Experiences of Newly Qualified Nurses Allocated to Critical Care Units in Their First Year Post Graduation

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to explore and describe the lived experiences of newly qualified professional nurses allocated in Intensive Care Units (ICU) during their first year post graduation. An explorative, descriptive interpretative and qualitative design was conducted to explore the nurses’ experiences. Purposive sampling was used based on the belief that the researcher’s knowledge about the population can be used to hand pick sample elements. Data was collected through in-depth unstructured interviews and written narratives which were transcribed into verbatim transcripts. A Coallizi’s method of data analysis was used. The findings revealed that the newly qualified professional nurses experienced difficulties and challenges in adjusting to the unit due to lack of mentors caused by the shortage of staff and by the fact that ICU environment is different from the wards that they are used to. It is recommended that nurses be exposed to intensive care units during their training. Even after completion they should be introduced to ICU after they have gained confidence in themselves as registered nurses. Also, mentoring of newly qualified nurses should be mandatory in ICU.

Keywords: Critical Care Unit, Critical Care Nurse, Experience, Newly Qualified Nurse