Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Roll Out The Red Carpet: Australian Nurses On Screen, Cathy Bridgen, Lisa Milner

Dr Lisa Milner

Cultural connections with caring and femininity have long been associated with the nursing profession, with mainstream media representations often reinforcing stereotypical depictions of nurses. Although more recent mainstream media portrayals increasingly depict nurses as strong, assertive professionals, little research has been conducted into films made by nurses. When nurses take on the filmmaking task, different outcomes are produced, and when their trade union is involved, unionist filmmaking becomes an organizing strategy. This qualitative study, using content and document analysis and interviews, analyzes a selection of films made by, for, and about Australian unionized nurses. We examine a generation of nurse-made …