Education for primary nursing.

Abstract

It is argued in this paper that since practice is context bound, there can be no 'blueprint' offered through a formal educational programme for primary nursing. It is suggested that what may be needed is support on a much broader basis to help nurses to move from the relative safety of traditional approaches to work to the much riskier independent professional model of practice implicit in primary nursing. Three key areas have been identified which could be incorporated within an educational programme, namely development of self as an independent practitioner with the requisite skills of self-directed learning, the ability to accept responsibility discriminatingly and to account for practice through a well-established knowledge base; development of interpersonal skills required for the close personal nurse/client relationships required of primary nurses alongside appropriate support mechanisms; an understanding of the context in which practice occurs in order that the broad principles of primary nursing can be adapted to local needs. In this way, people may be helped to move from a dependency on central control and decision-making to become independent creative practitioners who are able to develop a local organisational model which suits their personal situation.