Abstract

The nature of nursing has been the subject of discussion for the last 10–15 years. One reason is that in many countries the education of nurses has moved from teaching hospitals to the academies. This move has given rise to the question of the scientific basis for nursing knowledge.Lately, the content of nursing knowledge has become a principal focus in the work on developing expert systems for nursing. Thus theories of knowledge and the nature of new technology are of great concern to the future of the nursing profession. The basic assumptions underlying a chosen theory of knowledge will determine the development and use of advanced technology in the future