Nursing is one of those careers that has steadily evolved. As the field expands and adds more responsibilities, what the career actually entails seems to be getting less clear-cut. I think the simplest definition of a nurse is, “A person trained to care for the sick and infirmed”. On the other side of the coin, The American Nursing Association states, “Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations.”
Not too long ago the hospice where I work received a thank you card from a man whose wife had died on our service. In the card, the man thanked, “ the nurse who sat on the floor at (my wife’s) bedside with us when she had expired. (Our nurse) Tammy waited patiently and lifted our spirits while waiting for the funeral director to arrive to retrieve the body.”
The man’s wife had died at home in her bedroom. Since no one wanted to leave her alone, they sat on the floor. Tammy knew the family needed comfort, so she, too, sat on the floor with them. I’ve heard it said, ”People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. ”Tammy cared enough to take to take as long as was necessary to wait for the funeral director’s arrival. That simple gesture meant so much to the deceased’s family.
Absolutely, there is a need for advanced degree nurses, nursing professors, directors, leaders, etc. But at the end of life, the only need is for “a person trained to care for the sick and the infirmed”; a hospice nurse.
— American Nurses Association[36] (36) ANA Considering Nursing…Retrieved Dec 2018
(ANA website 2015) …found at acadamia.edu on 7/17/2020 and in wikepedia
