The community nurse and the reality of care for people, families and community. From assistencialism to nurse care

From the assistance to the attention of the community nurse, there have been different and gradual mutations in the nursing profession adapting to the change in the epidemiological pattern that society has experienced over the years. This, together with the different cultural orders and their legalities, and the complexity of the care, gives rise to the paradigm changes produced throughout our recent professional history, which has facilitated the necessary context for the nurse epistemological evolution, promoting not only a change of training but also the perfect identification of nurses as professionals. It can be affirmed that the reality of this long road from assistencialism to nursing care is the product of multiple circumstances linked to the cultural, professional, legal, social and personal order leading to a change in the health professions in Spain.