As an important professional value, dignity has always been an ethical concern in nursing education and practice. However, the dignity of nursing students in clinical environments has remained a little-discussed topic. This study aims to explore and describe nursing students’ dignity in clinical learning environments. This study is a qualitative descriptive work in which data were collected via semi-structured, in-depth, individual interviews and subsequently analyzed according to conventional content analysis. Based on the inclusion criteria of the study, nursing students were (...) selected from different departments of university hospitals in the south of Iran from October 2019 to December 2020. Sampling continued to the point of data saturation. This study has been approved by the institutional review board of the university. Two themes emerged from the data collected in the interviews: trust-based relationships and formation of professional identity. The findings of the study show that nursing students need to be supported by their instructors and perceive that the personnel and patients believe in their ability. In an effectively supportive, trust-based atmosphere, these factors can contribute to maintaining nursing students dignity. Also, showing respect for their personal identity, projecting a positive image of nursing, and giving them authority to perform executive and clinical tasks in hospital departments play a major role in the formation of nursing students’ professional identity and development of their dignity. Accordingly, it is recommended that in cultural contexts and clinical learning environments, more attention should be given to nursing students’ dignity. (shrink)

BackgroundDignity is a central human value supported by nurses’ professional ethics. In previous studies, nurses in clinical practice have experienced that dignity increased their work well-being and pride of work. Dignity is also strictly interweaved to professional identity in the different nursing’ roles, but little is known about dignity among public health nurses and primary care settings.PurposeThis study aimed to describe the perceptions of nursing's professional dignity of public health nurses in primary care in Finland.Research designAn inductive qualitative descriptive approach (...) with semi-structured focus group interviews was utilised.Participants and research contextTwenty-seven Finnish public health nurses were interviewed via eight semi-structured focus group interviews in primary health care settings.Ethical considerationsBefore data collection, research permissions were obtained from participating health care centres. This type of research in Finland, with competent adult participants, does not require ethical pre-assessment but written and oral informed consent obtained before the interviews.FindingsBased on our findings, public health nurses perceived that professional dignity was (1) part of their self-respect, an observed daily value based on their acknowledged competence. Besides, they perceived that (2) service users’ trust in public health nurses was a strong expression of professional dignity, and it could be uncovered when recipients of care utilised their services. In addition, public health nurses experienced that (3) professional dignity was an expression of different intertwined interprofessional and social factors.Discussion and conclusionProfessional dignity is simultaneously an essential prerequisite and an outcome of public health nurses’ work. In future, more information would be needed to implement strategies in primary health care to foster nurses’ professional dignity also in international public health arenas. (shrink)

Introduction It is a goal in nursing education to promote students’ dignity and facilitate this core value. Students’ experience of dignity is shaped by the student–supervisor relationship. Literature shows limited knowledge about how nursing students experience their own dignity during education. Research aim The aim of the study is to develop an understanding of how nursing students experience their own dignity in relation to supervisors, and what significance these experiences have in education. Research design Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics was chosen as (...) the approach, and narratives and qualitative interviews were conducted. The interpretation process was inspired by Fleming, Gaidys and Robbs. Participants and research context Nineteen nursing students in the final year of their education were included in the study. They represented six different campuses at three different educational institutions. The qualitative interviews took place at the educational institutions. Ethical considerations The research recommendations of the Declaration of Helsinki were followed. Access to the students was given by the educational institutions. All interested students signed a continuous informed consent. Findings Students’ dignity was at stake in encounters with supervisors during education. Decisive for experience of dignity was the supervisor’s ability to confirm the student through acknowledgment, reassurance and seeing them as individuals. Experienced dignity had a crucial impact on students’ life courage and their ability to be present. Discussion The discussion emphasizes the vulnerable dignity of students, the importance of confirmation and the significance perceived dignity has. Conclusion Students’ experiences tilted between perceived dignity and offense, and placed students’ dignity in a vulnerable position. Crucial for perceived dignity was the confirmation the students received from their supervisors. Perceived dignity gave the students courage and increased their ability to be present, which provided better opportunities for learning and development. (shrink)

Background: The concept of dignity can be divided into two main attributes: absolute dignity that calls for recognition of an inner worth of persons and social dignity that can be changeable and can be lost as a result of different social factors and moral behaviours. In this light, the nursing profession has a professional dignity that is to be continually constructed and re-constructed and involves both main attributes of dignity. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine how nurses (...) described nursing’s professional dignity in internal medicine and surgery departments in hospital settings. Research design: The research design was qualitative. Ethical considerations: This study was approved by the ethics committees of the healthcare organizations involved. All the participants were provided with information about the purpose and the nature of the study. Participants: A total of 124 nurses participated in this study. Method: The data were collected using 20 focus group sessions in different parts of Italy. The data were analysed by means of a conventional inductive content analysis starting from the information retrieved in order to extract meaning units and sorting the arising phenomena into conceptually meaningful categories and themes. Results: Nursing’s professional dignity was deeply embedded in the innermost part of individuals. Regarding the social part of dignity, a great importance was put on the values that compose nursing’s professional identity, the socio-historical background and the evolution of nursing in the area considered. The social part of dignity was also linked to collaboration with physicians and with healthcare assistants who were thought to have a central role in easing work strain. Equally important, though, was the relationship with peers and senior nurses. Conclusion: The organizational environments under scrutiny with their low staffing levels, overload of work and hierarchical interactions did not promote respect for the dignity of nurses. To understand these professional values, it is pivotal to comprehend the role of different health professions in their cultural milieu and the evolution of the nursing profession in diverse countries. (shrink)

Background Maintaining the dignity of patients who attempted suicide is one of the caregivers’ main ethical duties. Yet, in many cases, these patients are not treated with dignity. The concept of dignity is abstract, and there is no research on the dignity of suicidal patients. So, the present study is done to investigate psychiatric nurses’ perception of dignity in patients who attempted suicide. Objective The present study explores the concept of dignity in patients who attempted suicide from the perspective of (...) psychiatric nurses. Research design The present study is a qualitative, descriptive work of research Participants and research context A total of 20 psychiatric nurses from 2 hospitals affiliated with a university of medical sciences in the southeast of Iran were selected via purposeful sampling. Ethical considerations The Research Ethics Committee of the Hamadan University of Medical Sciences approved the study’s protocol, and ethical principles were followed in general. Findings From the findings of the study, three main themes, namely “ respect for personal; identity,” “management of psychological tension,” and “compassion-focused therapy,” with 12 sub-themes were extracted. Discussion and conclusion In the perspective of caregivers, patients who attempted suicide need to be cared for in supportive environments with compassionate and respectful behaviors to control their psychological tensions. These conditions would maintain such patients’ dignity and result in appropriate behavioral outcomes. Policy-makers and administrators can use the present study’s findings to create an appropriate clinical environment in which the dignity of patients who attempted suicide is properly maintained. (shrink)

Background: Dignified care is one of the main objectives of holistic care. Furthermore, paying attention to dignity as one of the fundamental rights of patients is extremely important. However, in many cases, the dignity of hospitalized patients is not considered. Dignity is an abstract concept, and comprehensive studies of the dignity of Iranian patients hospitalized in general hospital settings are limited. Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the concept of dignity from the perspective of patients hospitalized in (...) general hospital settings in Iran. Research design: This study takes a qualitative approach. Data were gathered using individual, semi-structured interviews. Qualitative content analysis was the method used to analyse and interpret the data. The criteria suggested by Guba and Lincoln were used ensure the trustworthiness of the study. Participants and research context: A total of 14 hospitalized patients in general hospital settings in Shiraz participated in this study. Ethical considerations: The Research Ethics Committee of the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences approved the protocol of the study and the ethical principles were followed throughout. Findings: The findings of this study revealed four main themes – ‘respectful atmosphere’, ‘patient privacy’, ‘preservation of authority’ and ‘receiving attention’ – and 10 categories. Discussion: Patients need to be hospitalized in a respectable environment in which their privacy is preserved and paid attention, providing them with sufficient authority in terms of medical decisions and their life-related issues. The dignity of hospitalized patients will be preserved under these conditions. Conclusion: Patients hospitalized in general hospital settings need to retain their dignity. This can contribute to the optimal therapeutic outcomes for them. Therefore, it is suggested that a cultural, professional and institutional background, in which all components of the patient’s dignity are protected and emphasized, should be provided. (shrink)