NURSING PHILOSOPHY?
Philosophy
was my first intellectual interest, and to teach it was my first career
goal. Philosophy was my major field of study at the University of the South,
where I obtained my Bachelor of Arts degree. When I graduated in 1971,
I went on to complete 42 hours of graduate study in philosophy at UNC-CH,
and passed my comprehensive examinations. In 1973 the department chairman,
Dr. David Faulk, advised all graduate students that job prospects in philosophy
were bleak. With my first child on the way, I transferred to law school.
Since
1994 I have been involved with nursing, first as a CNA while going back
to school, and then as a charge nurse. after graduating from nursing school,
I began reading philosophy again and found that I had never really lost
my love for it. What I absorbed there has continued to percolate in the
intervening years.
In
September 2003 I gave a presentation at the 7th International
Philosophy of Nursing Conference at the University of Sterling, in Scotland.
It was well received, and I have hopes of seeing the paper published. If
you are interested you can access the paper here