Professional Esteem Research Articles

A History of Scope Expansion in Optometry and its Impact on the Profession

The purpose of this article is to review the history of meetings held pertaining to the future direction of the profession, legislation passed, and other factors that have significantly impacted the scope of practice of the optometric profession over the past 55 years. Among the topics discussed are the various antecedent events that led to the decision to evolve from a drugless profession to a profession that embraced drugs and surgical procedures. Also discussed are such issues as changes in the optometric curriculum, nature of continuing education courses, type of research conducted both inside and outside of optometric institutions, improvement in interprofessional relations, personal and professional esteem, benefits to the public, and integration into the nation’s health care system.

How to promote midwives' recognition and professional autonomy? A document analysis study

ObjectiveTo identify challenges associated with midwives' professional autonomy in Belgium and develop recommendations to promote midwives’ recognition and professional autonomy. DesignThrough a document analysis study we identified challenges, categorized them into themes and linked them with Greenwood's sociological criteria for a profession. This involved an in-depth synthesis of findings from our published studies to comprehensively examine the challenges to optimizing midwifery autonomy and to develop corresponding recommendations. FindingsWe identified challenges related to midwife-led continuity care models, regulation of the midwifery profession, collaboration with stakeholders, professional esteem and professional culture. Based on them, our recommendations include prioritizing midwife-led continuity of care, fostering collaboration, tailoring continuous professional development, increasing public awareness and advocating for policy changes. The attribute of a profession which is lacking the most in midwifery in Belgium is recognized authority, which may result in midwives being undervalued, underutilized and underpaid. Key conclusionsIn this paper we identified challenges in Belgian midwives' recognition and professional autonomy and provided recommendations to address them, emphasizing the importance of recognized authority in midwifery. Implementing these recommendations can positively impact midwives' recognition and autonomy in Belgium and potentially in other countries. Implications for practiceIt is essential for policy makers to address the issue of the lack of recognized authority in midwifery, as it plays a critical role in facilitating decision-making, policy development, and the professionalization of the field. Implementing the outlined recommendations can drive positive changes in midwifery recognition and autonomy in Belgium and beyond.

The mountain-viewing trend in private gardens of the Song dynasty

This study analyses Song dynasty garden documents and paintings and identifies three methods to create mountain-viewing experiences in private gardens. The landscaping techniques, aesthetic sensibilities, and cultural implications of each method are discussed, and the evolution of the mountain-viewing tradition is examined. Due to changes in natural conditions and the influence of royalty, mountains and stones as garden design elements held greater significance under the Southern Song dynasty than the Northern Song dynasty, with marked changes in mountain-building techniques, appreciation of stones, aesthetic preferences, and the professional esteem of designing gardens. Mountain-viewing pavilions became more prevalent during the Southern Song dynasty because the Song people deeply revered scholar Tao Yuanming. This paper contributes to Chinese landscaping history literature by showing how and why the mountain-viewing trend grew and how the Song dynasty influenced garden landscaping in China.

Substance use disorder and treatment in healthcare providers.

Substance use disorder (SUD) is associated with innumerable risk factors and patient presentations, and is a leading cause of preventable disease. Research continues to explore the role of biochemical and social constructs that may play a role in the foundation, perpetuation, and progression of SUD in at-risk populations. Healthcare providers develop SUD at lifetime rates similar to those of the general population, but detecting common signs and symptoms may be challenging, often delaying treatment until the course becomes more complicated. Compounding this are tangible and intangible reservations to care, including clinician fear of the financial cost for treatment, lost wages, and damage to professional esteem. Nonetheless, all clinicians must be able to recognize SUD and be aware of treatments for afflicted colleagues.

Fourth year intellectual disability student nurses’ journey and future work intention: a qualitative study

BackgroundThe aim of this qualitative study is to explore the views and experiences of final year BSc intellectual disability nursing students’ journey, future work plans and examine factors influencing their migration intentions following graduation.MethodsA qualitative component of a mixed methods study where a focus group interview was conducted with final year BSc intellectual disability nursing students (n = 10) from one University in Ireland in June 2019. A topic guide was utilised, and participant’s were interviewed about their programme, future work plans and migration intentions. An inductive approach was utilised, and data were analysed using a pre-existing framework for initial coding and thematic development. Duffy’s conceptual model of identity transformation provided a structure to analyse the data and map themes onto the conceptual framework.ResultsThe findings were mapped onto the five stages of Duffy’s (2013) conceptual model of identity transformation: Pre-Entry; Reaffirming; Surmounting; Stabilising and Actualising. Findings indicate that further work is required to promote intellectual disability nursing and address professional esteem issues, support for education and professional development, such as providing career guidance opportunities prior to course completion, development of clinical skills within their education programme and support for the professional development of new graduates. Participant’s identified uncertainty about career opportunities and saw scope for future professional development opportunities particularly in community-based work.ConclusionThis study has identified that final year intellectual disability nursing students are uncertain about career options and opportunities for intellectual disability nurses in other country’s. There is an urgent need for the intellectual disability nursing profession to articulate their practice and advocate for their role and contribution to the care of people with intellectual disability. This study identified a clear need for direction and information regarding intellectual disability nursing roles and career opportunities.

A Prize of Their Own: Marginalized Journalists Seek a Share of Professional Esteem

A Prize of Their Own: Marginalized Journalists Seek a Share of Professional Esteem

Factors Influencing Job Satisfaction of Nurses in Tertiary Health Care Centres in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria

This study examined the factors influencing nurses satisfaction in tertiary health care centres in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. It ascertained the factors that affect nurses’ satisfaction in tertiary health care centers in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Four objectives and hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The population of the study consisted of four hundred and twenty (420) nurses in Government-owned tertiary health care centres in Port Harcourt which was further reduced to a sample size of two hundred and five (205), using Taro Yamane’s formula while Kendall tau b was implored in testing the null hypotheses. The findings revealed that a significant relationship exists between working conditions, pay/salary, professional esteem, bum out and nurses’ job satisfaction in tertiary health care centers in Port Harcourt. It was concluded that if necessary steps are taken, the nurses would be more effective in their job. The recommended steps amongst others are that the working conditions of nurses should be improved, incentives are given, reward for hard work, professional training and salaries paid timely as these will bring about job satisfaction among them.

An exploration of why health professionals seek to hold statutory powers in mental health services in England: considerations of the approved mental health professional role

Background There is a shortage of Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs), who are responsible for compulsory admission decisions under the Mental Health Act (MHA), 1983. Only 5% of AMHPs are health professionals, over a decade after the role was opened to them. Aims The research aimed to identify factors motivating and discouraging health professionals from becoming and working as AMHPs. Methods Semi-structured interviews (n = 52) with professionals enabled to become AMHPs by the MHA, 2007, including AMHPs; those that had not become AMHPs; and AMHP managers. Additionally, a survey of AMHP senior managers. Interviews and open-ended survey questions were analysed thematically. Results Motivating and discouraging factors were grouped as intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivations were: altruism; the dynamic and contained nature of the work; and fit with experience. Intrinsic discouraging factors were: damage to therapeutic relationships; the perceived clash between AMHP work and professional values. Extrinsic motivations were: career progression; and professional esteem. Extrinsic discouraging factors were: profile and reputation of the service; organisational commitment; management support; and level of remuneration. Conclusions The research suggests that changes in organisational responsibility for running AMHP services and raising the profile of the role might help increase recruitment and retention of health professionals.

Palliative Care Development in Ukraine

Abstract There are approximately 1 million cancer patients in Ukraine and 90,000 cancer deaths a year, 35% of these are diagnosed in the late stage of disease. Ukraine has the most severe HIV epidemic in the region with more than 200,000 persons living with HIV/AIDS and 6000-10000 deaths annually. The morphine consumption rate is among the lowest in the. The first palliative care services were established in 1996 and the number has slowly increased with services provided in inpatient units, home and day care programs and by a range of health care providers. Laws and regulations have been amended and controlled medicines may now be prescribed by all physicians with no maximum daily dose restriction for morphine, fewer approval signatures required, and prescriptions are valid for 10 days. Palliative care education and training is taking place in undergraduate and postgraduate medical schools in a number of cities and public awareness campaigns have educated the public and mobilized communities. Several challenges remain including the lack of national funding to procure medicines and support palliative care services, persisting myths about opioids and the limited number of trained palliative care professionals coupled with low professional esteem restricts the integration of palliative care services into the public health system.

Competition and co-operation for recognition and professional esteem in the literary translation industry

ABSTRACTCurrent literature on translation sociology often attributes the competitive disposition among freelance literary translators to a drive for symbolic capital. At the same time, co-operation has mostly been researched within the context of non-literary translation. This article aims to contribute to debates on the transposability of competitive and co-operative dispositions among freelance literary translators by examining a case study from Turkey. In an unprecedented collaborative project, 83 translators came together to render Sei Shōnagon’s classic The Pillow Book into Turkish as Yastıkname. The translation process coincided with the establishment of ÇEVBİR, the Professional Association of Translators in Turkey, which champions translators’ rights, promoting professionalization and co-operation. The study concludes that in a reputation-based industry, literary translators strive to garner more status for themselves while simultaneously engaging in co-operative networks to access and share a variety of resources and to enhance solidarity.

Professional Esteem in E.C. Hughes’sociology. Towards a Honnethian Reading of the Chicago School of Sociology

Le present article opere un retour sur la sociologie hughesienne des professions, ou il cherche des elements utiles a lester empiriquement la theorie honnethienne de la troisieme sphere de la reconnaissance. Hughes, qui s’inscrit dans la continuite de la premiere tradition anthropo-sociologique de Chicago, considere en effet que l’identite et la personnalite de l’acteur se constituent au gre des interactions de ce dernier avec ses milieux sociaux d’inscription. Selon cet auteur, la reconnaissance du statut, de l’activite et de la valeur du travailleur est, dans les societes occidentales modernes, un element cle de ce processus. Il s’agit ici plus particulierement de revenir sur ce que Hughes, et avec lui la sociologie des professions, qualifient de « processus de professionnalisation » : une profession, c’est-a-dire une activite de service reconnue et prisee au sein d’une societe, n’apparait pas d’un coup, mais est construite collectivement par les acteurs qui l’exercent, qui plus est au gre d’un processus typique dont il est possible de decrire formellement les etapes. Hughes developpe en outre la these selon laquelle l’estime attachee a une profession doit autant, si ce n’est plus, aux caracteristiques intrinseques de l’activite, qu’aux efforts deployes collectivement par les acteurs pour un imposer une image favorable aupres du public. La constitution d’une profession presente en d’autres termes, sous certains rapports, les aspects d’une lutte pour la reconnaissance. On verra enfin que Hughes developpe un point de vue distancie sur le pouvoir et le prestige des « grandes » professions, qui permet de donner aux acteurs subissant ce pouvoir (notamment aux professionnels et travailleurs subordonnes aux « grandes » professions) quelques outils critiques et quelques pistes pour obtenir la reconnaissance de leur activite.

Beliefs of students about growing older and perceptions of working in gerontology.

An ageing population that is increasing does not necessarily mean an increase in people who require health and social care. However, it is predicted that a wide range of such services is likely to be needed. This demand is set against a shortage of skilled healthcare professionals and a lack of interest in working with older people. There is a particular shortage of skilled gerontological workers in the developed world, made worse by a perceived lack of professional esteem, economic reward and poor working environments in the specialism. Most studies recommend education to enable individuals to develop accurate knowledge about the ageing process and interest in working with older people. There is a discrepancy in the literature as to whether health and social care workers hold positive or negative attitudes towards older people. As attitudes are strongly linked with perceptions of working with older people, this article presents a review of the literature and discussion on attitudes of health and social care students to ageing and perceptions of working with older people.

AACSB International’s 2013 accreditation standards

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the implications of the 2013 Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) Accreditation Standards for both business faculty and their deans who are responsible for implementing these changes. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is a speculative viewpoint on the implications of the 2013 AACSB standards by a set of a co-authors that include AACSB deans who are active in accreditation reviews and serve as mentors to schools in the accreditation process and senior faculty who have written self-studies for AACSB and served as consultants for schools seeking AACSB accreditation internationally. Findings – The implications of the 2013 AACSB business accreditation standards are arguably positive for active scholars holding a relevant doctoral degree. For example, active and engaged scholarly faculty should appreciate the ability to use additional indicators of the impact of their career’s intellectual contributions (IC) including, but not limited to, citations, editor ships, professional leadership positions and other measures of professional esteem. Research limitations/implications – The implications of the 2013 AACSB accreditation standards for deans are potentially less positive. The new standards codify one of the deans’ major duties – that of ensuring that the faculty have resources adequate to support the school’s mission. Originality/value – This paper represents a starting point for understanding the implications of the 2013 AACSB accreditation standards, and that as the standards are operationalized over the subsequent years that these standards, like the previous changes in AACSB standards, will stimulate additional research on business school accreditation. The implications for both faculty and deans are speculative, but are grounded both by the literature and experience of the authors. The paper uses a set of tables to illustrate the impact of the new AACSB standards with examples for each guiding principle and standard.

Comment: Doctors' dilemmas

After years of training and practice, physicians are justly proud of their skills. But we all recall times where, despite heroic effort, the goal of restoring patients to health and well-being hit a brick wall. While we learn to accept disappointment—too often perceived as failure or defeat—we do not always take time to reckon with the emotional toll such experiences take on our professional esteem and our senses of competence and beneficence.

Attitudes towards caring for older people in Scotland, Sweden and the United States

To explore the attitudes of nurses and nursing students in Scotland, Sweden and the US towards working with older people. This quantitative study used the 20-item Multifactorial Attitudes Questionnaire (MAQ) to elicit attitudes on ageism, resources, working environment, education and professional esteem. Researchers from each country distributed the questionnaires to nursing students and nurses, giving a convenience sample of 1,587 respondents. Data were entered on the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 18 and merged into one large dataset. Scottish participants had the highest (positive) and Swedish participants the lowest mean MAQ score. The Kruskal-Wallis test showed significant differences in mean scores across the countries in 18 of the 20 statements, even when controlling for age and experience. Most participants gave positive responses, but agreed that negative attitudes towards working with older people pervade among peers due to working conditions, poor career prospects and a perceived lack of professional esteem. Inspirational educators, excellent clinical placements and increasing the professional esteem of those working with older people are required to promote the specialty as an attractive career option.

Values and valuing mental health nursing in primary care: what is wrong with the ‘before and on behalf of’ model?

Accessible summary The present model of employment specified in the Mental Health Nurse Incentive Program (MHNIP) is closely aligned to a traditional practice nurse model whereby the nurse is employed to assist and extend medical practice. Mental health nurses working within MHNIP typically possess post graduate qualifications and a breadth of experience characteristic of a specialist and advanced practitioner in mental health. Mental health nurses ought to enjoy the same status, level of remuneration, professional esteem and accountability of other health professionals. AbstractThe Mental Health Nurse Incentive Programme (MHNIP) provides funding to organizations to enable mental health nurses (MHNs) to provide care to people with complex needs in primary care settings in Australia. The programme is based on a ‘for and on‐behalf of’ practice nursing model whereby the MHN is presumed to have no specialist knowledge, skills or professional autonomy, and rather extends the reach of medicine. This paper provides a profile of MHNs working in the MHNIP derived from an online survey. A content analysis of responses establishes that nurses who work within MHNIP are highly experienced, and have extensive postgraduate qualifications particularly in psychotherapy. Nurses have negotiated a range of complex employment and contractual arrangements with organizations and pushed the boundaries of the programme to realize good outcomes. The ‘practice nurse model’ of employment and the underpinning assumptions about MHNs and their skill set relative to other professions is critically examined. Changes to the programme funding mechanism and programme specifications are recommended.

Attitudes towards caring for older people: literature review and methodology

Care of older people is often referred to as a 'Cinderella' service and is not seen as an attractive career option in health care, but with the global population continuing to age, caring for this group will become increasingly important. This article outlines the literature that formed the basis for two studies investigating the attitudes of healthcare staff towards working with older people, including respondents' perceptions of other healthcare professionals' attitudes toward this important area of work. The Multifactorial Attitudes Questionnaire was designed to examine five major themes identified from the literature: ageism; learning environment; working environment; professional esteem; and specialist status. This study is presented in two parts: this article discusses the literature and the design of the questionnaire. The second article, to be published in a subsequent issue of the journal, presents the results from two studies done in Scotland, the first in 1999, with a replication study in 2009.

HR directors in UK boardrooms

PurposeA place in the boardroom is often considered a necessary if not sufficient condition for HR directors to exercise strategic influence on business decision‐making. The purpose of the paper is to explore the perceived importance of HR boardroom representation, both in a formal and symbolic sense, and to what extent HR directors can exercise strategic influence without it?Design/methodology/approachEvidence is explored from a survey of 1,188 UK HR practitioners, including 255 board members, and a series of follow‐up interviews with 16 HR directors.FindingsAnalysis of the survey findings suggests that boardroom versus non‐boardroom representation of HR appears to matter in four key areas: board members believe they have greater involvement and influence in business planning processes; they have more positive perceptions of the overall performance of HR; they give higher ratings of CEO perceptions of the HR function; and they believe they achieve greater integration of HR strategy with business strategy.Research limitations/implicationsWhile there are increasingly other formal mechanisms and forums (e.g. executive committees, personal networks) outside the boardroom for HR directors to exercise their influence, it appears that the “symbolic capital” of boardroom recognition and esteem still retains enormous significance and rhetorical appeal for the HR profession.Originality/valueThe paper seeks to reframe the debates on the relative importance of HR boardroom versus executive committee representation as forums of strategic influence, by focusing on the continued symbolic significance of boardroom representation. It is concluded that a reworking of Bourdieu's concept of “symbolic capital” (i.e. professional esteem, recognition, status, or respect) as board capital may be useful in reframing future research on HR boardroom representation.

The ambiguity of professing gender: women educationists and New Education in the Netherlands (1890–1940)

In this paper the concept of gender script is applied to examine the cases of two women educationists trying to construct a professional “self” in confrontation with gender scripts that constantly recited meanings of gender, in particular of femininity. The research focus is on the period 1890–1940, when in the Netherlands, like abroad, New Education became influential, also in the developing field of Child Studies, in which women educationists were prominent. The two cases in this paper show how negotiating the gender script on professionalism in the field of education and educational sciences, for example by professing gender as a starting point for participation, made women’s role in the educational sciences a complicated and delicate one. The first example is taken from the domain of schools. Between 1890 and 1920 the participation of women in primary education greatly increased. Despite a rather marginal female participation in teacher education and in professional organisations, the increasing numbers of teachers must have had an impact on women educationists and their professional confidence. How contradictory this impact was is first analysed in the work and career of Ietje Kooistra (1861–1923). The second example concentrates on women’s roles in the first Dutch institutions for the care and education of children with mental disabilities. Although often invisible in the official structure of these institutions, women formed an important part of the staff of these institutions, as both caretakers and nurses, and within the educational staff. Moreover, women were able to put their marks on the educational atmosphere within institutions and to influence the first construction of methods and tools used in this context. The example is that of the nun Ida Frye (1909–2003). Her case shows how, before the Second World War, it was very problematic to obtain any professional esteem as a woman within the educational sciences. This is despite Frye’s important work that contributed to the development of the domain of special education in the Netherlands. Both cases show woman educationists who, although sometimes unwillingly, professed gender in their scholarly careers. Thus, they negotiated the gender script in order to open up a career of their own, which, however, in neither of the two cases ended as the story of an academic heroine.

Working by the rules: early childhood professionals' perceptions of regulatory requirements

The regulatory environment in which long daycare centres are required to operate plays a key role in determining what early childhood professionals do and how they go about doing it. This paper reports findings from a state‐wide survey undertaken in New South Wales, Australia, which shows how early childhood professionals position themselves on four key aspects of the regulatory environment: the premises underlying regulatory requirements; its perceived support of them as professionals to provide quality care; how state regulations and the national accreditation system impact upon their daily practice; and the way these audit systems affect their professional esteem. Implications for job satisfaction are discussed. The paper concludes by asserting that regulatory requirements need to be evaluated in terms of their contribution to structural, process, contextual and work environment dimensions of quality.