The first emergence of the concept of empowerment in health care can be traced to the Alma Ata Declaration of 1977 (Falk-Rafael, 2001). In that document health was recognised as an issue of social justice, a fundamental human right. Following that empowerment became the central ideology of the "new public health" (Grace, 1991) aligning with the Ottawa Charter's definition of health promotion as a "process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve their health."

The word Power is derived from the Latin verb "potere" (to be able). Simply, power can be defined as that which enables one to achieve their g

It is through the concept of maximising the quality of an individual's life that the consequences of empowerment for nursing practice can be illustrated. During illness people become vulnerable and unsure of their world, it is during this time that they become dis-empowered. It is important for a nurse to understand their patient and to provide care that is centred around the unique needs of that individual (Cox, 2000). The empowering nurse will often spend many hours with a patient building a trusting and collaborative relationship. However empowerment is not easy and is something that has to be worked at particularly in a health care culture where it has been traditionally accepted that patients would relinquish power to those who knew how best to help them (Lutz and Bowers, 2000).

Regardless of definition it appears to be generally accepted that patients need to be in control of their own lives. Empowerment may take on different forms for different patients depending upon their circumstances and ability or desire to be empowered (Davidhizar and Dowd, 1999). Ultimately the desired result is for the individual to achieve a sense of control and direction that enables them to attain a better quality of life (Aoki, 2002).

Empowerment in a general nursing context is far from a simple matter of encouraging a patient to take control of their life. In all cases it is important that an individual approach be taken and consideration given to social, physical and cultural constraints both in relation to the nurse and the patient. However one thing does appear clear that in order for a nurse to empower a patient they must develop a collaborative and trusting relationship that aims to provide the patient with acce

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