The image of the profession in the mass consciousness

The issues of nursing staff shortage and quality of their work are relevant for the health-care management today. In this regard, the established image of the profession is important, as it can lead to the unpopularity of nursing profession and affect the effectiveness of the treatment process through the self-perception of nurses. So studying the image of nursing in social media is of particular relevance today. The role of social media in dissemination of opinions is increasing every day. Unloading (31613 messages) from social media was made using keywords for 2017. А random subsample (403 messages) was formed from them, coded manually by coders (authors). According to analysis of the obtained data, nursing is perceived as a “female profession,” a nurse is a Caucasoid woman in a white uniform. She works at public hospitals, her work is discussed primarily in the context of the specialties of obstetrics, gynecology and pediatrics. Her status is rather low, nursing is not perceived as an intellectual and promising profession. Messages about nurses are mostly neutral, emotionally colored messages are devoted mainly to the personal qualities of nurses. Autoimage (self-perception) of nurses is poor. In conclusion, there is given a number of recommendations for improving the image of nurses. Implementation of organizational changes may contribute to enhancing the prestige of the profession: introducing special insignia for nurses, designating career prospects. It is also possible for these purposes to conduct an information policy aimed at demonstrating the attractive aspects of nursing and emphasizing the gender neutrality of the profession.