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Bennett 0 (1999) Advocacy in nursing. Nursing Standard. 14, 11, 40-41. Date of acceptance September 29 1999.
The role of nurse as advocate is fraught with potential dangers, for both the patient and the nurse. Owen Bennett argues that until there is a universally accepted definition, this will continue to be the case.
keywords
Patients' rights
Ethics
These key words are based on the subject headings from the British Nursing Index.
This article has been subject to double-blind review.
DURING THE late 1970s, advocacy became a significant issue within nursing in the US. In the UK, by the late 1980s, the nurse had been identified as 'the fundamental advocate' (Stutor 1993).
Concern within nursing revolves around the need to clarify whether advocacy is the nurse's role, and if so, what skills are required. Few have considered the reality of the implications on nursing and nurses acting within the true advocacy role (Mallick and McHale 1995).
Definitions and required skills
For a nurse to act safely, it is necessary to have established definitions within which to work. The advocacy debate illustrates the need to define and understand the term before a conclusion can be made about whether it is the nurse's role to advocate (Gates 1994). Without a universal understanding and definition, the nurse is placed in a vulnerable position, both professionally under the Code of Conduct (UKCC 1992), and by employment contracts.
The Royal College of Nursing (1992) defines advocacy as: '...a process of acting for, or on behalf of someone who is unable to do so for themselves'. It is defined by the Compact Oxford English Dictionary (OED 1991) as: 'One who pleads, intercedes or speaks for another'. These definitions reflect a genuine common desire by nurses in caring for patients, who often feel particularly vulnerable, and differ from a legal definition where one is pleading on the pretext of having been invited to do so. Nurses are not invited by patients to care for them, but have a privileged relationship that infers a trust upon the nurse that he or she will act in their interests, making a good assessment of needs. This is not the same as assuming that patients want the nurse to act as their...