Key aspects of nursing practice that underpin certain discourses: an integrative review

OBJECTIVES: to synthesize the key aspects of nursing upon which some discourses that shape its development are based. METHODS: a two-stage search strategy was designed. First, searches were conducted in specific databases focusing on nursing literature. Subsequently, studies addressing the objective of this review were identified and screened. The techniques used included following citations, searching for subsequent publications, and using reference lists to conduct a reverse search. RESULTS: thirty-one texts were analyzed and categorized into four dimensions: Professional autonomy; Patriarchal gender issues; The Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery; and Curriculum reforms. CONCLUSIONS: the aspects summarized in this review, through the principles they promote or their underlying messages, have either contributed to the professional and disciplinary development of nursing, or conversely, have hindered nursing from being recognized by society as a professional discipline.