Back to the bedpans: the debates over preregistration nursing education in England.
AIMS OF THE PAPER: This paper aims to examine the recent debates in both the general and professional press over the future of preregistration education in England, in the light of the sociological literature on the professions, and the nature of nursing knowledge. The literature on the Project 2000 reforms, although by now well worn, will also be discussed briefly. BACKGROUND/RATIONALE: The bulk of nursing education in England moved into higher education in the 1990s. Unlike other higher education in England, it is not funded by the Department for Education and Employment, but commissioned by the National Health Service (NHS), to which it is expected to be highly responsive. DESIGN/METHODS: This paper is based on a brief literature survey, plus policy documents and media reports. FINDINGS/CONCLUSION: It will be argued that the process of professionalization is not a straightforward one, and has its potential for reversals of fortune, and that nursing occupies a marginal place in higher education in England.