Image and Voice of Nursing

Many things influence one’s personal perceptions of the great profession called nursing. According to the American Nurses Association, nursing is defined as “protection, promotion, and abilities, prevention of illness and injury,

It is a common fact that nurses are not given the respect they deserve for the high level of knowledge they demonstrate to patients (Hoeve, Jansen & Roodbol, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to show how the negative portrayals of nurses in the media can result in a distorted image from the public. The components of this paper talk about the negative image of the nurse due to the lack of consistency in the media that the public is viewing, as well as the shortened staff and the public’s poor judgement on the profession.

However, Florence Nightingale changed nursing practice, where she was commonly referred to as lady of the lamp (Finkelman and Kenner, 2013). Nightingale established a domestic mode of nursing training in which education of nurses was about the information of character at the Saint Thomas Hospital (Carol, 2011). According to Nightingale the tasks of every nurse was not only to care for the sick but to act as a public agent of moral reform, and to weaken the power of medical men (Nelson, 2010). Rafferty (1996) argue that, nursing

Media has an immense effect on societal views, and cultural norms. It is not surprising then, that media influences the public view of the nursing profession (McHugh, 2012). Negative portrayal of nursing in media is detrimental, these stereotypes undermine the profession which leads to less resources and a negative image of nursing among nursing students (Anonymous, 2010). For these reasons the image of nursing in media is something that needs to be explored, to understand how the nursing image in media affects both public and personal perception of the profession (Anonymous, 2010). Nurse Jackie is a controversial television show about an Emergency room nurse named Jackie (Hudis & Zisk, 2009). In this series Jackie is middle aged, married, mother of two, and while she is depicted as being loving with her family, she is having an affair with the pharmacist for her department. As a nurse Jackie is caring, and compassionate towards her patients, while also exhibiting unethical and inappropriate behaviours both within and outside of her working environment (Sorrell, 2009). Jackie is a complex character who exhibits both positive and negative nursing behaviours.

Image. The media diverts the attention of the young adults who may be interested in nursing by focusing on the challenges that nurse’s face rather than the aspects of the career that are rewarding.

My definition of nursing is that of someone who genuinely cares about the well-being of others and helps heal those who are ill. Nursing is both an art and a science because in order to understand a patients diagnosis you must know the pathophysiology and basic lab values. The science part of nursing allows us to make judgments on medication orders doctors prescribe, procedures, and practices. Art is also apart of nursing because as nurses we must have intuition, compassion, and warmth towards our patients. It is what allows us to therapeutically communicate with our patients. A person can have the science part, but not master the art and therefore, that person may be uncompassionate towards a patient. I have see nurses in clinical settings

Nursing as a profession is often portrayed by the media in demeaning ways. “Nurses have often been unfairly and unrealistically portrayed as “battle axes” or psychologically compromised. And that’s if they are written into the script at all.” (Berkowitz, 2014). “They are often portrayed as physician helpers, not the highly skilled independent clinicians that we know they are.” (Berkowitz, 2014).

However, in the 19th century flounce Nightingale changed nursing practice, where she was commonly referred to as lady of the lamp.(Finkelman and Kenner,2013). Nightingale established a domestic mode of nursing training in which education of nurses was about the information of character at the Saint Thomas Hospital (Carol, 2011). According to Nightingale the tasks of every nurse was not only to care for the sick but to act as a public agent of moral reform, and to weaken the power of medical men (Nelson, 2010). Rafferty (1996) argue that, nursing education established in the 19th centuries was a sign of inspirational moral values and virtues, which persist that, modern education of nursing lies in the middle of professional work that can dwell in an essential point in the influential of occupational culture and politics of

The media is known to have immense influences on the public perception from body images to what kind of car people should buy. And the nursing image is not immune to these influences. What Hollywood transmits to the public about nurse’s works much like an advertising industry. Television has represented nurses in varying degrees and not all of them are flattering. We have been portrayed as

Nursing has greatly changed throughout the years and many aspects. The nursing profession has had to overcome obstacles pertaining to public perception, education, and different issues within the field. These three aspects have been the most influential on the profession because they have all helped evolve and shape the profession and image. A negative image does not persuade others to join the occupation, view it positively, or treat nurses with respect. Conversely, a positive image has proven to influence the profession strongly with incentives to join and to be viewed respectively. A Hisory of American Nursing, Trends and Eras by Deborah Judd and Kathleen Sitzman further elaborate on the influential trends which shaped nursing image in the past and present.

Negative and unflattering stereotypes about nurses such as the sexy nurse, the physician’s handmaiden, glamorous hair, short skirt, and heavy makeup only damage the profession and drive candidates male or female away from the profession. Who wants to be part of a profession,

The historical image of the nurse in the white uniform with a cap, has military discipline and a stiff upper lip, still holds true to numerous individuals today. Yet, the nursing profession and image is changing drastically. Transparency and accountability in healthcare, higher levels of education for registered nurses, public perception and various types of media influence what the nursing image is today. Is the nursing image relevant to safe, competent practice? This paper will explore what the regulations of the Saskatchewan Registered Nursing Association (SRNA) state, what public opinion is, and what the media portrays with regard to nursing image and care. Interviews from professionals, the public, and patients will provide insight

The folk image of nursing is one that is seen in movies or read about in books. This is the image of the medicine man or village healer. The knowledge in this type of nursing was handed down one generation at a time and primarily cared for the children and elderly of the social groups. The religious image of nursing is from a time when nuns or religious ambassadors took over the primary responsibilities of taking care of the poor, sick and elderly. Not too far a concept from this was the servant image of nursing which was marked by a time when the undesirables of society were charged with caring for the sick and elderly. During times of war, the need for nurses increased and

Throughout time the world’s image on Nursing has evolved rapidly. Nurses work in an extremely stressful environment and must carry out their duties in a professional manner to ensure proper procedures are followed throughout their routines. They also have a considerable amount of responsibility that comes with their career. For those reasons nurses must present themselves in a professional and structured manner at all times. The Image of Nursing describes how people in and out of the profession see nurses. Nurses must protect and continuously improve their image by fully applying themselves to their profession every day. Nurses complete rigorous course studies to obtain the ability to manage themselves and lead others towards a common

According to Oxford dictionaries.com, a nurse is ‘a person trained to care for the sick or infirm, especially in a hospital.’