AIM The aim of this paper is to briefly describe the prevalence of mental illness within the general health care population and the implications for the nursing profession. PRIMARY ARGUMENT The nursing profession espouses holism as its philosophy of care. This philosophy embraces the essential interaction between the biological, psychological and social aspects of each individual. The mainstr...

The December issue of Nursing and Midwifery Studies Journal contains an interesting article about factors influencing men entering the nursing profession, and provides an understanding of the challenges they face. The authors believe that although the number of men entering the nursing profession is on the rise, yet there are still many challenges in front of our male colleagues in this female ...

This paper begins by exploring the principles underpinning 'reflective practice'. The impact of reflection on the nursing profession is discussed, with particular attention being paid to nursing education. The value of reflective practice in nursing has been subject to considerable debate. This paper reviews both the claimed strengths and shortcomings of 'reflection', particularly in relation t...

The process of designing a quilt became a metaphor of developing a caring relationship for a nursing student as she came to understand caring theory and its application to practice. A clinical experience combined with reflective journaling and aesthetic expression in the form of a quilt gave the student a way of understanding and concretizing a relationship. With quilts representing comfort, wa...

Profession influences healthcare workers' hand hygiene (HH) adherence. Greek nursing and medical students were surveyed to determine if there were cross-disciplinary differences in HH education, assessment, knowledge, beliefs and practices. Nursing students' HH knowledge was significantly higher than that of medical students. Nursing students reported significantly more positive HH practices an...

Hospital nursing directors in Wales have called for an evaluation of the nurses' training programme amid fears that growing numbers of students are leaving the profession after qualifying.