Nurses’ social responsibility and health system strengthening for equity in low- and middle-income countries

Corporate social responsibility has received substantial attention from researchers in the business and organizational literature. However, this concept is equally desirable in nursing care, as nurses must realize their responsibility towards society in the effective delivery of healthcare services. Employing the concept analysis method of Walker and Avant, 128 journal articles published in the PubMed journal during 2000 to 2025 were selected based on the inclusion criteria. Based on this model, the study proposes a framework for nurses' social responsibility (NSR), especially in the context of developing countries. This framework coins three important dimensions of social responsibility that include NSR towards their profession, community, and patients. Based on the three dimensions of the NSR, this study proposes six major principles that govern this framework. It also presents four strategies for successful implementation of this framework. This framework also outlines certain challenges and mitigation strategies to effectively counter these challenges. Potential outcomes of the proposed framework are discussed, followed by a call for action to nurses, nursing organizations, governments, and the community at large.