As pointed out in Chapter Two of this research, the education being received by the nurses of today is quite limited; often restricted to the confines of books, but never incorporates practice into it. Truly, nursing should be taught in the same way as other students of other professions are being prepared for their jobs – with enough hands on, practice and internship that would show them of what their job would really entail. In the same manner, it is only through “real” education or the one that goes beyond the books that these nurses would be able to increase their competency in the workforce.
Their education should not focus on nursing theories alone but should include the application of these in real life as this is important in preparing the new nurses for their new experience as a part of the workforce in order to facilitate staying power and longevity in the workforce despite the problems with regard to nursing shortage. This study surveyed nurses and examined their perceptions of their transformation from novice to professional.
In the same manner, the focused interview examined the factors that may play a very important role in nurse practitioner’s developing a sense of confidence and at the same time, professional competence; these include age, gender, or ethnicity. Together with this, an examination of factors such as years of practice, specialization in a field of nursing, continued education, formal orientation programs and mentors was also performed in order to look into whether this played a very important role in the transition of the nurses from novice to experienced professionals.
In the same manner, the study looked into whether this has, in one way or another lessened the impact of the perceived barrier to practice which affected the transition of the respondents the most. The focused interview also provided information about how learning occurs on the job and how nurses assign meaning and value to elements of their work experience. The first part of this chapter presents the answers of the twenty-five respondents to the different questions of the focused interview. The first part of the focused interview looked into the year when the respondents graduated.
This would help in determining the status of the novice nurses being interviewed. The new graduates are perceived to have a harder time in their practice while those who are already practicing are more experienced due to the fact that they are already aware of the nursing processes. Table 1 and Chart 1 (below) summarize the responses of the nurses who participated in the focused interview. Table 1. Frequency and Percentage Breakdown: Respondents’ Year of Graduation Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid 2002 1 4. 0 4. 0 4. 0
2003 2 8. 0 8. 0 12. 0 2004 1 4. 0 4. 0 16. 0 2005 6 24. 0 24. 0 40. 0 2006 8 32. 0 32. 0 72. 0 2007 7 28. 0 28. 0 100. 0 Total 25 100. 0 100. 0 Chart 1. Respondents’ Year of Graduation Both the chart and the table above show that among the twenty five respondents, only one graduated in 2002 (4%); two respondents in 2003 (8%); one in 2004 (4%); six in 2005 (24%); eight in 2006 (32%) and 7 in 2007 (28%). Aside from looking into the year when the respondents graduated, the focused interview also looked into the educational preparation they received for nursing.
The results of the focused interview, as shown in Table 2 and Chart 2 show that twenty of the twenty-five respondents (80%) have an associate degree in nursing while three respondents (12%) obtained their RN before joining the workforce. On the other hand, only two respondents (8%) earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Looking into the educational preparation that one received before entering their practice is very important as this is said to have a direct impact on the self-reported competence of the novice nurses and their transition to expert professionals.
Apparently, those who have only finished as LPNs or RNs have a harder time in their practice as compared to those who have completed their bachelor’s degree. Looking into this demographic profile will help the researcher analyze the relationship between self-reported professional competence, years of practice and the specialization in a nursing field. Table 2. Frequency and Percentage Breakdown: Educational Preparation for Nursing Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent Valid ADN 20 80. 0 80. 0 80. 0 RN 3 12. 0 12. 0 92. 0 BSN 2 8. 0 8. 0 100. 0 Total 25 100. 0 100.
0 Chart 2. Educational Preparation for Nursing It also looked into another factor which is considered to be of vital importance to the analysis: their area of practice. The results reveal that of the twenty-five respondents, six (24%) practice inside nursing homes or long term care; eight (32%) in hospitals, the surgical department or the operating room; two (8%) in the doctor’s office; two (8%) practice geriatrics; two (8%) practice pediatrics and finally; five (20%) in other areas such as General Medical, School Nurse, Community Hospital, Home Health and Cardiac Stepdown.
Table 3 and Chart 3 (below) summarize the data obtained with regard to the respondents’ area of practice. The analysis of the area of nursing practice would also help the researcher in determining whether a specialization in nursing would help the novice nurses in their transition and of course, in their self-reported professional competence.