Nursing in the 21st Century.
The 16th International Philosophy of Nursing Conference will be held on 10th – 12th September 2012 at the University of Leeds, UK. The theme for this year’s conference, held in association with the International Philosophy of Nursing Society (IPONS), is ‘Nursing in the 21st Century’.
The practice of nursing has changed in response to a number of external and internal drivers such as government policy, Professional Regulatory Body requirements, the impact of globalisation and the current economic upheaval. Advanced practitioners with far reaching skills are a feature of modern nursing and, in some countries, there is a substantial increase in the number of non qualified assistant practitioners. Programmes that prepare students to become registered practitioners are mostly at undergraduate level and in some instances post graduate level, and it is not uncommon for practising nurses to hold Masters Degrees and Doctorates. But what are the effects of these and other changes on what might be thought of as the traditional values of nursing such as caring, maintaining dignity and individualised care?
Papers presented at the 16th International Philosophy of Nursing Conference seek to address the meaning of nursing in the 21st century. We will discuss what is understood by the practice of nursing in the 21st century, how we may describe nursing in 2012, and explore what the future holds.
Further information on plenary speakers, and how to submit abstracts for concurrent sessions, will be available in the very near future.
