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Discuss whether nursing Is a profession or an occupation. What can current and future nurses do to enhance nursing’s standing as a profession? Nursing Is a profession. According to Mencken and Wills (2014) “profession Is a learned vocation or occupation that has a status of superiority and precedence within a Dillon of work” (p. 2). I believe this describes nursing but needed more evidence to make my decision.
I considered the “characteristics off profession: a defined and specialized knowledge base, control and authority over training and education, credentialing system, altruistic service to society, formal training within institutions of higher education, lengthy colonization to the profession and autonomy” (Mencken & Wills, 2014, p. 2). The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (“NCSA Home,” n. D. Help to define the nursing knowledge base, have authority over training by requiring that training at institutions of higher education meet the standards of approval by boards of nursing and that nurses graduating from an approved nursing program are clinically competent to practice nursing by assign the national council licenser exam (“UNCLE Examinations,” n. D. ). Nursing at Its core Is an altruistic profession. Altruism Is defined as “feelings and behavior that show a desire to help other people and a lack of selfishness” (“Altruism – Merriam- Webster Dictionary,” n. D. ).
Nurses provide care because it is needed and not because the nurse will have personal gains from providing such care. Autonomy in nursing can be viewed as a partnership in a multi-disciplinary team in which each ember has a different skill set and working together the patient receives the best possible care. Each member works independently and inter-dependently to meet the varied and unique needs of each individual patient. Nursing as a profession meets or exceeds each characteristic of a profession in my view. Experienced nurses need to help grow the skills and critical thinking of new nurses.
Nurses with a wide variety of experiences and skills are better able to act autonomously. When nurses think critically and act In a safe way they provide better, ore efficient care. This leads to Increased patient satisfaction, Increased physician, peer and self-confidence. I find that the area new nurses need the most guidance on is his/her ability to call on knowledge already gained to provide the most effective care. For example, knowing which IV size to choose for a patient who has a possible GIG bleed is something that the preceptor teaches the new nursing graduate.