NURSING: AN ART OR SCIENCE?

Nursing is considered as an art and a science. It is an art because it requires the unique application of personal skills such as caring nature, compassion, kindness, good communication and inter-personal relationships, respect of the dignity and the personhood of the patient or client. It is a science because it relies on the advancement and innovations of scientific research and discoveries. The techniques and practices of nursing evolve everyday with the introduction of new findings in the management of various diseases and conditions. It is not a stagnant field. Old techniques and practices are constantly replaced by new ones as and when necessary.

Nursing is an interdisciplinary field that utilizes information from the biological to the social sciences. It also uses information from the world of technology such as bioinformatics. 

The are numerous career options for nurse. These include:

• Clinical practice
• Research
• Education
• Management 
• Administration
• Entrepreneurship 

So as you can see, the nurse is not limited to only the hospital setting as most people think. The bedside nursing is just one aspect of nursing. A nurse can choose to work with a pharmaceutical company, insurance company, a college or university, or be a travelling nurse who visits clients in their homes. There are countless possibilities.