1. Crossing professional cultures: A qualitative study of nurses working in a medical school
- Author
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Macdonald Lindsay, Barthow Christine, Gallagher Peter, McKinlay Eileen, and Jones Bernadette
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,education ,Nurses ,Identity (social science) ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Mentorship ,Nursing ,Humans ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Qualitative Research ,Schools, Medical ,General Nursing ,Career Choice ,030504 nursing ,Qualitative descriptive ,Medical school ,Middle Aged ,Work (electrical) ,Workforce ,Female ,0305 other medical science ,Psychology ,Career choice ,New Zealand ,Qualitative research - Abstract
Background: Leaving the nursing workforce is often seen as a loss. Some nurses maintain a current nursing registration and work within university schools of medicine. Little is known about their work.Aim: To explore and describe the experiences of nurses who work in a New Zealand medical school.Design: Qualitative descriptive informed by autoethnography.Methods: Interviews with 14 nurses over a 12-month period in 2015. Data were inductively analysed.Results: The nurses were mid–to-late career with prior clinical experience and all held postgraduate qualifications. Five themes emerged.Conclusions: Nurses chose to work in a medical school for a variety of reasons. They sought to maintain their nursing identity but the nursing profession often did not recognise them as nurses. Although individual colleagues recognised their value, organisationally, limited attention was afforded to the specific orientation, mentorship and development of nurses’ careers within this setting.
- Published
- 2017