Isaline Barafort Botoni

thesis proposal

Reforms, Interactions, and Territorial Dynamics: A Social History of the Construction of Nursing Identities in a Health Region

The nursing profession has its historical roots in a training program initiated by the medical profession.

As reforms unfolded, nurses began to demand greater autonomy. The 1990s marked a turning point starting in 1991 with the creation of nursing departments in hospitals, followed by the establishment of the IFSI status in 1992. These organizational changes reflect a desire for nurses to gain greater independence from the medical profession within the hospital hierarchy.

Following the integration of the program into the university curriculum in 2009, a new reform—scheduled to be implemented in 2026—aims to incorporate an understanding of regional health needs into the initial training curriculum. 

The concept of the territorial dimension appears to be an area that warrants further exploration in the initial training of nurses and, more broadly, in the context of professional careers.

Through this study, I aim to examine, at the level of a healthcare region, how the implementation of successive reforms in nursing education from 1992 to the present day, in conjunction with local practices, has contributed to redefining professional identities. 

The study will focus on the intersection of students’ academic trajectories, institutional changes, and day-to-day interactions among students, nurses, and other professionals who share the same workplace. 

The main hypothesis is that the territorial dimension of collaborative and hierarchical relationships has a formative impact on the development of professional nursing identities, and that these identities are shaped by the political, social, and healthcare contexts in which they are experienced. 

Keywords: Nursing professionalism, Territoriality, Institutional contexts, Reforms, Identities

Edited by Laurent Visier