Holistic Nurses' Use of Energy-Based Caring Modalities

As part of a study of a larger study of self-identified holistic nurses, researchers asked nurses to describe practice situations where energy-based modalities (EBMs) were used. Four hundred and twenty-four nurses responded by writing free-text responses on an online survey tool. The participants were highly educated and very experienced with 42% holding graduate degrees and 77% having over 21 years of practice. Conventional content analysis revealed four themes: EMBs are 1) caring modalities used to treat a wide range of identified nursing concerns; 2) implemented across the life span and to facilitate life transitions; 3) support care for the treatment of specific medical conditions; and 4) Use of EBMs transcend labels of 'conditions' and are used within a holistic framework. The fourth theme reveals a shared vision of nursing work such that the modality becomes secondary and the need to address the 'whole' at an energetic level emerges as the primary focus of holistic nursing.