Examining advanced nursing practice in Hong Kong and Guangzhou

Objective:There were studies evaluating advanced nursing practice independently in the mainland and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China,but there was no attempt to make a comparison of practice between them.This study employed a case study method to examine and compare advanced nursing practice in Hong Kong and Guangzhou.Method:Purposive sampling method was used to recruit 24 advanced practice nurses(APN)who came from the specialty of medical,surgical and pediatric in Hong Kong and Guangzhou.A questionnaire survey and semi-structured interview were conducted to solicit quantitative and qualitative data for exploring the structure-process-outcome of advanced nursing practice.The structure component explored the factors influencing advanced nursing practice.The process part examined APN role components and illustrations of exemplary advanced nursing practice.The outcomes described outcome indicators that best reflected advanced nursing practice.Findings:Findings revealed that in the structure domain,APN education and career development,team approach in healthcare,and support from management,physicians and professional associations were important contextual factors for APN development in both cities.For the process domain,participants had at least 80%of their time practicing independently/interdependently and were engaged in APN activities including direct/indirect patient care,research/project work,initiation of staff and patient protocols.All participants demonstrated competencies with impacts on patient,service and profession in their description of exemplary practice.Participants from both cities ranked patient-related outcomes as top indicators for their advanced nursing practice.Conclusion:This study has revealed that APNs in Guangzhou and Hong Kong shared similar work involvement and impacts and their demonstrated competencies were on par with international counterparts.Continued efforts need to be put in establishing formal APN education,clear clinical career pathway and title protection to empower nurses to provide optimal care to the fullest extent that they are prepared for.

Construction of the First Certification Evaluation Index System for Diabetes Specialist Nurses by Delphi Method

Objective: To establish an evaluation index system for the first-time certification of diabetes specialist nurses in line with the clinical nursing practice in China, and to provide a reference basis for government administrations and hospitals to formulate unified standards. Methods: After the research team has determined the theme, it will consult the development of A) specialist nursing through the library, Internet and electronic literature database;B) the history of the development of specialist nurses in diabetes and other fields;C) the selection criteria of specialist nurses;D) the training of specialist nurses system, assessment method;E) Specialist nurse certification body, evaluation standards and certification standards and other related documents, literature, books and report materials. The author established the preliminary index system through literature review, specialist interview and group discussion and used Delphi method to organize three rounds of 30 experts’ consultations. Results: A first certification evaluation index system including 8 fundamental indicators, 5 first-level indicators, 19 second-level indicators and 99 third-level indicators was constructed for diabetes nurses. Conclusion: The results of three rounds of expert consultation and demonstration are reliable, and the constructed index system is suitable for comprehensive evaluation of diabetes specialist nurses, which provides a basis for the effective management of nursing resources.

Practical Experience in Home Care of Nursing Interns: A Qualitative Research

Purpose: To explore practical experience in home care of nursing interns. Methods: The phenomenological method for qualitative research was to interview 15 nursing interns in a semi-structured way, and then the collected data were analyzed and summarized by using the Colaizzi analysis method. Results: Interviewing results showed that there were five recurring themes, including: 1) personalized care;2) health education;3) humanistic care;4) solid professional foundation and sense of responsibility;5) expanded vision. Conclusion: Through home care practice, nursing interns deepened their cognitions of nursing connotation, stimulated their love for nursing and motivation of continuous learning, and improved their sense of identity to nursing career. In general, the practice of home care had a positive impact on nursing interns.

Investigation and Analysis of Continuing Nursing Education Status and Needs of In-Service Nurses in Tibet

Objective: To investigate and analyze the current status of continuing nursing education (CNE) of in-service nurses in Tibet and their demand for continuing education. Methods: 663 active nurses in Tibet were taken as the research objects, and the self-developed questionnaire was used to investigate the current status and needs of CNE, and the correlation between the CNE needs of active nurses and their personal conditions was analyzed. Results: This study shows that 65.61% (435/663) of active nurses have not participated in any CNE, and 91.86% (609/663) of active nurses believe that they need to participate in CNE. The problems faced by active nurses in participating in CNE include funding restrictions, time limitation and ability limitation. Logistic stepwise regression analysis reveals that the age of active nurses and working years of nurses are negatively correlated with the funding restrictions for participating in CNE (P < 0.05). It is relatively more difficult for young nurses with less working experience to obtain funding for participating in CNE. Moreover, there is a negative correlation between age, educational level and the ability of nurses to participate in CNE (P < 0.05). Younger nurses with lower educational level are more difficult to participate in CNE due to personal ability. There is a positive correlation between the length of working experience and the time limitation faced to participate in CNE (P < 0.05). Senior nurses are too busy with their work to participate in CNE due to limited time. Conclusion: The problems faced by active nurses in Tibet in participating in CNE come from funding, time and ability. Young nurses with limited working experience cannot participate in CNE resulting from limited ability and funds;while senior nurses are mainly restricted by time. It is recommended that hospitals and nursing management in Tibet should solve these problems faced by nurses in participating in CNE by implementing a flexible scheduling system, and providing funding or implementing an incentive system, to enhance the confidence of active nurses in participating in CNE.