ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Cultural Psychology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1412783
Mirage or Oasis? Iranian Immigrant Nurses Share Their Stories of Working in Overseas Healthcare Settings: A Phenomenological Hermeneutic Study
Provisionally accepted
- 1Nursing Faculty, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
- 2Associate professor, School of Nursing Medical- surgical department, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
- 3Faculty Member, Health Management Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
- 4Assistant professor in nursing, Atherosclerosis research center, Faculty of Nursing, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
- 5Associate Professor, Department of Medical-Surgical, Atherosclerosis Research Center, Nursing Faculty, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Background and objective: Despite the significant increase in the emigration of Iranian nurses to other countries, there is still a lack of understanding about their experiences and outcomes within healthcare settings abroad. Therefore, this study aimed to narrate the life stories of Iranian immigrant nurses who have practiced nursing in healthcare settings overseas.Methods: This study utilized a qualitative design and employed the hermeneutic phenomenological approach to collect and analyze data. A total of twelve in-depth and unstructured interviews were conducted with six Iranian immigrant nurses. The participants were selected through purposive and snowball sampling techniques. The interviews were conducted on Skype from March 2023 to January 2024. The collected data was analyzed using the Van Manen method with the assistance of MAXQDA (20) software. The trustworthiness of the study findings was ensured by following the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research.The experiences of Iranian immigrant nurses working in overseas healthcare settings are a complex blend of challenges and opportunities, often resembling mirages and oases. Through data analysis, this study revealed two main themes: "Immigration Mirage" and "Immigration Oasis". These themes shed light on the numerous challenges faced by Iranian immigrant nurses as they strive to improve their professional identity.The experiences of Iranian immigrant nurses working abroad involve challenges such as communication barriers, discrimination, and acculturation, as well as opportunities for professional growth and higher remuneration. Their contributions to global healthcare should be recognized and supported, and addressing their specific needs is crucial for enhancing healthcare systems.
Keywords: Emigrants and Immigrants, Nurses, international, Health Workforce, qualitative research, Transcultural Nursing
Received: 12 Apr 2024; Accepted: 20 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Rezaiye, Vafadar, Jafari-Oori and Faizi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Fakhrudin Faizi, Associate Professor, Department of Medical-Surgical, Atherosclerosis Research Center, Nursing Faculty, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.