Humanizing care. Ethical and educational reflection

Abstract

The nursing practice, from its origins, was considered as an occupation contemplated in the practical experience and the common knowledge delegated from old religious orders, so the attention of the nurses of this early period, framed their work in the art of caring. It is from the contributions of Florence Nightingale as a forerunner of nursing science that various philosophical models emerge that reveal man as the main object of her care. Hence, humanized care is supported by scientific knowledge, technical capacity and the therapeutic relationship that the nurse establishes with the patient, welcomes the other in a warm way, shedding all external factors that at some point may affect the committed and high-quality care that humanized care implies. Despite this, we are situated in a globalized, multicultural and secular world where the denial of the other has become a daily practice, and where, furthermore, nurses are not strangers. Therefore, the idea is reiterated that the care of people in current times, needs a strong reconsideration towards humanization, placing the nursing action in the ethical and professional field. In this sense, the following reflective article is presented, summarizing the meaning of humanized care, its ethical and teaching reflections, in order to provide some ideas in a planning framework for changes in the training of the nursing discipline, that promote the global recognition of this career as a science of human care.