Ruby Z Chu
University of Phoenix, USA
Title: Novice registered nurses’ lived experience providing end-of-life care: A phenomenological study
Biography
Biography: Ruby Z Chu
Abstract
Novice registered nurses (NRNs) start their professional career in acute or long-term health care settings to replace the decreasing supply of experienced nurses. NRNs who have limited knowledge and experience in end-of-life care are ill to care for death and dying. The lack of preparation could result to negative attitudes, death anxiety, and refusal to care for death and dying. The purpose of the study was to explore the lived experiences of NRNs’ who provided care in EOL to understand the meaning of their experience. A qualitative hermeneutic phenomenology approach was used. NRNs were recruited from American Association of Critical-Care Nurses professional nursing organization via Critical Care eNewsline. Purposive and snowball sampling captured the unique experiences of 14 NRNs who cared for dying patients. Individual telephone semi- structured interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Colaizzi’s (1978) framework was used to analyze the data which included returning the transcript to participants for validation. Data analysis identified three major emergent themes and 12 subthemes. The following major themes included: obstacles in end-of-life care, EOL care challenges, and coping strategies. Within each theme, subthemes emerged from the analysis of findings. The findings of the study provided insight into NRNs experiences caring for patients in EOL. The current study has implications to professional nursing practice and education to educate and prepare inexperience NRNs in EOL care. Future research is suggested regarding a larger population.