Technical, Practical, and Emancipatory Reflection for Practicing Holistically

Abstract

The intention to practice holistically brings with it many complexities in deciding how to manage the contingencies of practice in such a way as to embody the central tenets of holistic nursing. The challenge of making sense of daily work procedures, interpersonal interactions, and issues of power can be eased by attention to reflective processes designed for nursing practice. Reflective nurses who practice holistically optimize the likelihood of thinking systematically through practice issues as they encounter the world of nursing and the people and events within it. This article is an exploration of the phenomena of holism and reflection as they relate to technical, practical, and emancipatory reflective processes used by nurses in their daily work.