Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29334324›Full record

ArticleGlobal health action2018

The rite of passage of becoming a humanitarian health worker: experiences of retention in Sweden.

Sara Albuquerque, Anneli Eriksson, Helle M Alvesson

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Global health action, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
60.3field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 183 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Professional altruism in nursing care: A concept clarification study.International journal of nursing studies advances · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Sara Albuquerquea Department of Public Health Sciences, Global Health , Karolinska Institutet , Stockholm , Sweden.
Anneli Erikssona Department of Public Health Sciences, Global Health , Karolinska Institutet , Stockholm , Sweden.
Helle M Alvessona Department of Public Health Sciences, Global Health , Karolinska Institutet , Stockholm , Sweden.
Karolinska Institutet · SE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLow retention of humanitarian workers poses constraints on humanitarian organisations' capacity to respond effectively to disasters. Research has focused on reasons for humanitarian workers leaving the sector, but little is known about the factors that can elucidate long-term commitment.

objectiveTo understand what motivates and supports experienced humanitarian health workers to remain in the sector.

methodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 experienced nurses who had been on at least three field missions with Médecins Sans Frontières Sweden. Interviews explored factors influencing the decision to go on missions, how nurses were supported and how they looked back on those experiences. Transcripts were analysed through content analysis informed by van Gennep's concept of 'Rite of Passage', combined with elements of the self-determination theory.

resultsThe findings indicate that their motivations and how nurses thought of themselves, as individuals and professionals, changed over time. For initiation and continued engagement in humanitarian work, participants were motivated by several personal and professional ambitions, as well as altruistic principles of helping others. When starting their first humanitarian missions, nurses felt vulnerable and had low self-esteem. However, through experiencing feelings of autonomy, competence and relatedness during missions, they underwent a process of change and gradually adjusted to new roles as humanitarian health workers. Reintegration in their home community, while maintaining the new roles and skills from the missions, proved very challenging. They individually found their own ways of overcoming the lack of social support they experienced after missions in order to sustain their continuation in the sector.

conclusionsThe findings highlight the importance of social environments that facilitate and support the adjustment of individuals during and after field missions. Learning from positive examples, such as nurses with several years of experience, can strengthen strategies of retention, which can ultimately improve the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Indexed as

AltruismAdultClinical CompetenceDisastersFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMiddle AgedMotivationNursesPersonal AutonomyPersonnel SelectionSocial EnvironmentSocial SupportSwedenHumanitarian health workerMédecins Sans Frontièresmotivationretentionrites of passageself-determination theory

Identifiers

PMID29334324
PMCPMC5769809
OpenAlexW2783324769

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.