Professional Autonomy of Occupational Health Nurses in the United States

Abstract

Autonomy, the freedom to practice independently and to exercise professional judgment in practice activities, is a central element for professional practice. Numerous articles and studies have reported on professional autonomy in general nursing practice; however, professional autonomy for occupational health nurses has not been explored in depth. This article advances the development of a body of knowledge relative to professional autonomy in the practice of occupational health nursing. This article also provides an overview of professional autonomy in nursing practice; discusses the nature and importance of professional autonomy in the occupational health practice setting; reports findings from a seminal study of occupational health nurse autonomy; and addresses professional autonomy in the context of collaborative practice.

An International Comparison of Professional Behaviors among Nurse Leaders in the U.S.A. and Japan

“…Autonomy, the condition of being independent and having responsibility, authority, and accountability, is an essential component for professional practice [25]. Nurses at the master's level have demonstrated the highest scores in autonomy, and nurses in administrative roles showed clear role expectations and correspondingly higher scores on autonomy [23].…”

The Development of the Attitude Toward Professional Autonomy Scale for Nurses in Japan

“…In other words, professional autonomy is defined as an individual’s freedom to make decisions within the domain of their profession and to act accordingly (Batey & Lewis, 1982; Varjus, Leino-Kilpi, & Suominen, 2011). Alternatively, professional autonomy is the freedom to practice independently and to exercise professional judgment in practice activities (Thompson, 2012). From a review of the literature, we confirmed that the core features of autonomy are one’s right or freedom to exercise control over one’s activities.…”

Turkısh Validity And Reliability Of Attitude Scale Towards Professional Autonomy For Nurses

“…Tüm bunlarla birlikte hemşireliğe özgü uygulamalarda oldukça kıymetli olan bireye saygı ve önem, holistik bakım, otonomi, alturizm, sosyal adalet kavramları hem mesleğin profesyonel değerleri arasında yer almakta hem de bu kavramların değeri gün geçtikçe artmaktadır. Hemşireliğe özgü profesyonel değerler, hemşirelik girişimleri için temel oluşturarak; hemşirelerin bakım ve tedavisinden sorumlu oldukları bireyler ve toplum ile iletişim ve etkileşiminin güçlenmesini sağlamaktadır (4,5).…”