The fantasy image of the "naughty nurse," both in so-called adult films and sometimes even in mainstream comedy as well, is well established.
It's probably the inevitable result of the often high degree of close physical familiarity that can exist between nurses and their patients, to the degree that in some minds it generates sexual fantasies of involvement which find their way into various forms of risque entertainment.
It can certainly be argued that such depictions are in bad taste, degrading and insulting to real nurses and the work they do, and easily dismissed as silly and disrespectful.
But what do
real nurses actually think about
this "naughty" representation of themselves? How do
they react to this imaginary depiction of their lives and conduct?
Here are a real nurse's thoughts on this phenomenon, expressed in an article on a nurses' issues website:
https://www.truthaboutnursing.org/faq/naughty_nurse.html#gsc.tab=0 (You may have to copy-and-paste this link to your own browser to access it, as it doesn't seem to want to work here in this thread for some reason)
Some of her comments:
"Even though those images are often "jokes" or "fantasies," the stereotypes they promote discourage practicing and potential nurses, foster sexual abuse in the workplace, and contribute to a general atmosphere of disrespect."
"Desexualizing the nursing image is a key part of building the strength the profession needs to overcome the current shortage."
"One recent U.K. study found nursing was the most sexually-fantasized-about job."
"Research shows that nurses suffer an inordinate amount of sexual and other abuse at work ... Although it's difficult to prove the extent to which that is caused by naughty nurse stereotyping, that doesn't require that we ignore what would be the obvious results--if a profession is an object of sexual mockery and contempt, it's going to encourage sexual abuse."
"The "naughty nurse" isn't going to catch deadly medication errors, intervene when a patient is about to crash, or teach a patient to survive with a life-threatening condition."Following the article is a listing of sample portrayals of "naughty nurses" stereotyping: in music videos, Halloween costumes, films, TV shows, even exotic dancers starting their acts in nurses' uniforms.
Among the listings is the following short video of the Dallas Maverick Dancers performing a somewhat daring dance routine at an NBA Dallas Mavericks basketball game some years ago, while dressed in revealing nurses' costumes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idqsu4pg76y (I
assume that it's okay for me to post this video here, as it is rather definitely on the racy side. But since it was part of a cheerleader-dancer routine at an NBA game, that makes it socially acceptable, right? But doesn't that also make the point? That those in charge of an NBA game's entertainment had no problem using "naughty nurses" as the theme for the game's on-court dancing entertainment?)
The "naughty nurses" phenomenon is unlikely to vanish anytime soon, but understanding the impact that it may have on how some people perceive nursing and nurses is worth taking the time to do.