Introduction

This introduction states the overall principle of this book, namely, that being a ‘good’ nurse involves an ethical dimension. Understood as a professional activity, nursing requires not only requisite medical knowledge but also certain dispositions – or virtues – such as compassion, care and kindness. The aim of this introduction is twofold. First, it provides summary details of the aims, research questions and methods of the research project conducted by the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues drawn upon in the book – Virtuous Practice in Nursing. Second, it sets out the structure of the book, including the focus and broad content of each of the chapters which follow.