Abstract
Profession or vocation? This question has plagued registered nursing for many decades. Nurses and nursing leaders have discussed, debated, written, and even argued regarding this question. One definitive answer to this question comes when registered nursing matures, and begins to take direct accountability for nursing care provided as well as the outcomes achieved. Nursing morbidity and mortality reviews is one way in which this can be accomplished. This article reviews the importance of nursing morbidity and mortality reviews, how nursing, and patients, will benefit, as well as ways these reviews might answer the question-nursing, profession or vocation? When individual nurses take ownership of their practice, and hold their peers accountable for the care provided as well as the outcomes, that is when registered nursing is participating in patient care as a mature healthcare team member-a professional. The only ones that could suffer as a result of nursing morbidity and mortality reviews in the emergency department are sickness, disease, injury, and death.