Nursing in transition: an analysis of the state of the art in relation to the conditions of practice and society's expectations

The discipline of nursing is in a process of rapid transition. In this paper, the developments are discussed that have affected nursing in its advancement to a full-grown profession. Nursing and medicine are the products of Cartesian thinking that has fragmented our perspectives on man and his living world. The consequences of this scientific viewpoint are reflected in all aspects of life. Attention is paid to advances in nursing practice and education, the development of nursing research and the emergence of a nursing science. These aspects are discussed in the context of professionalization and the position of nursing in the health care system and in society. The study findings of the Styles Report Project on the Regulation of Nursing (1985) serve as a framework of analysis. Links are made between the recommendations given in this report and the development of primary health care, the new tomorrow of a modern discipline.