Self-Care Action Plan for Reflective Nursing Practice

Introduction: Values About Healthy Self-Care

The relevance of healthy self-care activities cannot be overstated in the contemporary nursing environment. It is part of a nurse's duty to promote the health and wellbeing of patients in an often stressful and challenging healthcare setting. In doing so, nurses risk neglecting their own needs — boxing themselves into a corner emotionally, mentally, and physically (Jackson, 2004). For this reason, even while striving to meet patient needs, one's own health must not be entirely neglected. Some balance must be found.

Practicing regular self-care is highly relevant to managing the strenuous nature of the nursing profession. It helps nurses cope with daily challenges and promotes physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual wellbeing. It also enhances the safety and quality of patient care.

Personal Reflection on Self-Care Practices

For those in the helping professions, self-care could easily be one of the most important activities in the entire health and wellbeing equation. This is a fact I never gave much thought to prior to joining nursing school. My schedule was largely crowded, and I had to juggle work, school, and taking care of young children. I had completely lost myself in that setup. Today, I am fully aware of the relevance of practicing self-care, given its direct link to promoting better care for others. An assignment I wrote about self-care in the first semester of nursing school completely changed my perception. Through it, I developed a different understanding of self-care and became familiar with its key concepts.

At present, my schedule remains busy, but I continue to practice relevant self-care activities. I routinely engage in activities that promote each category of self-care: physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual. Addressing all categories is important given that "emotional and spiritual health are interrelated with physical and mental aspects of life" (Crane & Ward, 2016, p. 339). Activities that help me stay physically healthy include maintaining a regular sleep routine, eating a healthy diet, and exercising regularly. Activities that support my emotional and psychological wellness include keeping a reflective journal, balancing leisure and work time, and making time to engage with friends and family. I am also a deeply spiritual person who is well aware of the critical role faith plays in daily life, and I actively tend to that dimension of my wellbeing as well.

The Role of Self-Care in Today's Healthcare Environment

Healthy self-care plays a significant role in today's healthcare setting for both patients and nurses. From a nursing perspective, the profession is centered on promoting the health and wellbeing of others. Yet the roles and duties of nurses in clinical settings can be mentally and emotionally taxing as well as physically demanding. For this reason, nurses ought to embrace self-care as a means of preserving their own wellbeing (Smith & Parker, 2015).

From the patient's perspective, a nurse's priority is always the wellbeing of those in their care. To fulfill that role effectively — and to ensure that no harm comes to patients — nurses must safeguard their own physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. This is only achievable through effective self-care. This point is underscored by the fact that nurse exposure to stress, for instance as a consequence of emotional highs and lows, can be detrimental to patient safety (Smith & Parker, 2015).