Nurses are increasingly using Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for relief of personal health issues. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to explore how nurses’ TCM experiences affect nurses’ professional identities and practices. Symbolic interaction is the research framework used. Mixed methods of coding facilitate data analysis. Sociological theories explain the findings. The study included 20 semistructured interviews of 10 practicing nurses and 10 faculty members in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. The data provide the basis for several new conclusions. Nursing subspecialty practice norms determine how TCM experience affects nurses’ professional identities and nursing practices. Mutable nursing careers enable nurses to incorporate TCM into their nursing ‘‘toolbox.’’ Among the significant findings from this study is that nurses try TCM and share that information with others, creating inroads for integration of TCM into Western medicine.
Barnes, P.M., Bloom, B., & Nahin, R.L. ( 2008). Complementary and alternative medicine use among adults and children, United States, 2007 (No. 12). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics .
2.
Barnes, P.M., Powell-Griner, E., McFann, K., & Nahin, R.L. ( 2004). Complementary and alternative medicine use among adults: United States, 2002. Retrieved March 23, 2007, from http://nccam.nih.gov.ezproxy.stthomas.edu/news/report.pdf
3.
Becker, H.S., Geer, B., Hughes, E.C., & Strauss, A.L. ( 1961). Boys in white: Student culture in medical school. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books.
4.
Beinfield, H., & Korngold, E. ( 1992). Between heaven and earth: A guide to Chinese medicine (1sted.). New York, NY: Ballantine Books.
5.
Bogdan, R., & Biklen, S.K. ( 2003). Qualitative research for education: An introduction to theory and methods (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
6.
Brolinson, P.G., Price, J.H., & Ditmyer, M. ( 2001). Nurses’ perceptions of complementary and alternative medical therapies. Journal of Community Health, 26, 175-189.
7.
Collins, R. ( 1994). Four sociological traditions. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
8.
Creswell, J.W. ( 2007). Qualitative inquiry & research design: Choosing among five approaches (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
9.
Denzin, N.K. ( 1989). The research act: A theoretical introduction to sociological methods (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
10.
Ebaugh, H.R.F. ( 1988). Becoming an ex: The process of role exit. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
11.
Goffman, E. ( 1961). Asylums: Essays on the social situation of mental patients and other inmates (1sted.). Garden City, NY: Anchor Books.
12.
Hayes, K.M., & Alexander, I.M. (2000). Alternative therapies and nurse practitioners: Knowledge, professional experience, and personal use . Holistic Nursing Practice, 14, 49-58.
13.
Hochschild, A.R. ( 1983). The managed heart: Commercialization of human feelings . Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
14.
Kaptchuk, T.J. ( 2000). The web that has no weaver: Understanding Chinese medicine (Rev. ed.). Chicago, IL: Contemporary Books.
15.
King, M.O., Pettigrew, A.C., & Reed, F.C. ( 1999). Complementary, alternative, integrative: Have nurses kept pace with their clients?Medsurg Nursing: Official Journal of the Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses, 8, 249-256.
16.
Nahin, R.L., Barnes, P.M., Stussman, B.J., & Bloom, B. ( 2009). Costs of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and frequency of visits to CAM practitioners: United States, 2007 (No. 18) . Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.
17.
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. (n.d.). What is Complementary and Alternative Medicine? (n.d.). Retrieved June 17, 2008, from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/backgrounds/wholemed.htm
18.
Olesen, V.L. ( 1973). What happens after schooling: Notes on post-institutional socialization in the health occupations? Social Science and Medicine, 7, 61-75.
19.
Olesen, V.L., & Whittaker, E.W. (1968). The silent dialogue: A study in the social psychology of professional socialization (1sted.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
20.
Paules, G.F. ( 1991). Dishing it out: Power and resistance among waitresses in a New Jersey restaurantPhiladelphia, PA: Temple University Press.
21.
Speziale, H.S., & Carpenter, D.R. (2007). Qualitative research in nursing: Advancing the humanistic imperative (4th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
22.
Tracy, M.F., Lindquist, R., Savik, K., Watanuki, S., Sendelbach, S., Kreitzer, M.J., & Berman, B. ( 2005). Use of complementary and alternative therapies: A national survey of critical care nurses. American Journal of Critical Care: An Official Publication, American Association of Critical-Care Nurses , 14, 404-414; quiz 415-416.
23.
Tracy, M.F., Lindquist, R., Watanuki, S., Sendelbach, S., Kreitzer, M.J., Berman, B., & Savik, K. ( 2003). Nurse attitudes towards the use of complementary and alternative therapies in critical care. Heart & Lung: The Journal of Critical Care, 32, 197-209.
24.
Wiseman, J.P. ( 1979). Stations of the lost: The treatment of skid row alcoholics . Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
