Development and testing of a tool to measure the supportive role of nursing preceptors

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Date
2016-01
Authors
Hugo, Lizemari
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Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
English: South Africa needs competent nursing practitioners who are able to apply their minds in order to meet the high patient care demands. Nurse educators must support nursing students, our future nurse practitioners, in the clinical facility because they experience various unfamiliar and even traumatic situations. Effective system, tangible, cognitive and emotional support offered by preceptors enable students to transfer their classroom learning into practice and become competent nurse practitioners who are able to think critically, reason clinically and demonstrate sound clinical judgment. For effective precepting to take place, preceptors should consider a number of factors such as the student characteristics, educational outcomes, transfer climate as well as the physical environment and adapt their precepting style and technique according to the circumstances and students’ learning needs. At present, there is no measurement instrument to evaluate the all four types of support that preceptors offer to students in the clinical practice. A quantitative methodological study was done to standardise the newly developed instrument by determining its reliability and validity. Forty-two existing questionnaires on student support by preceptors were accessed and analysed. Consequently, sixty-nine relevant items were included in a draft questionnaire. Face and content validity were enhanced before testing the draft questionnaire. One hundred and ninety-two nursing students in an undergraduate programme were asked to evaluate their preceptors over two consecutive months. Reliability was determined by Cronbach’s alpha test and validity was determined by an exploratory factor analysis. A 0.98 Cronbach alpha value indicates a high reliability. The factor analysis identified three factors, namely system, cognitive and emotional support. Twenty-four items were evaluated by comparing cut-off values of >_ 0.4 and >_0.5. Twelve items were eliminated based on the cut-off values, leaving fifty-seven items to be included in the final questionnaire. Students need support to develop their thinking operations and to transfer classroom learning to clinical practice. The value of this research is that the developed tool provides an assessment or diagnostic instrument to determine the quality of precepting as experienced by nursing students. Lack of competence in a specific facet or domain may be diagnosed and training should be offered in order to improve the quality of precepting. It is recommended that further research, such as a confirmatory factor analysis, be executed in order to confirm the value of the tool in assessing and diagnosing the quality of preceptorship in South Africa.
Afrikaans: Suid-Afrika benodig bevoegde verpleegkundiges wat in staat is om innoverend op te tree om die ernstige behoefte aan pasiëntsorg aan te spreek. Verpleegkunde opvoeders moet verpleegkundestudente - ons toekomstige verpleegkundiges - help in die kliniese omgewing omdat hulle verskeie onbekende en selfs traumatiese situasies ervaar. Effektiewe stelsel, tasbare, kognitiewe en emosionele ondersteuning wat preseptors aan studente bied stel die student in staat om hulle klaskamerleer na die praktyk oor te dra en om vaardige verpleegkundiges te word wat in staat is om krities te dink, klinies te redeneer en gesonde kliniese oordeel aan die dag te lê. Preseptors moet ʼn aantal faktore in ag neem soos studentkenmerke, opvoedkundige uitkomste, oordragomgewing en die fisiese omgesing om effektiewe preseptering te laat plaasvind, en hulle preseptering styl en tegniek in ooreenstemming met die omstandighede en die studente se leerbehoeftes aanpas. Tans is geen metingsinstrument beskikbaar om die vaardighede van preseptors in die ondersteuning van studente in die kliniese praktyk te evalueer nie. ʼn Kwantitatiewe metodologiese studie is uitgevoer om die nuut-ontwikkelde instrument te standardiseer deur sy betroubaarheid en geldigheid te bepaal. Twee en veertig bestaande vraelyste oor studente-ondersteuning deur preseptors is ontsluit en ontleed. Gevolglik is nege en sestig relevante items ingesluit in die konsepvraelys. Sig- en inhoudelike geldigheid is verbeter voordat die konsepvraelys aan ʼn proeflopie onderwerp is. Een honderd twee en negentig verpleegkundestudente in ʼn voorgraadse program is gevra om hulle preseptors oor ʼn tydperk van twee aaneenlopende maande te evalueer. Betroubaarheid is bepaal deur Cronbach se alfatoets en geldigheid is bepaal deur ʼn ondersoekende faktoranalise. ʼn Cronbach alfawaarde van 0.98 dui op hoë betroubaarheid. Die faktoranalise het drie faktore geïdentifiseer, naamlik stelsel-, kognitiewe en emosionele ondersteuning. Vier en twintig items is geëvalueer deur die afsnywaardes van >_ 0.4 en >_0.5 te vergelyk. Twaalf items is geëlimineer op grond van die afsnywaardes wat sewe en vyftig items vir insluiting in die finale vraelys gelaat het. Studente benodig steun om hulle denkprosesse te ontwikkel en om klaskamerleer oor te dra na die kliniese praktyk. Die waarde van hierdie navorsing is dat die nuutontwikkelde assesserings- en diagnostiese instrument dit moontlik maak om die gehalte van preseptering soos ervaar deur verpleegkundestudente te bepaal. Gebrek aan bevoegdheid ten opsigte van ʼn spesifieke faset of domein kan geïdentifiseer word en opleiding aangebied word om die gehalte van preseptering te verbeter. Dit word verder aanbeveel dat voortgesette navorsing, byvoorbeeld ʼn bevestigende faktoranalise uitgevoer word ten einde die waarde van die instrument te bevestig in die assessering en diagnosering van die gehalte van preseptorskap in Suid-Afrika.
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Keywords
Preceptor, Nursing students, Transfer of learning, Thinking processes, Dissertation (M.Sc. (Nursing))--University of Free State, 2016
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