The experiences of educational preparation for the minor injury nurse role: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological study

Abstract

Abstract

Background

The care of minor injuries in the United Kingdom (UK) is delivered by nurses with an extended scope of practice. Undertaking this role typically involves some form of minor injury nursing education. In Scotland, minor injury nursing education is unregulated which results in courses that are designed and delivered in a wide variety of formats. Within published research, very little is known about how minor injury nursing courses prepare nurses for minor injury nursing practice. No previous research has explored the lived experience of minor injury nursing education and considered how different courses are preparing minor injury nurses for practice.

Aim

To explore the experiences of undertaking minor injury nursing education and how it prepares nurses for minor injury nursing practice.

Research questions

• How do minor injury nurses experience minor injury nursing education? • How do minor injury nurses experience preparedness for minor injury nursing practice following minor injury nursing education?

Design and Methods

This research was underpinned by the philosophy of hermeneutic phenomenology. Data were collected by conducting twelve semi-structured interviews. The participants were twelve nurses with a minor injury background, purposively sampled from four Minor Injury Units (MIU) in Scotland, two rural and two urban. Three participants were recruited from each of the four units. Data was analysed within the hermeneutic circle. However, as this was a time-limited doctoral project, the Braun and Clarke six phases of reflexive thematic analysis were used to structure the analysis. The representation of the participants lived experiences was a co-constitution of the understanding and experience of both the researcher (myself), the participants and is underpinned by relevant literature.

Findings

Five themes were generated from the participants experiences. 1- Theory and practice – From learning to development, 2-Those that understand should teach, 3- It was more than just an assessment, 4- Thrown in to practice, 5- The preparedness continuum. Minor injury nursing education started with theory-based education which allowed the participants to underline their personal learning journey. For some, practical-based education experiences then followed that which guided development as a skilled minor injury nurse. Within the learning environment a number of learning and teaching methods created a supportive platform for the study of minor injury nursing. For a number of participants, these learning and teaching methods were absent which emphasised how minor injury nurses need sound theory and practice-based educational experiences. Following these varied learning experiences, the participants underwent course assessment and felt more informed and aware of further learning needs when assessment of competence was taken with a broader overview. For some, a narrowed approach to assessment left participants feeling uncertain about their level of practice preparedness and ongoing learning and development needs. Following assessment, the participants started their journey as minor injury nurses and had varied practice preparedness experiences. The varied experiences of practice preparedness show what that meant for the participants. Experiences varied from feeling prepared by being supported and protected in practice to feeling anxious, alone and not prepared for practice.

Conclusion

Giving voice to minor injury nurses regarding their educational experiences revealed key educational experiences that best support learning, development and practice preparedness in minor injuries nursing. These findings can be used for the review and development of minor injury nursing education. Due to the nature of the research methodology, the findings are not generalisable, however, they are transferrable to areas of practice and education in a similar context.