Donna Frost

Concept analysis 57 2 Concluding remarks Some nurses manage to practice very effectively and in ways that seem to shine; they make a real difference for their patients and the families of patients and they inspire their colleagues. They are recognised as the kind of nurses others should strive to emulate. Practice of this kind has been termed ‘professional artistry’ and the current understandings and usage of this term have been presented in this chapter. While Schön ( 1983 ) used the term professional artistry to denote a particular way of viewing or conceptualizing practice and the practice world and a way of doing or practisingwithin the practiceworld, this concept analysis shows that understandings and usage of the concept have changed and developed among leading scholars in this field. Professional artistry is now viewed as a way of being and becoming as a person in professional practice, as well as a way of perceiving and acting within the practice world. Insights about professional artistry in nursing have arisen from studies into other phenomena and have tended to illuminate only certain aspects of professional artistry. A holistic inquiry into the nature and facilitation of professional artistry in nursing has not yet been presented in the literature. The philosophical and theoretical basis for framing such an investigation into professional artistry is presented in the following chapter.