M.Cur. (Nursing Science) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This study has been undertaken to investigate the impact of group discussion upon sociometric status, selfactualization, and number of stated problems with respect to student nurses. The purposes of this study were (1) to determine whether group discussion will enhance sociometric status of student nurses, (2) to determine whether group discussion will positively affect self-actualization of student nurses, (3) to determine whether group discussion will lessen the number of stated problems of student nurses, and (4) to examine the group process and interaction of the group discussion sessions.

This study is designed to investigate the nature of the group structure at the Parkland Hospital School of Nursing, Dallas, Texas.

The problem of this study was to describe and compare the relationship of learning style and leadership style upon the selection of instructional strategies by nursing educators in associate and baccalaureate degree nursing programs. Data were collected using Kolb's Learning Style Inventory, Hersey and Blanchard's Leader Effectiveness and Adaptability Description, a researcher-developed Instructional Strategies Inventory, and the Personal Data Form. It was found that leadership style was highly correlated between the associate degree and baccalaureate degree faculty groups. More of the associate degree faculty members had basic leadership styles of Low Relationship/Low Task and High Task/Low Relationship. Most of the baccalaureate faculty members had Low Relationship/Low Task leadership styles. The following conclusions were developed: (a) Nursing faculty in associate and baccalaureate degree programs have similar learning and leadership styles; (b) nursing faculty tend to use the traditional instructional strategies such as lecture, discussion, and case studies at the same frequency of use? and (c) the selection of instructional strategies in nursing education may be affected by variables other than the instructor's learning and leadership styles. In view of the findings of this study, the following recommendations for further study appear to be warranted, (a) Further research should be conducted to determine the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of identified instructional strategies in nursing education, and (b) more research should be done to identify creativity in the selection of instructional strategies in nursing education. The following implications are suggested from an analysis of the data: (a) Although faculty characteristics are rarely a determining factor in the design of a nursing curriculum, they must be taken into account when selecting instructional strategies, and (b) the apparent lack of diversity in instructional strategies utilized in the classroom setting emphasizes the need for faculty to expand their knowledge base in this area.

The problem of this study was an analysis of the differences between associate degree and baccalaureate degree nursing school graduates in relation to the functions they were currently performing, their perceptions of the adequacy of their educational preparation for these functions, and their apparent readiness for these nursing functions as reported by employers of nurses. A questionnaire was devised and mailed to a random sample of employers of nurses and to recent graduates of two associate degree and two baccalaureate degree nursing programs in Texas. Graduates were asked to report on the extent of their performance of each of eighty nursing activities as well as their perception of their preparation for each activity. Employers were requested to report the readiness of recent graduates to perform each nursing activity, The eighty activities were categorized into the following five functions: (1) physical care and technical skills, (2) interpersonal relationships, (3) leadership, (4) decision making, and (5) community health care.

The problem with which this investigation is concerned is the development of a theoretical framework for a program of graduate education for the preparation of teachers and administrators in nursing education. The theoretical framework for the program was developed after extensive research of the literature concerning graduate education generally and nursing specifically. Additional data were obtained from four different questionnaires sent to the presidents, chairmen, and faculty of all Texas colleges with programs for an Associate Degree in Nursing as well as to 100 students and 100 graduates representing all Texas programs for the Associate Degree in Nursing. The purpose of the study was to review the history of nursing, its development as a profession, and its system of education, including past, present, and future trends in each category of education. This survey gave a perspective to the graduate program proposed in this study. hen all fifty-seven accredited graduate nursing programs in the United States were analyzed to determine the current nature of graduate education in nursing and innovations initiated by specific graduate programs, as substantiated by the literature. The data from the questionnaires sent to all the Texas programs for the Associate Degree in Nursing paralleled the developments and facts revealed in the literature. From all of this information, a theoretical framework for a graduate program in nursing was developed. A description of the program follows. A master's degree received from an accredited university is considered the acceptable minimum preparation for positions of faculty and administrators of basic educational programs in nursing. The following graduate curriculum was developed in order to strengthen this preparation. The student in the master's degree curriculum is provided with the opportunity to capitalize on past knowledge, skill, and education acquired in any setting and to build on this foundation. A research, teaching/administration, and advanced clinical nursing interdisciplinary core of nine credits is required in the program. Then, with the help of the faculty in considering the student's learning needs and career goals, a minimum of twenty-seven additional modular units are incorporated into the program. The student is then assisted by the faculty in determining program behavioral objectives and specific modular unit behavioral objectives. Evaluation of the student's work and progress and successful completion of the program will be based on the developed objectives. These are recorded on the student's transcript in lieu of grades. The minimum criterion of acceptable behavior is a satisfactory completion of the broad expected behaviors established for the graduate program. Implementation, accountability, and demonstration of these objectives are determined by each student as guided by the faculty. When the objectives have been met, the student is eligible for a Master of Arts or Master of Science Degree in Nursing Education. It is recommended that an experimental program be established to test the proposed graduate program and the postulates underlying it. In addition, it is recommended that the findings be analyzed in order to determine the adaptability and applicability of this program to other professional graduate educational programs.

This study described the mentoring relationship between doctoral nursing students and their committee chairs. Twenty-two public university doctoral programs responded to a request for names and addresses of their doctoral candidates. The Major Professor Mentoring Scale was used to measure the mentoring relationship. The survey also included demographic and open-ended questions regarding the student-committee chair relationship. Surveys were mailed to 269 doctoral students with an 86% return rate. A principal components analysis was performed to identify the structure underpinning the relationship. The typical doctoral student in this sample was found to be a 44 year old Caucasian female, married with children, working full or part time while pursuing a PhD degree. Students traveled an average of 85 miles each way to campus and nearly half had selected their program based on its location. The typical committee chair was a Caucasian, tenured, associate or full professor between 46 and 69 years of age. The majority of chairs were married and had funded research projects. The students in the study reported knowing their chairs for an average of five years. The study revealed that mentoring is occurring in the majority of relationships between doctoral nursing students and their committee chairs. Students identified many strengths and weaknesses in their relationships with their chairs although the relationship appears to be largely positive. The mentoring relationship is composed of four principal components, the largest of which is psychosocial support. Dissertation support, role modeling and scholarly collaboration comprise the other three components. The factor receiving the most positive rating was role modeling, suggesting that students see their chairs as intelligent and hard-working. Students also report positive feelings about both the psychosocial and dissertation support they have received from their chairs. Students reported more neutral feelings about scholarly collaboration suggesting that this is not a frequent occurrence in the relationship. Demographic variables including age, sex, race, geographic distance and family status were not predictors for mentoring scores.

M.Cur. / Critical thinking is the ideal of a democratic citizenry of a country. Intellectual liberation is the characteristic of the human mind, but it is learned as the individual takes a conscious step into developing his/her critical thinking skills. The virtues of a critical thinker are open-mindedness, intellectual integrity, intellectual empathy, intellectual courage, accommodation for ambiguity, ability to metacognise and acceptance of one's faults in thinking and a willingness to adapt one's beliefs and values. The nursing profession has a dire need for critically thinking practitioners, who will be able to make calculated judgements that brings about life-saving decisions. Nursing education need to adopt an educational approach that integrates development and facilitation of critical thinking in students. Scholars support the ideal of development and facilitation of critical thinking in the classroom as well as in practice. The purpose of this study is to describe strategies that can be used to overcome obstacles in the facilitation of critical thinking in nursing education. To realize this purpose the researcher undertook a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual research approach (Mouton 1998). The research design is conducted in 2 phases. The recommendations arising out of the study are based on the findings that there is an urgent need to make a concerted effort to facilitate critical thinking in students and further research on how to integrate critical thinking in the curriculum as well as appropriate evaluation of the skills.

D.Cur. / Since 1994, the government has engaged in extensive transformative processes that included the reviewing and restructuring of all relevant legislation, organisations, institutions and statutory bodies. These transformative demands resulted in the development and implementation of a new constitution and ensuing transformative legislation and policies. It is for this reason that the Department of Health, in attempting to transform the health system in South Africa, developed a strategy known as the Health Sector Strategic Framework, which sets out a 10-point plan. This plan states amongst others, that health professions and professional bodies develop Continuing Professional Development (CPD) systems/programmes. Over and above this other transformative developments in the education and labour frameworks, professional conduct hearings and national and international benchmarking influenced the need for a CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa. The problem statement is that there is no formalised and regulated CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa. The following research questions are relevant: • What is the international trend with regard to CPD for nurses and midwives? • What is the national trend with regard to CPD for healthcare professionals in South Africa? • What will a CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa comprise? • How will a CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa be implemented to ensure credibility? The overall aim of this study was to develop a CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa. To accomplish this overall aim the following objectives were formulated: • To explore and describe existing knowledge frameworks on Continuing Professional Development for nurses and midwives in selected countries, internationally and for health professionals in South Africa • To describe the draft CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa • To describe a final CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa. This study was conducted within the context of the South African professional, ethical and legal framework for Continuing Professional Development for nurses and midwives in South Africa. A descriptive, exploratory and contextual design was conducted. The description of a draft CPD system was based on the theoretical framework. The draft CPD system was developed from 9 June 2000 until May 2003 and exposed to critical reflection by the stakeholders of the SANC, the profession at large and the human resource directorates in each of the nine (9) provinces in South Africa. The researcher developed the final CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa. This final CPD system was exposed to critical reflection to confirm face and content validity, followed by a refinement of the CPD system. Emerging from this research and based on the feedback of the validators/appraisers, recommendations are made with reference to practice, nursing and midwifery education and research: The implementation of a formal, coordinated and regulated CPD system for nurses and midwives in South Africa is necessary as part of a quality promotion initiative and to meet the requirements of the transformative legislation especially pertaining to the labour and education legal framework.

M.Cur. (Professional Nursing Science) / Career planning of learner nurses, has been identified as an important tool to improve the retention of nurses in the health care system (Department of Health, 2008:12). First year learner nurses leave the nursing profession because they experience dissatisfaction in nursing as the career of choice. Miller and Marvin [ca 2008] state that career planning leads to greater ownership of work roles, taking initiative, and ongoing professional development. People involved in career planning are better collaborators, more likely to get along with their co-workers and supervisors, and more likely stay in and add value to the organization. Little has been done to improve career orientation of nurses, which has been identified as an important tool to improve nursing in the health care system (Department of Health, 2008:12). After six months of training, first year learner nurses starts to leave the nursing profession because they experience dissatisfaction in nursing as the career of choice. This problem is assigned to a lack of career orientation at nursing training colleges. It was unclear how first year learner nurses experience nursing as a career of choice, after having been exposed to the academic environment and nursing practice setting for six months in nursing. The central statement of the study was that learner nurses after entering nursing as a career of choice could be orientated on career planning that requires a career plan with guidelines or actions to be followed during their first year of nursing. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the lived experiences of first year learner nurses on nursing as a career of choice with the intention of describing guidelines on career planning for learner nurses at a nursing college in the Johannesburg Region. Purposive sampling was used and all (52) first year learner nurses who have been in training for more than six months at a nursing college were selected as a target population. .Interviewing by means of narrative story writing, in-depth individual unstructured questioning of the participants, focus group interviews was conducted until saturation of data was achieved.