Charting the course of the nursing professional identity: A qualitative descriptive study on the identity of nurses working in care for older adults

Abstract

Aims

To explore and describe the meaning of nurses working in care for older adults give to the nursing professional identity.

Design

A qualitative approach was taken.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 50 bachelor and vocational-educated nurses working in care for older adults. Interviews were conducted between December 2019 and May 2020. Data were analysed and interpreted through inductive content analysis.

Results

Five themes embody the meaning of the nursing professional identity of nurses who work in care for older adults. The five themes are: born to care: a lifelong motivation to nursing; nursing through the noise: dedication in a demanding profession; the silent backbone: caught in the crossfire of interdisciplinary teams; learning under pressure: the demand for expanded nursing expertise and against the current: the barriers to advocacy in nursing.

Conclusion

The professional nursing identity of nurses working in care for older adults is multi-faceted. A personal dedication to patient care, where patients ‘human’ aspect is heavily valued, commits nurses to their profession and underscores their dedication to upholding the quality standard in nursing practice.

Implications for the Profession

The older adults' nursing identity highlights that nursing deserves acknowledgement as a professional occupation. Nurses should speak to the public about their professional roles to improve the public view of older adult nursing.

Impact

A clear understanding of the older adult nursing professional identity clarifies specific roles, experiences and expectations. This can help attract and retain nurses whose views of older adult nursing align with the nursing professional identity. This could help resolve nurse turnover and reduce shortages in older adult care.

Reporting Method

We adhered to Consolidated Criteria For Reporting Qualitative Research guidelines.

Patient or Public Contribution

No patient or public contribution.

Metadata

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Bolt, E.E.T. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2516-0153 Chee, S.Y. van der Cingel, M.
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information:	© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Advanced Nursing published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Keywords:	healthcare systems, inductive content analysis, nurse identity, nurse turnover, older adults, professional identity
Dates:	Accepted: 19 September 2024 Published (online): 2 October 2024 Published: 1 May 2025
Institution:	The University of Leeds
Academic Units:	The University of Leeds > Faculty of Business (Leeds) > Work and Employment Relation Division (Leeds)
Date Deposited:	25 Sep 2024 10:16
Last Modified:	02 Jul 2026 16:39
Published Version:	https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jan.16...
Status:	Published
Publisher:	Wiley
Identification Number:	10.1111/jan.16506
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID):	oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:217595

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Charting the course of the nursing professional identity: A qualitative descriptive study on the identity of nurses working in care for older adults

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