Please replay to:
I have chosen this weeks discussion topic to discuss –
Option 1: What characteristics make up a profession? Based on the characteristics explain why nursing is considered a profession and what it means to you to be a professional nurse.
Nursing as a profession has been in debate for decades, with the meaning of profession also under the microscope. According to Black (2020), scholars have generally agreed upon the conclusion that a profession is an occupational group with a set of attitudes or behaviors, while sociologist Abraham Flexner later identified criteria for what a profession must include. Over the years these criteria have been adjusted and refined, however overall, three criteria consistently appear: service/altruism, specialized knowledge, and autonomy/ethics (Black, 2020).
Based on the criteria I mentioned above, nursing is a profession through and through. Nursing has evolved and become a highly sought-after profession with incredible advantages. Although nursing in America as a profession is in great demand and highly respected, this is not the case in other countries. In an interesting article I found by Alsadaan et al. (2021), the public image of nursing as a profession is quite negative due to religious and cultural issues that set forth strict gender roles in Saudi Arabia. Women would not choose the nursing profession as it would negatively affect their marriageability prospect considering that women nurses would have to care for male patients which is considered inappropriate culturally due to their strict gender segregation. Unfortunately, Saudi Arabia is suffering from extreme nursing shortages due to such conditions.
Nursing to me is everything and more and I could not see myself excelling in any other profession the way I have in nursing. As a little girl, I grew up playing nurse/patient with my father, mother, and siblings, where I was always nurse Diana. As I got older, my love for the profession only grew stronger, taking on a more mature role and interest in nursing education. Being a professional nurse to me means being held to a higher standard, it means being completely professional in all aspects; it means being compassionate and caring, while acquiring values and ideals such as human dignity, honesty, and social justice. Nursing is a way of life for me, it has shaped who I am as a person and I could not be a happier and more motivated nurse.
References
Alsadaan, N., Jones, L.K., Kimpton, A., DaCosta, C. (2021). Challenges facing the nursing profession in
Saudi Arabia: An integrative review. Nursing Reports. 11(2): 395-403. (9p) doi:
10.3390/nursrep11020038
Black, B. P. (2020). Professional nursing: Concepts and challenges (9th ed.). Elsevier.
