{"title":"Experiences of Newly Qualified Nurses' Engagement with Quality Improvement in Practice: A Qualitative Follow-Up Study.","authors":"Lorraine Armstrong, Ashley Shepherd, Fiona Harris","doi":"10.3390/nursrep14040218","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Nurse education plays an essential role in preparing future nurses to engage with quality improvement (QI) initiatives in their organisations and improve patient care. However, frontline nurses continue to report that a lack of QI knowledge hinders their abilities to engage in improvement work. In the UK, student nurses are now trained in QI within their degree to enable them to contribute to improvements once qualified.</p><p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This qualitative follow-up study investigated the sustainability of QI engagement in nurses who undertook QI training and a QI project during their degree and explored the factors influencing their engagement in QI once qualified.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This paper followed the COREQ criteria to report upon 10 semi-structured interviews undertaken with registered nurses and focuses on their experiences of QI engagement post-registration. The data were investigated using an inductive thematic analysis and Nvivo 14.</p><p><strong>Findings: </strong>Five themes emerged: transition to a newly qualified nurse, QI knowledge decline, influencing factors (hierarchy, leadership, COVID-19 pandemic, data access and location), and skill transferability.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study showed that qualified nurses can sustain their QI knowledge and remain engaged with QI where they experience positive QI leadership and were exposed to ongoing QI activity in their preceptorship year. However, a lack of QI opportunities and a culture which does not consider QI a responsibility of new nurses is seen to hinder engagement. Educational institutions and practice partners require careful collaboration to assess and develop ongoing QI learning activities that support new nurses to engage in QI.</p>","PeriodicalId":40753,"journal":{"name":"Nursing Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.4000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11503377/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Nursing Reports","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.3390/nursrep14040218","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"NURSING","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: Nurse education plays an essential role in preparing future nurses to engage with quality improvement (QI) initiatives in their organisations and improve patient care. However, frontline nurses continue to report that a lack of QI knowledge hinders their abilities to engage in improvement work. In the UK, student nurses are now trained in QI within their degree to enable them to contribute to improvements once qualified.
Objectives: This qualitative follow-up study investigated the sustainability of QI engagement in nurses who undertook QI training and a QI project during their degree and explored the factors influencing their engagement in QI once qualified.
Methods: This paper followed the COREQ criteria to report upon 10 semi-structured interviews undertaken with registered nurses and focuses on their experiences of QI engagement post-registration. The data were investigated using an inductive thematic analysis and Nvivo 14.
Findings: Five themes emerged: transition to a newly qualified nurse, QI knowledge decline, influencing factors (hierarchy, leadership, COVID-19 pandemic, data access and location), and skill transferability.
Conclusions: This study showed that qualified nurses can sustain their QI knowledge and remain engaged with QI where they experience positive QI leadership and were exposed to ongoing QI activity in their preceptorship year. However, a lack of QI opportunities and a culture which does not consider QI a responsibility of new nurses is seen to hinder engagement. Educational institutions and practice partners require careful collaboration to assess and develop ongoing QI learning activities that support new nurses to engage in QI.
期刊介绍:
Nursing Reports is an open access, peer-reviewed, online-only journal that aims to influence the art and science of nursing by making rigorously conducted research accessible and understood to the full spectrum of practicing nurses, academics, educators and interested members of the public. The journal represents an exhilarating opportunity to make a unique and significant contribution to nursing and the wider community by addressing topics, theories and issues that concern the whole field of Nursing Science, including research, practice, policy and education. The primary intent of the journal is to present scientifically sound and influential empirical and theoretical studies, critical reviews and open debates to the global community of nurses. Short reports, opinions and insight into the plight of nurses the world-over will provide a voice for those of all cultures, governments and perspectives. The emphasis of Nursing Reports will be on ensuring that the highest quality of evidence and contribution is made available to the greatest number of nurses. Nursing Reports aims to make original, evidence-based, peer-reviewed research available to the global community of nurses and to interested members of the public. In addition, reviews of the literature, open debates on professional issues and short reports from around the world are invited to contribute to our vibrant and dynamic journal. All published work will adhere to the most stringent ethical standards and journalistic principles of fairness, worth and credibility. Our journal publishes Editorials, Original Articles, Review articles, Critical Debates, Short Reports from Around the Globe and Letters to the Editor.