Abstract

How has the COVID-19 pandemic influenced models of professionalism in health systems? In this chapter, we explore how nurses used social media during the pandemic to emphasize the importance of their profession in organizing health care and to promote the skilled nature of their modern roles to an unusually engaged audience. Drawing on comparative analysis of over 1360 articles of social media content collected before, during and after the first wave of the pandemic in the UK, we identify three intertwined areas in which nurses’ communication changed: challenging stereotypes about the profession; highlighting the physical and emotional demands of their work; and leveraging increased political influence. We propose the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to influence models of professionalism. We suggest the pandemic acts as acommunal space through which professional groups are able to shift public perceptions about their identity, work and potential role in organizing processes, leveraging increased political influence over more powerful actors. We explore the potential implications of shifting models of professionalism on organizing care, and set out a research agenda to further enhance understandings of how under-represented professional groups may communicate, perpetuate or change perceptions of their profession through agentic use of social media platforms.