Caring as the Moral Imperative in Nursing
Profession has recognized the importance of moral disposition long than any other
By Dr. Karen Bauce and Dr. Mary Alice Donius
Caring is the moral imperative of nursing! This is a bold statement, but one borne from society’s needs and the evolving value and significance ascribed to the nursing profession.
Florence Nightingale famously declared that a moral disposition was essential for nurses. And in 1918, during the influenza pandemic, volunteers were charged with a “moral duty to care.”
The recognition of caring as the essence of nursing was formally articulated by nurse theorists and supported by scholars during the 1970s. The American Nurses Association Code of Ethics for Nurses, first suggested in 1926 and formally adopted in 1950, strengthens the meaning and significance of caring by insisting that nurses practice with compassion and respect for all as they alleviate human suffering.
The ethical mandate of our profession is further affirmed by the Dr. Susan L. Davis, R.N., & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing’s philosophy of nursing as caring with the intention of healing, in alignment with Sacred Heart University’s commitment to Catholic social teaching of compassion and respect for human dignity.
The COVID-19 pandemic, more than any other public health crisis, has challenged the notion that nurses can execute their moral agency freely and act in a way that is consistent with their personal and professional moral values. Shortages of staff, equipment and beds required that health-care providers make excruciating choices about care rationing. Nurses faced innumerable barriers in their ability to provide the care they believed their patients deserved. Yet, in the face of their own distress, nurses continued to bring the profession’s caring essence into every encounter with patients, bearing witness to their suffering and providing comfort wherever possible.
As the pandemic has persisted, nurses have had the opportunity to reflect on the meaning and purpose of their roles and responsibilities. The seemingly paradoxical associations of integrating technology with a tender touch, of minimizing the barriers of personal protective equipment to maximize authentic healing presence, have led nurses to rediscover the heart and soul of the privilege of being called nurse.
Caring does not lie solely in the domain of nursing, yet no other profession has recognized the importance of moral disposition as long as nursing. No other profession has codified it as a moral imperative. All nursing education programs have declared a caring curriculum as fundamental to the preparation of professional nurses. But only one nursing education program has declared itself to be “The Sacred Heart of Nursing.”