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THEME 1. SUBJECT «THEORY OF NURSING», PURPOSE
AND OBJECTIVES. HISTORY OF NURSING.
PHILOSOPHY OF NURSING. ETHICAL CODE OF NURSES
Purpose:
• introduce the student to the subject under study, define the basic concepts of
nursing philosophy.
As a result of studying the topic, the student must know:
1. Definition of nursing;
2. The purpose and objectives of nursing;
3. Main stages of nursing development in Russia and abroad;
4. Principles of nursing philosophy;
5. Ethical duties, values and virtues of a nurse;
6. The main provisions of the Ethical code of nurses.
As a result of studying the topic, the student must be able to:
1. Correlate the provisions of the Ethical code with practice;
2. Define the concepts of duties, values, and virtues of a nurse.
Content of the training material
Definition of nursing, its purpose and objectives
Nursing is a part of the health care system that combines science and art,
aimed at solving existing and potential patient problems connected with health in
a changing environment.
Nursing is the science and art of diagnostic and correction of person’s responses
to existing or potential illness.
Nursing as an artinvolves:
• the art of systematically applying knowledge and skills;
• the art of caring, which requires creative imagination, intuition, and artist-
ry in expressing your feelings.
The art of nursing involves protecting the patient if they are unable to make a
decision on their own.
Nursing as a scienceis an organized, systematic structure of knowledge
obtained and verified through research activities.
Previously, nursing was empirical and intuitive, and nurses relied more on ex-
perience and observation than on scientific research. At various times, the nurses
did and still do the work of doctors, nutritionists, nannies and cleaners. Now nurs-
ing is creating its own unique knowledge structure. The nurse has performed and
will continue to perform doctor’s appointments, but at the same time is becoming
more independent in making independent decisions to meet the individual needs
of the patient. Florence Nightingale is the founder of the care system that allowed
nursing to become an independent profession. She was the first to note that «in