Expanded Awareness as a Way to Meet the Challenges in Care that is Economically Driven and Focused on Illness – A Nordic Perspective

In Sweden as well as in many other countries, nursing and caring science exist in a health care context that is characterised by increasing reliance on the economics of diagnoses and measureable symptoms. This presents a challenge for caring science to defend person - and lifeworld-centred care. Nursing as a caring science must make clear its position in modern health care. The objective of this paper is to show how health oriented nursing, grounded in caring science, advocates expanded nursing care. The paper revisits the relationship between nursing and caring science, specifically the insights from new caring science research that emphasises carers’ capacity for expanded awareness. In addition, the ever-present question of evidence is addressed.