Nurses' daily life: gender relations from the time spent in hospital

Abstract

Objective: to analyze the everyday life of nurses through the sexual work division as well as through interdependence relations and the time in hospital. Method: quanti-qualitative study, based on the Time Use Survey and in Norbert Elias's Configuration Theory of Interdependencies. Daily shifts distribution record, directed by 42 participants - with self-confrontation - by interviews which drew dialogues on subjective aspects of the everyday experiences related to use of time, based on a job at a university hospital. The theoretical intake that founded data analysis was based on concepts of conflicts of interest, power struggles, sexual work division and polychronic-monochronic concepts - whether the work environment demands multitasking nurses or not. Results: time records allowed to observe differences between the groups studied, useful to identify conflicts, tensions, power struggles and gender inequalities in interviewees' everyday affairs that do not only affect physical and mental health, but also their way of life. Conclusion: the analytical path pointed out the need for public policies that promote equity in gender relations, keeping at sight the exercise of plural discourses and tolerant stances capable to respect differences between individual and collective time.

A autoconfrontação com o próprio tempo como perspectiva analítica no estudo das relações entre o tempo e a saúde

“…Care not only demands time, but as it includes activities strongly associated to needs of others, frequently has an unpostponable character, generating an important gender diferential 15 . In this context, we highlight that simultaneous activities, more frequent among women, are frequently coupled to domestic activities, as shown in a previous study 40 . These observations confirm those observed in an North American study with double-income couples, referring to multitasking, as described by the authors 41 .…”

Depressive symptoms and drug use among nursing staff professionals

“…If, by one side, male professionals are able to advance on questioning traditional models in relation to gender, by the other, female professionals tend to feel more tired, tense and overloaded; it's highlighted, still, that professional women's mental health is more affected when compared to men. 15 Such grounds justifies the relevance of the present study, because when evaluating professional's mental health of a nursing staff individual pecularities and gender should be considered, which rises as a very important personal determinant for triggering health issues. In addition, on the literature studies are still incipient, once few investigations have evaluated associations between depression and abusive drug use among professionals from the nursing staff, and either have considered the influence of gender.…”

Nursing professionalization and welfare state policies: A critical review of structural factors influencing the development of nursing and the nursing workforce

“…Next, the unequal distribution of women and men across various occupations, known as the gendering of labor , is thought to be linked to labor market inequities such as pay gaps and differential social recognition of roles and responsibilities (Vuolanto & Laiho, ). Not surprisingly, some women limited access to education, employment, and involvement in governance, along with the spending of large amounts of time on unpaid responsibilities (Pereira, ), both of which vary within and between countries as well as between different ethnic, social class, and age groups, could result in gender inequalities with regard to income, work conditions, social recognition, and authority between males and females (Borrell et al., ).…”