Includes bibliographical references(p. [603-605]) and index.

Contents: Exploring professional nursing:The professional nurse -- The history behind the development of professional nursing -- Contextual, philosophical, and ethical elements of professional nursing -- Establishing helping and healing relationships -- Patterns of knowing and nursing science -- Nursing models and theories -- Professional nursing processes -- The health process and self-care of the nurse -- The changing health care context: Health care delivery systems -- Developing and using nursing knowledge through research -- Multicultural issues in professional practice -- Professional nurse accountability -- Environmental and global health -- Community health -- Informatics and technology in nursing practice -- Professional nursing roles: Nursing approaches to client systems -- The professional nurse's role in teaching and learning -- Leadership and management in professional nursing -- Quality improvement and professional nursing -- The professional nurse's role in public policy -- Glimpsing the future of professional nursing: Career options for professional nurses -- Development of a professional nursing career -- Shaping the future of nursing --