Self-Reflection: Foundation for meaningful nursing practice
Florence Nightingale lived a life of reflection.
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By Norman C. Olsen |
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When nurses reflect, they purposefully “bend back” their attention in a focused attempt to discover personal meanings gained from professional nursing encounters and interaction with others. Lautebach and Becher suggest that self-reflection is a critical activity for nurses in their caring for others and, because it connects those who practice it with their inner selves and truth, is transformational. The Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 B.C.) wrote, “By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noble; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the most bitter.”