Nursing consultation: A step towards professional autonomy

Research
By Nathalie Warchol
English

Nursing consultation is an innovative system, even if this way of taking responsibility was proposed as early as 1970 by stomal therapy nurses. Its current development is in close relation to the demographic situation, the progress of professional skills, and economic constraints. This work examines professional autonomy in the practice of nursing consultation, something little studied until now. This question is examined through the concepts of autonomy and responsibility. More precisely, it is studied in relation to the attributes of the concept of autonomy, which are: deciding for oneself, controlling one’s environment, a state of awareness, and managing one’s dependencies. Thirteen semi-directing discussions have been conducted in five hospitals by nurses who practice consultation in different specializations. The remarks of these professionals are analyzed by themes, according to the attributes of the concept of autonomy. It turns out that, from the professional point of view, nursing consultation offers a certain autonomy. As a matter of fact, the nurse, alone in front of the patient, takes initiatives, makes decisions, makes choices, and takes responsibility for them. In case of difficulty, she does not hesitate to appeal to those with resources. This practice requires a perfect knowledge of oneself and of institutional rules. It also requires some skills developed in the concerned specialization. Through the discourse of “consulting” nurses, each attribute of the central concept of autonomy is represented. Nursing consultation, through this study, concretely expresses the notions of autonomy and of responsibility inherent in its context of activity.

Keywords

  • nursing consultation
  • autonomy
  • responsibility
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