Identity, metaphors, and power.

Nurses may often evaluate their identities by asking questions such as "Who is the perinatal nurse? Accountable professional or institutional employee?" The author analyzes this effort in terms of the metaphors reflected by these questions as they may or may not accurately describe nurses' circumstances of powerlessness and powerfulness. The author suggests ways nurses may improve their ethical reflection by changing metaphors and assuring continuing sedation in individual, professional, and institutional contexts.