Emotional Intelligence in Nursing Advanced Practice - Essay Example

"Emotional Intelligence in Nursing Advanced Practice" is a perfect example of a paper on care.
Landa and Lopez-Zafra (2010) describe emotions as playing an important part in the nursing profession. Given that the nursing profession not only requires technical expertise but also psychological orientation and knowledge about emotions. In essence, while technical expertise makes a nurse, emotional intelligence makes a better nurse. Central to emotional intelligence is self-awareness and acceptance, in the belief that having knowledge of self would aid perception and gleaning of information while managing emotions. For a better understanding of the concept, it has been divided into four dimensions; awareness to adequately perceive emotions; applying emotions to facilitate thinking; aptitude to comprehend emotions and their implications, and regulating emotions to achieve growth. Based on empirical evidence, it is deduced that the ability to control personal emotions and identify those of others is particularly valuable in nursing practice. Therefore, lucidity and emotional restoration are positively related to the self-concept, even though attention to emotions is negatively related to self-concept. It is clear that controlling emotions and the ability to regulate the emotional state is a critical feature in the creation of self-image and equally vital for nursing personnel (Landa & Lopez-Zafra, 2010).

Nurses with higher personal self-knowledge of their capabilities, opportunities, resources, and limitations, have a greater capacity to control their emotions and those of others. They may also show a better degree of empathy with others, and this characteristic is a priority in nursing. Furthermore, persons with low personal self-knowledge place greater emphasis on emotional and internal states, which places them at a disadvantage in carrying out nursing functions and duties. It would, therefore, be prudent to include explicit modules of emotional intelligence in the nursing training syllabus in order to train nursing personnel on the use and management of emotional states in their professional capacity. Currently, most nursing students graduate with a serious deficit of skills required in uptake and implementation of nursing practice, and incorporation into a healthcare facility. This shortfall has been attributed to the need to adapt the nursing syllabus to meet international labor market requirements, and complexities involved in imparting emotional intelligence in classroom and field settings (Landa & Lopez-Zafra, 2010).

Emotional intelligence allows the nurse to avoid burnout syndrome. Occasionally, nurses may be overwhelmed by the situations they encounter in carrying out their nursing duties, especially when the cases are depressing. The result would be that they fail to adapt to the situation, end up feeling deeply, and their ability to perform their duties becomes compromised. A nurse experiencing burnout would be easily irritated, appears exhausted, develops a generally cynical attitude, and tends to avoid patients with emotionally draining stories. An emotionally intelligent nurse would easily avoid experiencing burnout syndrome by recognizing their limits and manipulating the emotional states of those around them (Landa & Lopez-Zafra, 2010).

Landa and Lopez-Zafra (2010) conclude by arguing that emotional intelligence not only helps nurses in carrying out their duties but also ensures that they remain healthy. A nurse who is capable of regulating their emotional states, by prolonging positive emotional states and interrupting negative emotional states, lives a healthier life. It is, therefore, imperative that emotional intelligence modules be introduced in the nursing curriculum to reduce work stress when they carry out their professional duties (Landa & Lopez-Zafra, 2010).