Strategies to Elevate the Brand Image of Nursing: A Scoping Review

To synthesize evidence on strategies to elevate the brand image of nursing.

The shortage of nurses worldwide may reflect a significant disconnect between the essential role of nurses in healthcare and public perceptions of the nursing profession. Negative perceptions and misconceptions contribute to an outdated brand image of nursing. Branding strategies are needed to bridge the gap between the nursing profession's current image as caring helpers and its desired brand position as influential leaders.

This scoping review followed Arksey and O'Malley's five-stage scoping framework. Eight databases were searched from 2000 to 2023 and screened according to the eligibility criteria. Results were reported according to the PRISMA-ScR checklist.

Five themes emerged: profile the desired nursing image, which emphasizes consistent messaging portraying nursing as an intellectual science-based and diverse profession; foster gender equality, which focuses on fostering a gender-inclusive workforce; develop nurses as brand ambassadors who actively advocate for a positive nursing image; increase nurses' visibility to the public, which highlights the use of media and public engagement to showcase nurses' expertise; and create empowering nursing structures, that foster professional growth and development.

Strategies to elevate nursing's brand include profiling an inclusive image, developing nurse ambassadors, increasing visibility, and implementing empowerment initiatives through professional development and supportive work environments.

Insights from this review can inform policymakers, professional nursing organizations, academia, and healthcare institutions regarding branding strategies. Key strategies include marketing the nursing profession at the micro, meso, and macro levels, leveraging media to influence public perceptions, overcoming gender stereotypes, fostering interprofessional equality, creating supportive work environments, and enhancing professional development opportunities that advance nurses as leaders.