My Point of View on Martinsen

Martinsen

Nursing theorists give students and current nurses a framework that can help treating patients. In this case, Martinsen theory of caring has very valuable points regarding nursing, person, health, and environment.  Martinsen says caring for a patient and being genuine imperative in healthcare.

For Martinsen, Nursing is having concern for the other, to care (Alligood, 2014, p.157). Caring for patients when they are at their lowest point is something that comes from within. It is not all about the paycheck. It is important to me to show patients that I care. It does not matter what is the patient’s background everyone deserves respect.  According to Martinsen, caring is something you learned (Alligood, 2014, p.157). But how is this possible? Growing up, I always had someone teaching me how to help my neighbor, and always think of him or her as a part of my family when it came to helping. Morals are teach as child in early ages. Living in a population where poverty was the norm, there was no monetary price for doing the good. Neighbors in my area just helped each other to survive. When someone is sick, just by expressing understanding makes everything better. Furthermore, the understanding of the patient’s situation is imperative (Alligood, 2014, p.157). I have had several encounters where patients had voiced that I am not in their shoes. Sometimes, as nurses we might not know the whole picture. It is our duty to establish rapport, so patients can involve us in their care. I believe Martinsen take on nursing is very similar as my take on nursing. Caring for one another is the key to a true relationship between a patient and a nurse.

    Martisen believes a person and their community have a closed relationship. Social interaction is very important for humans (Alligood, 2014, p.157). We cannot be isolated. It breaks my heart when a patient is in an isolation room, and family members are afraid to see them. The family will send text and phone calls, but it is not enough. Patients need a hug or maybe a shoulder to cry. Patients who are alone tend to get anxious and depressed. They feel not wanted.  It is my duty to welcome family members and explain every detail when a patient is in isolation. Everyone needs a support system when sick.

    As I read Martisen take on health, I feel that she is correct. Not all the time medication or treatment works. As nurses, we are there for support because medicine can not always cure but we can encourage, support and help (Alligood, 2014, p.157). As continue my career as a post-surgical care, I have encountered multiple situations that patients go to hospice, and most of the time is related to terminal cancer. All we can do as nurses is for them to find peace, provide resources, and show that we genuinely care. Not only to the patient but also their love ones.

    The environment is important for recovery. Martinsen believes that environment and space are essential for optimal recovery. Space was a patient could recover with dignity (Alligood, 2014, p.157). Most people think that hospitals now are looking more like hotels. It is because patients feel better when they are in gorgeous, nice and clean places. In multiple occasions, my patients have voiced that, they like coming to the hospital just because it is beautiful and does not smell like a hospital. Ambience plays an important role in people perception of health.

    Nursing is a beautiful profession where the main goal is to take care of a person we never have met the best way possible. Caring for someone without expecting a thanks or a nice word is nursing. Morals are important for a nurse to have because it makes us see beyond color, race, and ethnicity. Martinsen says patient’s interactions with other people during a hospital stay helps them because they have to feel better mentally as well.  By providing a nice ambience to the patients, recovery is a worthy experience.

References

Alligood, M. R. (2014). Nursing theorists and their work (8th ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier.