Evolution of a Conceptual Model: Ambulatory Care Nursing

The growth of ambulatory care nursing as a profession and how it is delivered has evolved over time. The specialty’s theoretical professional growth began in 1998 with the development of the first conceptual model. Conceptualizing professional ambulatory care nursing has been an exciting challenge for the past 2 decades. The journey participants included multiple registered nurses from numerous settings whose intellectual efforts and contributions advanced professional ambulatory care practice to this present state of conceptual understanding. Future leaders will continue the journey to keep this specialty practice clearly delineated conceptually, building on the work already accomplished.