untitled

allowed to understand and anticipate the

ever-changing person from moment to moment.

The purpose of ‘knowing the person’ is de-

rived from the nurse’s intention to nurse,

and the continuing appreciation of per-

sons as ever-changing, never static, and

who are dynamic human beings.

The purpose of knowing the person is derived from

the nurse’s intention to nurse (Purnell and Locsin,

2000)—a continuing appreciation of the person as

ever-changing, never static, and one who is a dy-

namic human being. The information derived from

knowing the person is only relevant for the mo-

ment, for the persons’ “state” can change moment

While it is appreciated that nurses practice nurs-
ing from a theoretical perspective rather than from
tradition or from blind obedience to instructions
and directions, nevertheless, processes of nursing
that are derived from extant theories of nursing
continue to dictate and prescribe how a nurse
should nurse. Contrary to this popular conception,
“knowing persons” as a model of practice using
technologies of nursing achieves for the nurse an
appreciation of expertise and the knowledge of per-
sons in the moment. Technologies allow nurses to
know about the person only as much as what the
person permits the nurse to know. It can be true
that technologies detect the anatomical, physiolog-
ical, chemical, and/or biological conditions of a
person. This identifies the person as a living human
being. However, with knowing persons, the nurse is

CHAPTER 24 Technological Competency as Caring and the Practice of Knowing Persons as Whole 385

Calls for

Nursing:

Affirmation,

Support,

Celebration of

who is person?,

and what is person?

Responses to

Calls for Nursing:

Sustaining and

enhancing who is

person and what is

person?

KNOWING

PERSONS: THE

PRACTICE OF

NURSING

What is person?

Who is person?

Through the lens

of Nursing as

Caring. Using

technologies

competently to

appreciate persons

as whole in the

moment

MULTIPLE WAYS

OF KNOWING

Such as

Empirical

Personal

Ethical

Aesthetic

FIGURE 24–2 Framework for nursing.