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Nursing as Discipline, Profession, and Science

Weekly Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 will be addressed in this discussion.

In order to post to this forum, complete the Week 1 readings and presentations. You will then need to conduct a literature search to identify a scholarly article to include as a reference. Be sure you know what a “scholarly reference” is; see 18200 Library Guide tab “Journal Types” for more information.

Access the library to conduct your literature search. The 18200 Library Guide a good place to start and provides a wealth of information pertinent to this discussion and the remainder of the course. Remember the PNW Writing Center available to you. This is an excellent service for students seeking to develop their writing regardless of ability level. Lastly, refer to your APA manual as needed.

Instructions:

Nurse scholars have claimed that nursing is both a discipline and a profession. In order to understand these claims, we must first know what it means for nursing to have a “unique body of knowledge.” If we assume that nursing does, indeed, possess a unique body of knowledge, we can claim that nursing is a “basic science” rather than an “applied science.” Despite these claims, debate continues about nursing as discipline, profession, and science. Is nursing a discipline? A profession? Is nursing a basic science and/or applied science? In your initial post, state what you think about nursing as discipline, profession, and science. Explore the literature beyond that assigned to you for this week’s readings to help you formulate your position. You should include the following:

What is a discipline? What is a profession? What’s the difference? What are examples of each?

Does nursing fit the criteria for a “discipline” and “profession”?

What is a “basic science”? What is an “applied science”? What’s the difference?

Is nursing a “basic” or “applied” science?

his week’s textbook readings come from the following textbook: Nursing Theorists and Their Work, which is a required textbook for this course.

Textbook: Nursing Theorists and Their Work

• Chapter 1 – Introduction to nursing theory: Its history and significance
• Chapter 2 – Nursing theorists of historical significance
• Chapter 3 – History of nursing science

REPLY TO:
1

Every person defines discipline of nursing and profession of nursing differently. According to The Nursing Science Quarterly the discipline of nursing id defined as something that “encompasses the knowledge in the extant frameworks and theories that are embedded in the totality and simultaneity paradigms.” Discipline is seen as a unique perspective that is distinct in viewing all phenomena, which the defines the limits and the nature of its inquiry. The nursing Science Quarterly defines “profession of nursing and something that consists of persons educated in the discipline according to nationally regulated, defined, and monitored standards.” Basically, the difference between discipline and profession is that discipline expands the knowledge from experiences through research and profession is something regulated with standards of practice and education based on the disciplinary knowledge that reflects safe health services to society in all types of settings (Parse, R. 1999). I think that both nursing discipline and profession go hand in hand, and nursing fits the criteria for both.

According to Nursing Science Quarterly “basic science is a unique body of knowledge, the name of which calls forth a knowledge-specific recognizable entity” and “applied science is an amalgamation of concepts from various sciences and the humanities, with no consistent recognizable unique discipline-specific theories, ethos, or methodologies.” Basic sciences provide a fundamental understanding of natural phenomena and the process by which natural recourses are transformed. Basic science is the source of most scientific theories. An example of basic science is someone who is trying to figure out what causes a particular disease. Applied science is a discipline that is used to apply existing scientific knowledge to develop more practical applications. Microbiology, mathematics, computer science are good examples of applied science. I believe that nursing is both basic and applied science, and to be the best you can a s practicing nurse you need to use both basic and applied science.

Overall Nursing is bigger than discipline, profession, basic, or applied science alone. Nursing is everything put together and more. “Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, facilitation of healing alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, groups, communities, and populations” (Banna, A. 2017). I am proud to say that nursing is a prestigious position that provides the opportunity to care for others and to me there is nothing more noble.

2

A Discipline involves training people to follow rules or a particular code of ethics. An example of a discipline would be Education. A profession on the other hand, is a paid occupation which involves investing time in training and the need for qualification to perform the work of that profession. On this basis, I believe nursing is a discipline as it follows a code of ethics put in place by responsible bodies in this case the American Nurses Association sets the code of ethics for nurses in America. Nursing is also a profession because nurses must go through years of school and training and must be tested in the knowledge to get a license that qualifies them to take of patients. According to Parse, “The discipline -specific in standards and regulations sets forth the service that society can expect from members of the profession.” (1999). This well explains why nursing fits the criteria for a discipline and a profession.

Basic science helps people understand living systems and expand knowledge base. According to Parse, “Basic science is a unique body of knowledge” (2015). Nursing is a body of knowledge that cuts across other sciences like biology, psychology, chemistry, mathematics and even physics. On the other hand, applied science entails the use of scientific knowledge got through research to solve problems. According to Parse, “Applied science is an amalgamation of concepts from various sciences and humanities” (2015). These concepts are then applied to solve problem as evidence-based practice. Therefore, nursing is both a basic science as it relies on a knowledge base from other sciences and research and is an applied science as the knowledge base or research is used in the application of care for patient by nurses thus evidence-based practice.

In conclusion, I strongly think that nursing cannot only be defined as a discipline, a profession or science. Nursing falls in a discipline, a profession, and a science and an a each of these areas defines nursing in its own unique way and supports the concept of nursing. 

ARTICLES

• Nursing: The Discipline and the Profession
• Nursing: Still in the Shadow of Medicine
• Nursing: Whose Discipline Is It Anyway?
• The Elusive Profession Called Nursing
• Nursing: A Basic or Applied Science?
• Nursing: A Basic or Applied Science
• Nursing Science: Basic, Applied or Practical? Implications for the Art of Nursing