Case Study, Chapter 23, Professional Identity and Image

Nursing care is frequently perceived by the public as simple and unskilled. Many male nurses live in fear of how their caring actions might be interpreted. Many nurses hold that stereotypes about the profession are true, just as the general public does. Public identity and image has been a struggle for nurses for a long time. The greater public clearly does not understand what professional nursing is all about, and the nursing profession has done a poor job of correcting long-standing, historically inaccurate stereotypes.

1. What are the common nursing stereotypes?

2. What was the role of the Center for Nursing Advocacy? Discuss the role of Truth about Nursing in addressing inaccurate or negative portrayals of nursing in the media and the process they use to raise public and professional awareness of the issues surrounding nursing public image?

3. What are some of the ways of changing nursing’s image in the public eye?

4. One of the most important strategies needed to change nursing’s image is to change the image of nursing in the mind of the image makers. What are some of the key ways for nurses to interact with the media?