title: Doctors and nurses once more--an alternative to May.
abstract: It is argued that promissory obligation arising from the contract of employment offers a simpler and less contentious explanation and justification of the doctor-nurse relationship at work, than does May's proposal of second-order reasons. The second-order reason position is rejected as the norm for that relationship, and in the exceptional case, where it is admitted, shared employee status is identified as primary validator of a doctor as locus of rational authority. Finally, a brief case is made for a more precise vocabulary to describe the doctor-nurse relationship, as a contribution to more collegial relations.
authors.affiliation: Mid and West Wales College of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College, Carmarthen, Dyfed.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nash
mesh_terms: D032982:Contracts; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D028681:Moral Obligations; D010347:Patient Care Planning / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D010819:Physician's Role; D012941:Social Responsibility