top of page

Benner, Nursing Practice


Benner is the author of two major publications, From Novice to Expert and Nursing Practice. Both publications were written with the goal of teaching how to transition from being a novice nurse, to showing care for the clients, assuring that theory is used only after practical knowledge has been applied, in other words, being an expert nurse. Benner strongly believes that there are specific types of morals that are at work when nursing that must be applied above theoretical expertise (i.e., personal hands-on experience). For instance, Nursing is “a caring practice…. guided by the moral art and ethics of care” (p. 173). Ethics must come before theory, and the patient must be cared for in a responsible way led by practical knowledge and understanding of the field. Practical knowledge will need to come above education because it is the best evidence of efficiency. The nurse that wants to be an expert and transition must be willing to log all their experiences, learn practical knowledge from them and teach others.

Benner emphasizes that the person as the “participant” is present, effortlessly living through their illness, but living it nevertheless (p. 173). Therefore, the person is also very much aware of what is happening in their surroundings, they have a “predefined” notion of what it means to be cared for by a nurse, and interprets their own situation based on how the nurse plays his or her role (p. 173). A person is limited by their own conceptualization of the situation, their own paradigm that makes them the lead in their own recovery process, concepts based on their lifetime interpretations and historical experiences. The nurse can only help and care, be responsible and ethical and treat them like the human beings they are with rights to fair treatment, but the nurse cannot shape their conception of life, the process, “health, illness”, death or recovery (p. 173). This is up to the person, and their wellbeing depends on how they view the process.

Health is a state of being that can be physically assessed. Well-being is the feeling of fulfillment with life, as is. Health is an ongoing set of symptoms that change from time to time and must be worked on step-by-step by caring, educated, and responsible nurses. Health, therefore, is what could “be assessed at the physical level”, as opposed to well-being, which is what can be assessed at the mental level. In other words, health is the set of symptoms while well-being is the feeling of “wholeness” by the person regardless of health or disease at the “physical level” (p.174).

According to Benner, the environment is replaced by the situation because it involves a more social cluster of support rather than an environmental one (i.e., earth, nature, water, etc.). The situation is defined by the person’s conceptualization of the environment in which he or she is currently in. For instance, being in the hospital, a person could believe that it is the ‘worse’ thing that could have happened to them, even though the situation is not that serious. On the other hand, a person could be dying and still experiencing joy and bliss because of their perspective on the issue and the care of the nurse. The situation, then, is defined as the combination of the person’s “past, present and future” and their conceived notions and “interpretations” of it (p. 174).


Featured Posts
Check back soon
Once posts are published, you’ll see them here.
Recent Posts
Archive
Search By Tags
Follow Us
  • Facebook Basic Square
  • Twitter Basic Square
  • Google+ Basic Square
bottom of page