Satisfactory, good and outstanding nurses: perceptions of nurses, their colleagues and patients
Year: 2012
Type: dissertation
Abstract: All nurses must accept responsibility for their own professional competence and performance but it is often the case that there is a large disparity between those nurses who perform very well and those who perform less well.The study was undertaken in response to the paucity of research findings to define what is an outstanding, good and satisfactory nurse, and how these differences in level of performance are enacted in clinical practice.The overall purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of the key attributes and characteristics of outstanding, good and satisfactory nurses practising in acute care clinical settings from the perspective of a number of stakeholders.The study was devised on the premise that this information would provide a significant basis for change in the way nurses are educated and assessed.A qualitative interpretive approach guided the study.Forty-six people were interviewed on their perceptions of the distinction between satisfactory, good, and outstanding nurses.The sample included patients, doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, social workers and occupational therapists, all of whom had recent or current professional contact with registered nurses.Subsequently, participants were again contacted to verify the findings of the first phase of the study.There were discernable differences in participants' descriptions of satisfactory, good and outstanding nurses.Five distinct themes emerged in the data analysis regarding outstanding nurses.The major themes were: Sustaining a High Level of Performance, Modelling Exemplary Professional Behaviours, Balancing the Personal and the Professional, Managing Self and Others and Forming Personal and Therapeutic Relationships.'Good' nurses were seen to perform well in the clinical setting with some vii
Author: Kristina Medigovich
Language: English
Subfield: Research and Theory
Field: Nursing
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Murdoch University
OpenAlex ID: W16258601