Scott P Anne, Matthews Anne, Kirwan Marcia
School of Nursing and Human Sciences, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland.
Nurs Philos. 2014 Jan;15(1):23-34. doi: 10.1111/nup.12032. Epub 2013 Oct 31.
It is frequently claimed that nursing is vital to the safe, humane provision of health care and health service to our populations. It is also recognized however, that nursing is a costly health care resource that must be used effectively and efficiently. There is a growing recognition, from within the nursing profession, health care policy makers and society, of the need to analyse the contribution of nursing to health care and its costs. This becomes increasingly pertinent and urgent in a situation, such as that existing in Ireland, where the current financial crisis has lead to public sector employment moratoria, staff cuts and staffing deficits, combined with increased patient expectation, escalating health care costs, and a health care system restructuring and reform agenda. Such factors, increasingly common internationally, make the identification and effective use of the nursing contribution to health care an issue of international importance. This paper seeks to explore the nature of nursing and the function of the nurse within a 21st century health care system, with a focus on the Irish context. However, this analysis fits into and is relevant to the international context and discussion regarding the nursing workforce. This paper uses recent empirical studies exploring the domains of activity and focus of nursing, together with nurses perceptions of their role and work environment, in order to connect those findings with core conceptual questions about the nature and function of nursing.
人们经常声称，护理对于为我们的民众安全、人道地提供医疗保健和健康服务至关重要。然而，人们也认识到，护理是一种成本高昂的医疗保健资源，必须得到有效和高效的利用。护理专业内部、医疗保健政策制定者以及社会越来越认识到，有必要分析护理对医疗保健的贡献及其成本。在爱尔兰这样的情况下，这一点变得越来越相关和紧迫，当前的金融危机导致公共部门暂停招聘、裁员和人员短缺，同时患者期望增加、医疗保健成本不断攀升，以及医疗保健系统的重组和改革议程。这些因素在国际上越来越普遍，使得确定和有效利用护理对医疗保健的贡献成为一个具有国际重要性的问题。本文旨在探讨21世纪医疗保健系统中护理的本质以及护士的职能，重点关注爱尔兰的情况。然而，这种分析适用于并与关于护理劳动力的国际背景和讨论相关。本文利用最近的实证研究，探讨护理的活动领域和重点，以及护士对其角色和工作环境的看法，以便将这些发现与关于护理本质和职能的核心概念问题联系起来。
