In recent years, practising nurses and nurse theorists have shown interest in the development of conceptual models of nursing and nursing theory. As yet, however, there exists little agreement concerning the most appropriate methodologies to be employed in such an exercise. This paper identifies a number of strategies which might usefully be adopted for this purpose. In particular, it distinguishes between inductive and hypothetico-deductive approaches to the development of nursing theory. It further attempts a clarification of the relationship between conceptual models of nursing and theories of nursing, and explores the use of the nursing process as a research technique which combines both inductive and hypothetico-deductive commitments. Finally, it argues that the systematic use of the nursing process may identify a set of research procedures with the potential to facilitate the development of nursing theory using insights from both the direct experience of practising nurses and from existing conceptual models of nursing.

Orem's general theory of nursing, referred to as the self-care deficit nursing theory, is described as a theory that can be used for organizing and structuring nursing knowledge and nursing practice. The technolog ical nursing process appropriate to the theory is described. The use of the self-care deficit nursing theory is illustrated through a case study. The relationship between the case situation and the technological proc ess of nursing is explored.

Full integration of nursing informatics education at all levels at academic institutions and in practice is critical to nursing as the profession faces the 21st century. Nursing informatics, which encompasses computer hardware, software, and network systems, supports the profession's goals of achieving computer literacy by the year 2000. Strategies for successful integration of nursing informatics into curricula are identified, and specific tactics that promote desired outcomes suggested. The benefits that nursing informatics brings to education, administration, research, and practice are stated and the role of professional nursing organizations in promoting nursing informatics' status as a recognized nursing specialty is noted, and the specialty's role in promoting the profession's future development described.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the types of nursing problems in oriental nursing practice. Methods: This study employed a descriptive survey design. Nursing documentation was retrospectively reviewed for patients discharged from an oriental medicine hospital during three months. Nursing diagnoses documented were mapped into the Clinical Care Classification System. Data were summarized using descriptive statistics. Results: Data were collected from 110 patients using nursing documentation. The number of nursing diagnoses documented was 204 with a mean of 1.9 per patient. The frequently occurring nursing diagnoses were 'risk for trauma' (48.0%), 'pain' (13.7%), and 'urinary elimination alteration' (7.8%). According to the Clinical Care Classification system, the safety component (51.5%) was the most common nursing problem in oriental nursing practice. Conclusion: The study finding suggested that major nursing problems in oriental nursing practice were related to patient safety. Therefore, oriental nursing education on patient safety should be emphasized to improve the quality of nursing care in oriental medicine hospitals.

Top level nursing administrators must clearly conceptualize professional nursing activities in a corporate context. The accounting and marketing practices utilized in established corporate entities provide a model for interpreting nursing activities. Definition of product and determination of nursing as revenue or expense centers are explored with an established non-nursing corporation as a source for comparison.

By understanding the constructions of knowledge we currently label nursing theories as nursing ontologies, nurses can perceive these conceptualizations differently. Paul Ricoeur and Stephen White offer a conceptualization of ontology that differs from traditional, realist perspectives because they assume that a person's experience of a phenomenon (e.g., nursing) will change, but also maintain some stability. Discussing nursing ontologies, rather than nursing theories, might increase philosophy's status in nursing and may also more accurately reflect the experience of being a nurse.

This study has two parts. In the first part, current nursing courses in 18 baccalaureate nursing programs of Canada are examined to find out how traditional nursing courses have been changed. Major trends of nursing courses are identified, and two major types of current nursing courses are identified. In the second part, 16 nursing textbooks [child nursing (8); medical-surgical nursing (8)] are examined to see how they have changed to reflect the newer nursing curricula. Textbook and chapter content organizers commonly used in nursing textbooks are identified. Contents organizers currently used in nursing textbooks are argued to be ineffective for students' knowledge integration and knowledge development within the nursing profession. This position and its implications are discussed, and two approaches to developing textbooks are suggested.

Background: Nursing diagnosis is a consistent language that offers the foundation to select nursing interventions. Which conveyed nursing a position as a distinctive health discipline in giving care to patient. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine nursing students’ opinions towards nursing diagnoses. Methodology: A descriptive / exploratory design was used to conduct the current study. A 14-items (two constructs measuring students’ opinions about nursing diagnoses and the advantages of using nursing diagnoses) self-administered questionnaire was administered to a non-probability convenience sample of one hundred and sixty seven female nursing students. Informed written consent was obtained from all students who agreed to participate in the study. Results: The majority of the participated nursing students agreed that nursing diagnoses are a priority subject in nursing and necessary to use in the hospital wards. Moreover, most of the students agreed on the nursing diagnoses’ advantages as the development of practice standards in nursing care and improving the use of the nursing process. Conclusion: Nursing students had a good insight about the importance and advantages of using nursing diagnoses in clinical practice. To increase students’ knowledge and experience, more consistency in the value of nursing diagnoses needs to exist between educators and nursing students.

Nursing informatics is an advanced tool for nursing practice and integral part of health care. Specialists of nursing informatics are rapidly taking a significant role in the overall clinical information system and making an impact on the quality of health care and patient health outcomes. Methods of nursing documentation affect nursing practice. The process aiming to move from “paper” documentation to the “computer” documentation requires both financial and human resources and, also, innovative solutions. Abundance and diversity of clinical information and swift decisionmaking affect the nurses’ readiness to use nursing informatics advantages. Nursing values also influence applicability of information technologies in nursing practice. Therefore, it is important to analyze incentive and interfering factors which have an impact on nurses to use nursing information technology in practice. The nursing managers play a huge roll in this process, and their understanding of information technology affects the implementation of nursing informatics. Nursing informatics is the science of the 21st century and a new nursing specialization which has great potential to improve the quality of health care.

This study assessed the characteristics of nursing students currently enrolled in nursing education programs, how students finance their nursing education, their plans for clinical practice and graduate education, and the rewards and difficulties of being a nursing student. Data are from a survey administered to a national sample of 496 nursing students. The students relied on financial aid and personal savings and earnings to finance their education. Parents, institutional scholarships, and government loans are also important sources, but less than 15% of the students took out bank loans. Nearly one quarter of the students, particularly younger and minority students, plan to enroll in graduate school immediately after graduation and most want to become advanced nursing practitioners. Most of the nursing students (88%) are satisfied with their nursing education and nearly all (95%) provided written answers to two open-ended questions. Comments collapsed into three major categories reflecting the rewards (helping others, status, and job security) and three categories reflecting the difficulties (problems with balancing demands, quality of nursing education, and the admissions process) of being a nursing student. Implications for public policymaking center on expanding the capacity of nursing education programs, whereas schools themselves should focus on addressing the financial needs of students, helping them strike a balance among their school, work, and personal/family responsibilities and modifying certain aspects of the curriculum.