ABSTRACT
Patients and their families are clear about the value they place on the relational aspects of care. How the nurse or student relates to them as they give the care is as important as the care itself (Firth-Cozens and Cornwell 2009; Pearcey 2010; Smith et al. 2010; Edinburgh Napier University and NHS Lothian 2012; Planetree 2012; Dewar 2013; Dewar and Nolan 2013). Compassionate care is not easily dened and measured and there has been much discussion and debate about whether it can be taught (Bradshaw 2009; Shea and Lionis 2010; Adamson and Dewar 2011; Dewar 2011; Curtis 2013). Some people believe that compassion is something that is inherent in a person and cannot be taught (Barker 2013) while others identify that it is a virtue to be cultivated (Bradshaw 2009). Others suggest that we cannot teach compassion but can help students to develop the character and skills that enable them to care compassionately (McLean 2012). The Leadership in Compassionate Care action research programme was developed in response to concerns about the human elements of healthcare practice (Edinburgh Napier University and NHS Lothian 2012). Throughout the programme, health care staff expressed sadness that research such as this was necessary, as they believed that it should be inherent in what they do. This suggests an assumption that the care people experience is compassionate and that those who give that care have the knowledge and skill to provide it. However, we have seen that this is not always the case (Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Public Inquiry 2013). Similarly the modern context of healthcare is very complex and the expectations of care delivery have changed dramatically; care is increasingly focused on individual needs and preferences; scal restrictions and monitoring in healthcare, increasing complexity of treatments and care; waiting time targets and rapid throughput of patients within in-patient care to identify but a few (Youngson 2012; Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Public Inquiry 2013; Maben et al. 2009). It is within this backdrop that we need to consider supporting the development of compassionate caring knowledge and skills within undergraduate nurses.
