Public image of nurses: past, present, and future
Introduction
Undoubtedly, the nursing profession has vital ingredients of accountability and autonomy. Also, it is true to assert that nursing profession demands more responsibilities than before when the main role of a nurse was just to provide comfort and care. In the modern world, a nurse is expected to be an advocate for clients, a manager, and an educator (Drayton & Weston, 2015). However, little attention is drawn towards the assessment of the actual public image and perception of nurses. Nurses seem to dwell in a dual structure of nursing and social worlds. The two worlds tend to influence and interact with one another for the purpose of maintaining the nursing practice. However, conflicts have arisen in the profession as it departs towards the professionalization. Over the last fifty years, the nursing profession has made tremendous progress towards establishing the professional status (Ibrahim, Akel, & Alzghoul, 2015). Nurses have had various images over time. These images range from angels of mercy to the so- called sexual stereotypes that have been portrayed sometimes during the delivery of the nursing care. After being stereotyped, the image of nurses has changed fundamentally, particularly the way they are portrayed in the media. Thus, the nursing profession has been found to suffer from being associated with powerlessness and femininity and public stereotyping. As a result of this, nurses tend to lose self-concept, job satisfaction, and self-esteem that discourage them from performing as expected (Jackson, Fraser, & Ash, 2014). This paper will explore the image of nurses in the past, present, and future and draw a meaningful conclusion regarding the status of nurses with respect to their public image.
Impact of perceived image of nursing on the work behavior among nurses
Jackson, Fraser & Ash (2014) found that one of the major concerns for nurses is the perceived stereotyping of their public image. A comparison of the perception of nurses regarding their public image and their self-image helps to establish the relationship between the self -image and perceived image of nurses. It is relatively not clearly known how public stereotyping impacts the performance of nurses, but researchers have indicated that such stereotyping results in low self-esteem and poor work performance (Karen, 2012). For a long time, the nursing profession has been troubled with the nurse image. The public has been found to have a stereotypical nursing view, where nurses are regarded as dependent on doctors, less intelligent, underpaid, and powerless (Hoeve, Jansen, & Roodbol, 2014). Although little research has been undertaken on the perception of nurses to their public image, studies have revealed that public stereotyping of the nursing profession undermines their self-esteem and results in low productivity (Jackson, Fraser, & Ash, 2014).
However, some studies have demonstrated that the image of nurses has improved following the advancement of the nursing profession towards professionalization. For example, the recent reform of the manner in which nurses are educated where nursing education is transferred from hospitals to recognized training institutions like universities is one of the ways in which the public image of nurses has improved (Drayton & Weston, 2015). Additionally, the public image has improved through social interactions with patients. For example, if I get hospitalized today, the manner in which I will interact with nurses will contribute to changing my perception of the nursing practice and develop a better image for them after realizing what they do to save my life.
Impact of image fit on nurses’ work behavior
There is a diverse impact of the correlation between nurses’ perceived image and their self- image. The self- image of nurses has a positive impact on their productivity and job performance. On the other hand, the perceived public image is found to have no impact on job performance for nurses. This deviation occurs because the performance of nurses is guided by their motivation that promotes their capacity for maintaining high standards of the nursing practice (Ibrahim, Akel, & Alzghoul, 2015). Nurses perceive themselves as being caring and good health advocates for their clients. However, from arguments and observations that people have on public perception of the nursing practice, the modern society has stereotyped the nursing profession, resulting in high turnover and reduced incentive for young people to join this profession.
The current image of nurses and how it is likely to change in the future
When we try to contemplate the image of nurses, particularly their public image, we may think of how nurse behaves when attending a patient. For example, let us consider a situation where a nurse is taking care of a child who is suffering or any other patient. Let us think of what the nurse thinks during the entire treatment process and the way they discourage patients during the treatment and discharge. Again, consider the manner in which a nurse sympathizes and express concern for patients requiring emergency treatment. These aspects tend to redefine the image of nurses. However, the questions frequently asked by nurses are, are these the images we leave with the patients we attend? Is our attention and sympathy to patients a reflection of how we perceive ourselves? Is our public image only concentrated on what we do or is it viewed from other perspectives?
An individual trying to analyze the present image of nurses and how it has changed over time would ask him or herself the following questions. How has the image of nurses changed with time? Who is giving the image of nurses a definition? What can nurses do to improve their image? How nurses react to the negative public image that people bestow upon them? With these questions in mind, we now focus on how the image of nurses is changing.
The Changing Image of Nurses
Nurses have had various images over time, ranging being called the angels of mercy to being stereotyped. They have been described as inferior or powerless, less independent, and underpaid (Mabrouk, Rhaman, and Shousha, 2013). These negative images have led to discouragement among other impacts on the work performance among nurses. The image of nurses has been misrepresented and misinterpreted, resulting in their public image being negatively reshaped. These misinterpretations occur when some of the nurses are caught with bad practices such as rape. These actions often lead to generalization of nurses’ behavior, and they are portrayed as bad characters and defamed through the media. In 2001, the CNA (center for nursing advocacy) was instituted with the objective of addressing the shortage of nurses. This body decided to focus on how nurses are portrayed in the media by awarding the worst and best descriptions of nurses. The center later began to plead with media houses to stop the negative imagery of nurses in their advertisements after realizing that such adverts were ruining the image of nurses and discouraging people from pursuing the nursing profession (Hoeve, Jansen, & Roodbol, 2014).
Nurses have been described as among the most honest and ethical professionals
Gallup poll has been used to identify the most ethical and honest profession in America. For over eight years, the nursing profession has been ranked amongst the most ethical and honest profession. Over the last five years, nurses have been position one in the list of the most ethical and honest profession (Drayton & Weston, 2015). The overarching questions that I would ask are whether such ranking is relevant to nurses’ concern about their image and the impact of negative perceptions of nurses on the nursing practice. Nurses are found to dwell in a dual structured world with positive self- image and negative public image. The challenge becomes the reconciliation of the two images to ensure that the future image of nurses does not get ruined.
How the dressing code of nurses contribute to their image
Most professions such as judges, police officers, and firefighters have special dressing codes that identify them with their profession. Similarly, nurses have a dressing code that denotes their profession. However, according to how nurses are portrayed, I would be justified to argue that their dressing may or may not auger well with their image. The appearance of nurses has evolved with their image. Nurses may not think anything about wearing clothes that are adorned with funny characters such as cartoons. One would ask why nurses present themselves in this manner, but according to them, the intention is to let people outside their profession to impact how nursing professionals present themselves in the public (Drayton & Weston, 2015). Some people argue that nurses', thoughts are concentrated between their patients and death, yet their attire is covered with cartoons. As such, they are said to have no authority. Many organizations have begun to address this issue by advocating for changes in the dressing for nurses by changing nurses’ dressing codes. These changes are likely to ease the identification of nurses by the public. Facilitating the identification of nurses will help to enhance their public image as people will no longer view them as powerless individuals.
Face of nursing and nurses’ image
The association of nursing profession with femininity has significantly contributed to their perception of self- image as well as perceived negative public image (Barrett-Landau, & Henle, 2014). If we consider how overwhelmingly the nursing profession has been viewed as having the female face, we start to get an illumination of why most people would prefer not join this profession and how severe the shortage of nurses would be in the future. Even though the number of men joining the nursing profession has begun to grow, it is essential to abandon the old view of the nursing profession as a profession for females (Barrett-Landau, & Henle, 2014). The elimination of past views of nurses will help to build a strong and positive future image of nurses
Conclusion
The failure to understand the cost of the negative perception of the nursing profession and implementation of strategies to curb the portrayal of nurses in negative ways will lead to an even more severe shortage of nurses as well as increased nurses’ turnover in the future. The image of nurses has faced public stereotyping, resulting in loss of self-esteem and reduced nurses productivity. However, the emergence of institutions such as CAN (center for nursing advocacy) and the establishment of policies such as PPACA (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) to govern the nursing practice is promising to improve the image of nurses in the future. The mitigation of the nursing shortage is possible with the improvement of the nurses’ image in the public space. Therefore, the government and other concerned institutions should emphasize the need to sustain performance of nurses by reinforcing the value of the nursing profession.
References
Barrett-Landau, S., & Henle, S. (2014). Men in Nursing: Their Influence in a Female Dominated Career. Journal for Leadership and Instruction, 13(2), 10-13.
Drayton, N., & Weston, K. M. (2015). Exploring values in nursing: generating new perspectives on clinical practice.
Hoeve, Y. T., Jansen, G., & Roodbol, P. (2014). The nursing profession: public image, self‐concept and professional identity. A discussion paper. Journal of advanced nursing, 70(2), 295-309.
Ibrahim, A. F., Akel, D. T., & Alzghoul, H. W. M. (2015). Image of Nursing Profession as Perceived by Egyptian and Jordanian Undergraduate Male Nursing Students: A Comparative Study. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(14), 24-36.
Jackson, J., Fraser, R., & Ash, P. (2014). Social Media and Nurses: Insights for Promoting Health for Individual and Professional Us. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 19(3).
Karen, M. S. (2012). Advocating for nurses and nursing. Online journal of issues in nursing, 17(1), A1.
Mabrouk, R. Rhaman, A.E. and Shousha, A.F (2013). Perceptions of the public image of nursing among Baccalaureate nursing students. Life Science Journal. Retrieved from http://www.academia.edu/11457714/Perceptions_of_the_Public_Image_of_Nursing_among_Baccalaureate_Nursing_Students
