Taking Control over Nursing Practice

A few weeks ago I had a conversation with my best friend who is an expert clinical nurse and a successful CNO, about control over nursing practice. She said, "What does that mean?" This article is written to create dialogue around what control over nursing practice truly is, why we should exercise this control, and how to develop it. Before we embark on this topic, let us review what nursing practice is and what it is not. Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis (nursing diagnosis) and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations. (1)