Power and change in health care: challenge for nursing

This article proposes the need for consideration of status and power issues in nursing research, in theory, and at all levels of nursing education. Including the concept of power in nursing curricula will better prepare nurses to participate in social and political decisions affecting health care. By recognizing the role nurses have played, often in the face of opposition, nursing students will gain a sense of the potential power and strength of nurses. Curricular reform and revision of nursing theories to emphasize the sociopolitical context of nursing may change the socialization of student nurses by stressing autonomy, independence, and confidence. These changes may have a positive impact on recruitment, retention, and on efforts to change the public's perception of nursing.