SAGE Journals

Reinforce chapter themes with free access to two journal articles for each chapter and further online readings. Select chapters will also include suggested weblinks.

Journal Article 7.1: Khademi, M., Mohammadi, E. and Vanaki. Z. (2012) ‘Nurses’ experiences of violation of their dignity’, Nursing Ethics 19(3): 328–40.

Description: Dignity is a human right and a base for human health. This right must be observed in work environments as a moral obligation. This qualitative study aimed to understand nurses’ experiences of violation of their dignity at work and to explore its dimensions. The participants were 15 nurses working in two hospitals in Tehran. The data were collected through 26 unstructured interviews and analyzed using content analysis. The dimensions of violation were ‘irreverence’, including experiences of abuse and violence, humiliation, and being ignored; ‘coercion and violation of autonomy’, consisting of the control of relationships, lack of privacy, rigidness, and imposition; ‘ignoring professional and scientific ability’, indicating impossibilities in applying nurses’ knowledge; and ‘denying the value of nurse/care’, being the theme that verified the dominance of treatment/cure and lack of recognition of care value. Health systems should take the promotion of the nurses’ dignity into account through providing a dignified work environment.

Journal Article 7.2: Thomas, E.V. (2018) ‘“Why even bother; they are not going to do it?” The structural roots of racism and discrimination in lactation care’, Qualitative Health Research 28(7):1050–64.

Description: Through semi-structured interviews with 36 International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) who assist mothers with breastfeeding, this study takes a systematic look at breastfeeding disparities. Specifically, this study documents race-based discrimination against patients in the course of lactation care and links the implicit bias literature to breastfeeding disparities. IBCLCs report instances of race-based discrimination against patients such as unequal care provided to patients of colour and overt racist remarks said in front of or behind patient’s backs. This study connects patient discrimination in lactation to institutional inequality and offers suggestions to address these inequities.