Person Centered Therapy: A Humanistic Approach to Care
A humanistic approach to care can also be viewed as an existentialist view. According to Corey (2009), as humans we are capable of self-awareness, which is the distinctive capacity that allows us to reflect and to decide. In person centered/humanistic therapy the nurse utilizes communication that ensures each individual experiences the presence of the nurse as authentic, caring, compassionate, and sincere. This is more than offering therapeutic techniques such as responding, reflecting, summarizing, and so on. This is deep listening or as some say “listening with the heart and not just …show more content…
She uses the term carative to contrast with conventional medicine’s curative factors. Her carative factors attempt to “honor the human dimensions of nursing’s work and the inner life world and subjective experiences of the people we serve” (Watson, 1997b, p. 50). According to Watson a strong liberal arts background is necessary in order for nurses to develop humanistic philosophies and value system. As nurses we continue to grow and learn through all our experiences both positive and negative. We need to actively pursue ways to continue to learn, grow, and to build our emotional intelligence every day. Nurses that utilize the humanistic approach also have a connection with their emotional intelligence, channeling it by means of empathy and respect in a positive professional manner. They bring love, hope, relationship-centered principles and inspiration to the work place every day and inspire …show more content…
Each patient has their own set of values that are important to them, their own perspectives on life and death, their own belief system, and their own personal needs. According to one of my patients (Anna), holistic communication is the most important to her because she feels a connection with a nurse that is attentive to her emotional needs. “I know that I am terminally ill, however I do not want to be defined by my illness. I appreciate the time nurses take to sit down and really listen to me. I need to share my thoughts on life, death, fears, and also my hopes (Anna, 2011). This is an example of “a caring moment”, in which the individual experiences the nurse’s presence as authentic, caring, compassionate, and sincere.
Providing care that recognizes the totality of the human being (the interconnectedness of body, mind, emotion, spirit, society, culture, relationships, context, and environment). When modern science has nothing further to offer the person, the nurse can continue to use faith-hope to provide a sense of well-being through beliefs which are meaningful to the individual. The goal of a person centered/humanistic therapeutic relationship corresponds to protecting, enhancing, and preserving the person’s dignity,