Nurses have now begun to recognize the implications of sexism for nurses and female health care consumers and to view nursing and women’s health from a feminist perspective. Traditionally a female profession, nursing can benefit from a better understanding of feminist theory, which provides a framework for examining nursing from historical, political, and personal perspectives (Chinn & Wheeler, 1985). Considering all modern gender discussions, studying nursing through the prism of feminism is emphasized. Currently, there are many articles devoted to the gender aspects of the medical profession. Gender studies now develop or reform the nursing research tradition. Moreover, they exist as a form of critique in nursing research (Vuolanto & Laiho, 2017). It is believed that gender studies strengthen nursing research both theoretically and methodologically.
An important contribution of feminist thinking concerning nursing is the main tenet of feminist theory – the oppression of women. Since nursing has traditionally been a women’s profession, it is important to understand the oppression of women to gain insight into some of the most pressing issues in nursing (Chapman, 2018). Thanks to the development of gender and feminist theories, more and more women are practicing medicine. In addition, there has recently been a great interest in studying the female body, the development of which can be stimulated by nurses. Efforts to involve nursing in developing care systems and structures for young women will enable nursing-oriented responses to be formulated (Burton, 2017). However, male nurses are also part of the medical community, albeit in smaller numbers. Given this, there seems to be no need to say that gender has any bearing on caring for others. For the most part, the fact that women are more involved in the problems of others is a stereotype that is being destroyed over time, including thanks to the feminist movement.
References
Burton, C. W. (2017). The health needs of young women. Advances in Nursing Science, 39(2), 108–118. Web.
Chapman, H. (2018). Nursing theories 5: Gender theory. Nursing Times, 114(3). Web.
Chinn, P. L., & Wheeler, C. E. (1985). Feminism and nursing–can nursing afford to remain aloof from the women’s movement? Kango, 38(1), 74–77. Web.
Vuolanto, P., & Laiho, A. (2017). The gender perspective in nursing research: A theoretical treasure chest or a ‘thorn’ in the side? Minerva, 55(3), 371–390. Web.