Freedom to Practise: The Development of Patient-centred Nursing

Traditional values and attitudes still influence current nursing practice although the role of the nurse at all levels is changing. Nurses are under great pressure to improve the quality of patient care and to make their service more responsive to individual needs. The process of this change is not without its own problems and until now, little guidance has been offered to nurses on how to implement patient-centred care within current clinical practice. Drawing on some unique action research with many real life examples, 'Freedom to Practise' identifies practical strategies for making step-by-step changes and improvements to patient care irrespective of specialty.


· A comprehensive insight into the changing culture of ward life
· Helps the nurse to analyse current practice and effectively implement changes
· Presents strategies for the development of patient-centred practice on the ward
· An essential guide for nurses of all levels who wish to develop their careers in nursing



'Within the context of my thirty plus years of experience in this particular field, I have never read a more thorough, more interesting, or more practical discussion of the practice development process.' Marie Manthey.

* ·A comprehensive insight into the changing culture of ward life *
· Helps the nurse to analyse current practice and effectively implement changes *
· Presents strategies for the development of patient-centred practice on the ward

"... Freedom to Practise (Binnie and Titchen, 1999), the best book on nursing I have read for a long time." Jane Salvage, Nursing Times, November 2000
the context of my thirty years plus of experience in this particular field, I have never read a more thorough, more interesting, or more practical discussion of the practice development process." Marie Manthey
there are nurses who continue to grapple with the problem of how a patient-centred service can be successfully developed and for me, the most influential is Alison Binnie. Last year Alison Binnie and Angie Titchen published the results of an action research study on the development of patient-centred care in their book "Freedom to Practice". This book motivated, inspired and excited me because it describes the logistical problems of changing nursing practice that reflect my own experiences. It tells it like it really is." Eileen Shepherd RGN DipN, editorial advisor to the Nursing Times, Nursing Times, Vol 96, No 4., January 2000
aren't many (if any) nursing books that I have read from cover to cover but this one definitely fits into the category of: 'If only this had been written sooner.' The authors provide a valuable insights into the challenging role of the ward leader and they describe and analyse the experience of developing a patient-centred approach to nursing." Jonathan Webster, Nursing Times, Vol. 97, No.9, March 2001