Page 47 - Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring

NU RSING: THE PHILO S OPHY A ND SCIENCE OF C A R I N G , revI s e d ed I t I o n
This level of evolved Being/Ontological presence is now ethically
required for any professional engaged in caring-healing. Perhaps this
requirement was and has always been present in the tradition of heal-
ing professions, but somewhere along the way professional education
and practices took a detour from the very foundation of our shared
humanity. A return to a focus on Ontological Competencies, within
the evolved notion of Caring Literacy, seems essential to balance and
carry out the pervasive technological competencies, helping to make
these skills and forms of Being part of the requirements for nursing
education and practice.

ExAmPLES OF (ONTOLOGICAL) CARING LITERACY
I have only begun to identify some of these so-called Ontological
Competencies for cultivating Caring Literacy (Watson 1999). (For
more exploration of these ideas within the context of Nightingale,
see Watson 1999:chapter 14.) In addition, an emerging project from
the International Caritas Consortium (ICC) is focused on Caring
Literacy and Caritas Literacy, seeking more and more specificity in
the knowledge, skills, and ways of being to manifest such literacy. A
working document is found in the Addenda as well as on the Web site
www.caritasconsortium.org.*
In the meantime, I have identified the following general guideline
dimensions as examples of “ontological competencies” that facilitate
Caring Literacy. These directions have emerged from my work over

* A subgroup from the ICC has a current, ongoing working draft of Caring/
Caritas Literacy. It is found in Addendum III.
This latest ICC document on Caritas Literacy is based on meetings,
dialogue, and previous work among the subgroup members: J. D’Alfonso,
Scottsdale Health, Scottsdale, Arizona; J. Duffy, The Catholic University
of America, Washington, D.C.; Gene Rigotti, InovaHealth, Fairfax,
Virginia; J. Watson, University of Colorado–Denver and Health Sciences,
Denver, Colorado; and Terri Woodward, The Children’s Hospital, Denver,
Colorado. The items marked with a check on this document represent
items on the Caring Assessment Tool ©-Version IV (Duffy, Hoskins, and
Seifert 2007).

24