Teaching and learning about culture: a European journey

A qualitative descriptive enquiry of nursing students' perceptions of international clinical placement experiences

International mobility for nursing students is still a relatively new phenomenon. While educators and students are both excited by the opportunity that mobility presents, there are often many challenges inherent within third level organisations and practice organisations. These obstacles not only serve to make international mobility arrangements complex to manage but also mean that these opportunities are only available to very small numbers of students. Furthermore the benefits of undergraduate international exchanges remain largely anecdotal and the elements that facilitate success are not entirely clear. To address these issues, a qualitative study was conducted to identify the elements that characterize a nursing student's successful learning during international clinical placement. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with six students who had completed their international clinical placements experiences in Portugal, Spain, and Italy. Three common themes emerged from the data analysis: relationship with institutions and countries, student's thoughts and feelings and learning outcomes and the role of the nursing student's clinical supervisor. These themes contain seven sub-categories, representing the characterizing elements of the student's experience of mobility in the foreign country. These results are useful to nurse educators internationally to inform clinical learning experiences within exchange programmes.

‘Work in progress’: nurse educators' views on preparing pre-registration nursing students in Wales for practice in multi-ethnic environments

Nurses need to be adequately prepared to practise competently in increasingly ethnically diverse communities. This study explored nurse educators' views regarding the extent and nature of pre-registration nursing education intended to prepare students for multi-ethnic practice in Wales. A qualitative approach was taken with a purposive sample of programme directors ( n = 6), branch leaders and lecturers ( n = 25) and practice mentors ( n = 35). Data were collected through focus groups, interviews, questionnaire and documentary review. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis and three themes were identified: curriculum design and content, a theory–practice gap and personnel and material resources. Findings indicated that knowledge of the most effective way to prepare pre-registration nursing students for practice in multi-ethnic communities is ‘work in progress’ in Wales. Our findings raise questions about the extent to which the curriculum prepares students to engage with the Welsh social justice agenda. Improved clarity regarding what constitutes an adequate curriculum and improved preparation of nurse educators and mentors to competently and confidently prepare students for working within ethnically diverse communities is required.

Home-based nursing: An endless journey

The aim of this study was to explore metaphors for discovering values and norms held by nurses in home-based nursing care. Ten interviews were analysed and interpreted in accordance with a metaphor analytical method. In the analysis, metaphoric linguistic expressions and two entailments emerged, grounded in the conceptual metaphor ‘home-based nursing care is an endless journey’, which were created in a cross-domain mapping between the two conceptual domains of home-based nursing care and travel. The metaphor exposed home-based nursing care as being in constant motion, thereby requiring nurses to adjust to circumstances that demand ethical maturity. The study focuses on the importance of developing further theories supporting nurses’ expressions of their experiences of everyday ethical issues.

An evaluation of a European teacher exchange programme

This longitudinal study evaluated a European teacher exchange programme within a UK School of Nursing and Midwifery. A cross case study design was employed over a three year period. A range of data methods were used which gave a clear, detailed and rich picture of the exchange experience. Overall analysis of the data generated two key themes, namely that of value and role identity. The study highlighted factors which were deemed to have positive and negative influences on the teacher exchange experience. It is concluded that a teacher exchange programme is of value to the School, by aiding personal and professional development and internationalisation. Recommendations from the study are included in the paper.

Uncovering study abroad: foreignness and its relevance to nurse education and cultural competence

This paper reports some of the findings from a hermeneutic phenomenological research project designed to uncover the nature of the phenomenon 'study abroad' in the context of Nursing Higher Education in the United Kingdom. The research question asked was 'How is study abroad manifest in the experience of nursing students?' Informed by the philosophy of Martin Heidegger, the analysis of 26 study abroad students' diary accounts uncovered six general structures, or ways for study abroad to be, namely; leaving behind, escape, foreigner, self-discovery, learning and risk. The focus here is on the general structure 'foreigner' and the far-reaching implications this can have in terms of understanding how study abroad comes to be. The relationship between study abroad, positive disturbance and the development of students who are able to recognise diversity across different cultures is discussed. It is suggested that if one of the major aims of nurse higher education is the development of culturally competent practitioners, study abroad is deserving of far greater attention than is currently the case.

The value of nursing: a literature review

This article is part of a wider study entitled Value of Nursing, and contains the literature search from electronic databases. Key words for the search included 'values of nursing', 'values in nursing', 'organisational values' and 'professional identity'. Thirty-two primary reports published in English between 2000 and 2006 were identified. The findings highlight the importance of understanding values and their relevance in nursing and how values are constructed. The value of nursing is seen to be influenced by cultural change, globalization, and advancement in technology and medicine. These factors are crucial in providing a more structured and measured view of what nursing is, which will result in greater job satisfaction among nurses, better nurse retention and enhanced patient care within a supportive and harmonious organization. The findings of this review have implications for policy makers in recruitment and retention in determining the global value of nursing.

Racism in nursing education: a reflective journey

This article discusses the personal and professional journey of discovery experienced by a nurse lecturer as a result of engagement in a project exploring the impact of racism in the nursing classroom. The findings of the study demonstrated the existence and complexity of racism, the impact of racism on student learning, the limitations of lecturers in recognizing and addressing racism and organizational factors which perpetuate institutional racism. The authors describe the insight gained from the research process and how this has influenced the practice of the first author and how reflection and mentorship by the second author have challenged personal ethnocentricity, encouraged new ways of thinking, enhanced confidence and encouraged experiential teaching strategies. The article highlights the ways in which nurse lecturers might become culturally competent and in particular addressing issues of racism in the classroom and enabling learning which is applicable in practice.