The system of nursing in Chile: Insights from a systems theory perspective

Ricardo A. Ayala*, Tomas F. Koch, Helga B. Messing

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

Nursing is possible owing to a series of intricate systemic relations. Building on an established tradition of sociological research, we critically analysed the nursing profession in Chile, with an emphasis on its education system, in the light of social systems theory. The paper's aim was to explore basic characteristics of nursing education as a system, so as to outline its current evolution. Drawing on recent developments in nursing, we applied an empirical framework to identify and discuss functionally differentiated systems that are relevant to nursing and observe communications between them. We found that the dynamics of nursing as a whole develop from communications with closely related systems, including the nursing profession and the education system more broadly. While the discipline (as a system of representations) strives to control the profession (as an applied occupational field), the necessities of practicing nurses imply other forces mediating the making of the profession, a process framed by market dynamics in education and health.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere12260
JournalNursing Inquiry
Volume26
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2019

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Nursing

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