Le percezioni di caring degli studenti infermieri:uno studio longitudinale

Background. Professional nursing caring is said to be directed towards sustaining and improving health and well-being of patients. It is distinct from generic caring; in fact recognizes that a set of learned actions, techniques and processes exist which can be communicated to the learner and the patients. As nursing students are potential nurses of the future, there is an expectation that in addition to appropriate academic qualifications they will have appropriate caring behaviours (Murphy et al., 2009). Ideally students should begin with a compassionate outlook and an inclination to care, with the process of nurse education nurturing and developing this so students learn to behave in a caring, yet professional manner. However there has been some evidence that while the educational process for nursing students does modify their caring behaviours, the direction of the change is not always positive. In fact some studies on the socialisation of nursing students identified a ‘caring trajectory’ in which students began the course idealistically, eager to care for patients only to arrive at the third year disillusioned, cynical and preoccupied with getting through the work (Watson et al., 1999a,b; Smith et al., 2001; Randle, 2003; Mackintosh, 2006). Aims. The aim of this study was to investigate caring perceptions and behaviours amongst student nurses as they progressed through their nurse education. Methods. Narrative interviews were conducted with 30 students at entry to a 3-year bachelor degree in nursing and at the end of the second year. Interviews were tape recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using a phenomenological approach (Giorgi & Giorgi, 2003; Mortari, 2013). Non participant observation of the students during their clinical practice was carried out at the end of the first and second year of education. Findings. The concept of caring of the students at the commencement of a 3-year nursing education program already contained many elements of nurse caring. The analysis of narrative interviews and non participant observation identified nine themes concerning perceptions and behaviours of caring. These were: trying to establish a trusting relationship with the patient, understanding and satisfying the patient’s needs, paying attention, respecting the other person, being competent, dedicating time, being concerned with the emotional dimension, impacting on context to facilitate the act of caring, giving information. At the end of the second year the students’ concept of caring has been enhanced, infact they described richer, more detailed and professional caring behaviours. Nursing curricula could influence the students’ perceptions and behaviours of caring, which, however, were already very structured at the beginning of their education and that were transformed and enriched with information related to professional competence. Conclusions. The findings should be valuable in terms of providing nurse educators with an understanding of the students’ perspective and the associated supports required by nursing students during their education (development and continuous improvement of nursing educational programmes, including curricula and teaching methods).