Jackson Jennifer, Maben Jill, Anderson Janet E
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Professor, School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, UK.
J Res Nurs. 2022 Nov;27(6):504-516. doi: 10.1177/17449871211070981. Epub 2022 Sep 15.
Nursing work has historically been difficult to specify. This has led to difficulties in determining safe staffing requirements and adequately supporting safe patient care. The aim of this qualitative interview study was to explore how nurses understand their work.
Qualitative interview study, using the interpretive description methodology.
Twenty registered nurses and nursing students completed semi-structured interviews about their work. The researcher drew on the interpretive description methodology to analyse interview data and create a model that interprets participants' experiences of their nursing work.
Nurses understand their work by its role in the healthcare system, rather than by the tasks or activities they complete. This understanding is significant because nurses adapt their work constantly, and rigid definitions of working would not support safe adaptation. Nurses report working across three broad roles: clinical work, which is patient-facing; managing work, which sustains the care environment; and enabling work, which provides supports like research and education that make nursing a profession.
Clinical, managing and enabling work have different aims, but all serve the purpose of supporting safe patient care and sustaining healthcare systems. Adaptation is a constant feature of each of these roles. This model may be useful for nurses in structuring and explaining their work and informing nursing workforce policy.
护理工作历来难以明确界定。这导致在确定安全人员配置要求以及充分支持安全的患者护理方面存在困难。这项定性访谈研究的目的是探讨护士如何理解他们的工作。
采用解释性描述方法的定性访谈研究。
20名注册护士和护理专业学生就他们的工作完成了半结构化访谈。研究人员运用解释性描述方法分析访谈数据，并创建了一个解释参与者护理工作经历的模型。
护士通过其在医疗保健系统中的角色来理解他们的工作，而不是通过他们完成的任务或活动。这种理解很重要，因为护士会不断调整他们的工作，而僵化的工作定义不利于安全调整。护士报告称他们承担三种广泛的角色：临床工作，即面向患者；管理工作，即维持护理环境；赋能工作，即提供研究和教育等支持，使护理成为一门专业。
临床、管理和赋能工作有不同的目标，但都服务于支持安全的患者护理和维持医疗保健系统这一目的。适应是这些角色中的每一个的一个持续特征。这个模型可能有助于护士构建和解释他们的工作，并为护理劳动力政策提供信息。
