund-Perätalo Lilian
Published: September 2018

This article is based on a preliminary study that is part of a research project in the field of caring-science didactics. Its purpose is to indicate which qualities are typical of the good teacher and of “caritative teachership” by surveying the views of 3 educationists in the history of ideas about teacher personality, teachership, and the teaching spirit. The authors found many ideas that can contribute to an increased understanding of caritative teachership, knowledge pertaining to caring-science didactics, and suggestions for continued research. They saw trains of thought that agreed with their theoretical perspective. The sources revealed the “true, good and beautiful” aspects of the teacher’s personality and of teachership in relation to the learner and in didactic culture, that is, in ethos.
The Apprenticeship of Caring
Authors: Cara, Chantal M.
Published: September 2018

How do nurses learn to be caring? This paper provides an insight into the apprenticeship of caring as perceived by clinical nurses. The results from a study that used ethnography as a research method have shown that both natural and professional exposures contribute to the nurses’ learned nature of caring. Indeed, the informants explained that their learning to care originated from their sociocultural background, values, and personal knowledge, as well as from education, role modeling, clinical experience, and the work environment. Ultimately, these findings could have significant implications for promoting caring within the educational, clinical, administrative, and research arenas in nursing.
The Spirit of Open Egalitarianism: The Caring in Nursing Relationship
Authors: Sumner Jane
Published: September 2018

The theory of moral consciousness and communicative action (J. Habermas, 195) offers a different perspective for understanding caring in nursing. The personal and professional self of the nurse and the personal and illness self of the patient are described in the interaction. The discourse-interaction requires “considerateness” of each individual’s vulnerability. An interaction is one of different levels of moral maturity: preconventional, conventional, or postconventional. “The Spirit of Open Egalitarianism” as a model explains the human interaction between nurse and patient and their differing levels of moral maturity. The model offered is an ideal, which will not occur in every interaction.
Care and Traditional Ethics: Enhancing the Development of Moral Reasoning Among Nurses
Authors: Bankert Esther G.
Published: September 2018

Care ethics and traditional ethics were studied as they relate to the development of moral reasoning among nurses. Pretest findings suggest that nurses with varying years of experience perform at similar levels of principled reasoning. Post hoc comparisons show a significant increase (p < .05) in principled reasoning after instruction in care ethics among nurses with less than 5 years of experience. More experienced nurses demonstrate a nonsignificant pattern of improved principled reasoning in the traditional and combined groups. Improvement endures 2 months but dissipates 1 year after instruction. Replication and further study is warranted to validate care and traditional ethics on moral reasoning.
The Untold Stories: Men Living With Multiple Sclerosis
Authors: Fastier Raylene
Published: September 2018

This article presents findings from a Masters of Health Science dissertation about men with multiple sclerosis (MS). The study used a constructivist paradigm that acknowledged the diverse ways men with MS viewed the part illness played in their lives and that allowed for multiple interpretations of specific issues arising for men. The article describes how the men integrated their illness into their lives. Those findings that relate to the identified themes that helped or hindered the men in living with chronicity are discussed. Their significance is evaluated in terms of how gendered meaning is gained in the experience of living with chronic illness. It is important for the men living with MS to give voice to their illness experiences, and for those who provide health and disability support services to understand how gendered meaning is gained and mastery achieved. Few illness models explain gender differences, and few are illness specific.
Relations of Caring: Demoralization and Remoralization in the Clinic
Authors: Frank, Arthur W.
Published: September 2018

Relations of caring are contrasted with the treatment transactions that typify managed care. This contrast reflects a social tension between 2 core narratives of survivorship: the narrative of extensive responsibility and the narrative of limited liability. The potential and the difficulties of the former narrative are discussed. Clinical examples show the potential for clinicians to validate and enhance their patients’ sense of the responsibilities that attend survivorship. Care as remora-lization provides a model of how society’s moral quotient—the relationship between the time spent in relations of care and the time spent in transactions—can be raised.
The Art and Science of Whole-Person Caring: An Interdisciplinary Model for Health Care Practice
Authors: Thornton, Lucia , Gold, Jeannie , Watkins, Marilyn
Published: September 2018

The art and science of whole-person caring is an interdisciplinary model that serves as a model for health care organizations to help create a healing and nurturing environment for consumers and health care personnel. This model is derived from theorists in the fields of nursing, physics, and systems theory. It is a practical and easily understood model that appeals to individuals and organizations interested in creating a sense of meaning and purpose within the health care environment. Personnel from all disciplines can use this model as a common ground for providing quality care and compassionate service.
Caring in the Human Health Experience
Authors: Newman, Margaret A.
Published: September 2018

Even though the theories of caring and health have been developed largely along separate tracts of nursing theory, there is considerable overlap between them. Each is embedded in the explanation and application of the other. This paper illustrates some of the connections between caring and health. Moreover, one’s definition of health makes a difference in the intent of nursing practice. The meaning of health as expanding consciousness is elaborated on as a research-practice process. Within this context, Jean Watson’s views of consciousness are compared with those of the author.
Healing: A Theory and Practice
Authors: Cull-Wilby, Barbara Lynn , Pepin, Jacinthe I.
Published: September 2018

Inspired by the unitary-transformative paradigm and phenomenological research, and recognizing that caring must embrace the whole of what is, the authors present a theory and a practice of healing. They assume that healing is a natural process that comes from within the person, that to be human is to be concerned with meaning and that everything and everyone are interconnected. Three theoretical and practical processes are presented: “Breathing,” “Joining With What Is” and “Experiencing Self.” Together the three assumptions and the three processes facilitate being fully who we are, being true to ourselves and consciously living the lives we desire to create. The authors share this work with full recognition that it is possible, realistic and worthwhile to grow into a fuller understanding of our true selves and of the power we really have as individuals, communities, professions, nations and a world. Life is a healing journey; embraced it is one that enriches our personal lives as well as the care that we provide. Nursing and our health care systems must embrace a whole perspective if we are to continue to deepen our knowledge and understanding of the experience of being human.
Metaphors, A Possibility for Caring and a Deeper Relationship to the Patient
Authors: Breitkreuz, Ann-Charlotte , Bergbom, Ingegerd
Published: September 2018

The purpose of the study was to describe and express some metaphors that patients have used in conversations with nurses. Also, the investigators described some of the consequences that metaphors have brought to relationships with patients, as seen from the view of nurses. The hermeneutical method used was inspired by Eriksson’s ideas about tending, learning and playing in care with a focus on tending. Results show that through tending, learning and playing in care that metaphoric expressions can make it possible to have deeper, caring relationships between patients and nurses.
Protecting Our Families in the Aftermath of 9/11 and the Holocaust
Authors: Ehrlich, Ellen Goldschmidt
Published: September 2018

“Never again” is the cry relating to the Holocaust that thunders around the world. Yet, we see in the events of September 11, 2001 tragedies of equal barbarity continuing. One way to prevent this is to keep the stories alive for future generations. Remembering the Holocaust and 9/11, and their stories alive for our families is one way. Aphenomenological approach was used. Seven second-generation survivors were interviewed. The findings include themes of surviving, frightening experiences, safety, loss, daily thoughts, denial, minimizing, connections, passing on heritage, and identity. With this major societal issue, we must look at the structure and behaviors in our society and at ways to change the cruelty of people to people.