Defining Profession: A Comparative Analysis

Depending on whom you ask, profession could be defined in many different ways. The first approach to defining profession is from Catalano (2012), profession is, “A type of occupation that meets certain criteria that raise it to a level above that of an occupation” (p. 4). Catalano (2012) says that professions have a certain amount of power, have a code of ethics, and have a high intellectual level among many other things. The second approach to defining profession I found was from Morris Cogan. Cogan (1955) believes that there is no definition to profession. He says that you can go to multiple dictionaries and none of them will be identical. “To define profession is to invite controversy” (Cogan, 1955, p. 105). The third and final approach

13). Power is extremely important in nursing. Nurses have the ability to change their patient’s mind about certain things. For instance, if a patient does not want to take a certain medication that could potentially save their life, the nurse has the power to change their mind. Catalano (2012) says, “Until nurses understand the sources of their power, how to increase it, and how to use it in providing client care, they will be relegated to a subservient position in the health-care system” (p.

Nurses can increase their power in multiple ways. The first way is through professional unity. “The most powerful groups are those that are best organized and most united. The power that a professional organization has is directly related to the size of its membership” (Catalano, 2012, p. 16). This is the point saying that nurses need to belong to their national organization in order to increase power. Another way to gain power would be to get involved in political action. This is needed so that the nurses can be making the decisions going on in their practice. The third way to gain power is by getting a support network. “Part of the difficulty in establishing a nurse support network arises from the fact that nurses have not been in high level positions for very long” (Catalano, 2012, p. 17). In a couple of years, support networking will be easier for nurses to gain. The last way to gain power is by demonstrating the characteristics of accountability and professionalism (Catalano, 2012). Nursing has increased this by raising standards for high quality healthcare and giving peer reviews and evaluations. This gives nurses the power to govern nursing away from non-nursing