The Uniform of Nursing Students: A Strategy for the Construction of Professional Identity (1950-1960)

Abstract

Objective: to analyze the use of the student uniform as one of the determinants in the establishment of the professional identity of the nurse graduated from Escola de Enfermagem Anna Nery in the 1950-1960. Method: Socio-historical study, using documents of that time and interviews by means of the thematic oral history technique with seven former Escola de Enfermagem Anna Nery students as sources, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Claude Dubar’s concept of identity supported the discussion of the data. Results: the uniform leveled the students, equaled them and set a standard of behavior to be followed. It also distinguished them hierarchically and served as an assessment item during the course. Conclusion: the uniform was a determinant strategy of the professional identity during the daily course reality as, according to the former students, it was an element that distinguished this group’s positions and behaviors, permitting the understanding of the graduated nurse’s possible roles in the society of that time.

Brazilian Nursing Association: fight for space in the new federal capital

“…These strategies included the creation of special committees with prestigious nurses, who occupied positions of power in nursing schools or in ABEn itself, these being the credentials that gave visibility to the group's expertise and, consequently, its professional and social recognition (13)(14) , several meetings in Brasília with government representatives, creation of new headquarters in Brasília, while important support to nurses coming from Rio de Janeiro was constituted at the same time, it also gave visibility, through the creation of another state section, and prestige to the Association.…”

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“…The clothing, regardless of the time, has the function of distinguishing the social class to which the individual belongs and signifies the role that he represents in society, as well as the function that plays in this social group (Martins e Martins, 2011). It is therefore possible to affirm that the image of health professionals, more specifically of the nurse, was formed in the collective imaginary based on a visual identity created by the use of the uniform (Aperibense, et al, 2019).…”

O documento como fonte primária nos estudos da enfermagem e da saúde: uma reflexão

“…De 1980 em diante, houve valorização das pesquisas de experiências individuais, impulsionando o estudo da história cultural, social, política e contemporânea. Nesse período, a Enfermagem também passou a investigar mais profundamente sobre suas raízes, investindo em estudos e publicações com abordagem histórica, para a ampliação dos conhecimentos sociais, culturais, políticos, de educação, saúde e gênero 5,6 .…”