In my dreams, I often see stair steps. These stair steps are not just going upward, and there are more than one set of them. They go up and down, and sometimes, the stair case will have a few steps that go upward and sometimes the steps go downward directly after the upward stairs. I think this signifies the challenges in my life and the ups and downs that everyone experiences in their life. My childhood memories often include a big six foot long stuffed animal furry pink snake that I had. Although I fear snakes and do not think they are beautiful creatures, for some reason, I always seem to remember this particular toy that I had.
It could be that I have no idea why I had such an odd stuffed animal. I know that I do not know where it came from. Perhaps I am just curious as to its origin and am trying to remember by keeping it in my memories. Something I see every day in my daily life is my wedding ring. This symbolizes the life I have chosen to make with my spouse and the circle of life that we have decided to complete together. Our family is important to us, and the rings are symbols of our continuing love, our future generations, our past, and our connection to each other and all of the previously mentioned things.
Collaborative practice is a radical shift from the past where clinical decisions were based on the decision of the physician and nursing was a vocation rather then a profession. Today, nursing is accountable professionally with legal hazards due to medical litigations, concepts of competence, informed consent, advance directives and euthanasia that clearly establish the rights of the patients. At a broader level, collaborative practice works in a safe framework where different groups like doctors, nurses, patients and patient family make tough decisions by safe guarding each other’s concerns by a fair and scientifically sound process.