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Exercising Nursing Essential and Effective Freedom in Behalf of Social Justice: A Humanizing Model
Donna J Perry1, Danny G Willis, Kenneth S Peterson
1University of Massachusetts Worcester Graduate School of Nursing (Drs Perry and Peterson); and Boston College William F. Connell School of Nursing, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts (Drs Willis and Grace).
Abstract:
This article expands upon previous work by the authors to develop a model of nursing essential and effective freedom to facilitate nursing action in behalf of social justice. The article proposes that while social justice is rooted in nursing's ontological, epistemological, and moral foundations, the discipline's social justice mandate is constrained by its historical and contemporary location within an institutionalized medical paradigm. We present a model of nursing "essential" and "effective" freedom based on the philosophy of Bernard Lonergan to illustrate how nursing can transcend these barriers. This humanizing model is illustrated through personal narratives of the authors.
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