title: The concept of the nurse can be ambiguous: sometimes a commodity to be used and exploited, sometimes revered and respected, sometimes rendered invisible.
abstract: AS INDIVIDUALS, we define ourselves and are defined by others through images. Our self image shapes the way we behave, defines the confidence we have in ourselves, and the way others behave towards us and value s. This is true not only of us as individuals but also as nurses and midwives. The image that we have of ourselves is influenced by and influences ministers, policy makers, other professionals and the media.