Nursing Leadership A brief review of Dr. Patricia Benner's theory on the transition from novice nurse to expert nurse will provide the grounding for the three resources selected for the reference list. Brenner held strong beliefs about the validity of skills and knowledge gained through experience, and introduced the idea that an expert level of nursing is achieved as patient care is provided over time -- and as that knowledge is folded into the formal training that nurses receive when they earn a degree in nursing. Benner is famously known for asserting that a nurse could "gain knowledge and skills (knowing how) without ever learning the theory (knowing that). Dr. Benner posited a three-pronged approach to knowledge in the applied disciplines of nursing specifically -- and medicine in general -- that entails extending practical knowledge through research and clinical experience. Dr. Benner asserted that a nurse could not truly achieve expert status in the profession without having acquired considerable experience as a nurse. Several attributes are associated with the expert level of nursing by Benner, including the following: 1) An expert nurse "no longer relies on principles, rules, or guidelines to connect situations and determine actions;" 2) an expert nurse "has much more background of experience;" 3) an expert nurse "has an intuitive grasp of clinical situations;" and, 4) the "performance [of an expert nurse] is now fluid, flexible, and highly-proficient" ("Nursing Theories").

The practice problem I propose to explore is a nursing leadership issue about how best to support nurses to as they transition from proficient to expert through personalized definitions of nursing expertise. I am particularly interested in this topic because the nursing profession has become globalized with cross-border recruiting of nurses increasingly common.
Source: From novice to expert: Patricia E. Benner. (2013, September). Nursing theories: A companion to nursing theories and models [Website]. Retrieved http://www.currentnursing.com/nursing_theory/Patricia_Benner_From_Novice_to_Expert.html

References 3

Gobet, F. And Chassy, P. (2008, January). Towards an alternative to Benner's theory of expert intuition in nursing: A discussion paper. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 45(1), 129-39. Retrieved http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17337269

Abstract

Several authors have highlighted the role of intuition in expertise. In particular, a large amount of data has been collected about intuition in expert nursing, and intuition plays an important role in the influential theory of nursing expertise developed by Benner [1984. From Novice to Expert: Excellence and Power in Clinical Nursing Practice. Addison-Wesley, Menlo Park, CA]. We discuss this theory, and highlight both data that support it…