A conceptual framework for the retention of undergraduate nursing students in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa

Abstract

The social, economic and political transformations associated with 28 years of democracy in South Africa have heightened the need for higher education institutions to recruit, train and graduate more nursing students to mitigate the gross shortage of nurses in the healthcare system. However, several challenges resulting to rampant dropout of nursing students negatively affect nursing education institutions’ (NEIs) noble objective of increasing the proportion of nurses’ graduation rates. For example, difficult transition into tertiary level and lack of support and poverty, have been cited repeatedly as problems leading to delayed graduation and dropout. Dropout from undergraduate nursing programme is a major concern for nursing education and health services worldwide, which subsequently strains the system as it strives to achieve its cardinal objective of meeting targeted public health outcomes. Thus, this study was designed to develop a conceptual framework for retention of nursing students in higher education institutions in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Using a descriptive, contextual and theory-generating design, data were collected to develop the framework for nurses’ retention-to-graduation model. Reasoning strategies, including empirical data and literature control were utilized to develop the model. The main concepts that shaped the development of the conceptual framework were based on academic, physiological, psychosocial, political, and economic factors. Academic support, context, and stakeholders were identified as important foundational concepts for the framework. The conceptual framework is recommended as the foundation for retention-to-graduation model for nursing students in South Africa.