The Disagreement of Discourse and Power Through the Experiences of Nursing for Caring of Long-term Hospitalized Patients

Kim, Hae Ok

Abstract

PURPOSE: This critical ethnography was performed to explore the experiences of nurses who are working with patients in an industrial disaster hospital. During the research process, I focused on the experiences of conflict in caring patients.
METHODS
Data for the study came from 13 informants with their corresponding patients through interview and observation from March 2002 to February 2004. The data was examined line by line; then compared and contrasted based on a critical discourse analysis.
RESULTS
Nurses' conflicts came from discrepancies of the world views from that of the patients. Such conflicts arose because of various issues as follows: Worker as an individual vs patients, nurse as young women vs the medical profession, hospital as an extended home vs health care setting, and hospitalization as a means to enhance work capacity vs a means of treatment.
CONCLUSION
We need more study on the development of adaptive strategy for the nurses to overcome conflicts during their nursing career. Developing a nurses' and patient role intervention program is needed.