The purpose of this research was to discover the extent
to which practising registered nurses in the ACT
undertake physical assessment. It was also organized to
discover the perceived reasons why, in appropriate
instances, it was not undertaken and the extent to which
certain variables may have influenced its practice or
non-practice. It was directed also at discovering the
extent to which the practising registered nurse would be
prepared to undertake workshops on the subject, so that,
if appropriate, a core of registered nurses could be
provided to act as the role-models and to create the
necessary learning environment in the ACT hospitals and
agencies where most of the Canberra College's graduates
would find employment.
Since the first undergraduate course in nursing was
introduced in the tertiary sector, nurse academics have
placed significant emphasis on the teaching of the
nursing process. It is within the first phase of this
process, the assessment phase, that the physical
assessment of the patient/client is conducted.
Discussions with practising registered nurses and
observations, led to some uncertainty as to the extent
to which physical assessment was actually being used. A
review of the literature showed that no investigation of
the matter had been reported in the Australian
literature. It was, therefore, proposed to make good
this deficiency and to resolve any uncertainty about the
extent of use of physical assessment in the ACT.
This study was restricted to registered nurses in the
ACT where all beginning nurses are educated at the CCAE
with a curriculum which includes a comprehensive study
of physical assessment. Even so, it is recognized that
such studies will only reach a beginning level of
competency. In order to ensure that the graduates of
these courses extend their competency in physical
assessment they need to be able to use these skills in
every day nursing practice.
This research, therefore, was conducted using a
questionnaire which incorporated questions about the use
of 36 physical assessment skills. The survey, on a onetime
participation basis, was conducted for all
registered nurses rostered on a fortnightly period in
April 1987. A 66.7% response rate was achieved.
The responses were analyzed and the findings, results
and recommendations are included in the appropriate
sections of this thesis.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/218709 |
| Date | January 1988 |
| Creators | James, Jennifer Ann, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Education |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Jennifer Ann James |
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