NURSE TEACHERS FEELINGS ABOUT PARTICIPATING IN CLINICAL-PRACTICE - ANEXPLORATORY-STUDY

The aim of this small study was to explore nurse teachers' feelings ab out participating in clinical practice. An exploratory design was used entailing focused interviews with 10 nurse teachers which explored th eir current participation in clinical practice and their feelings abou t this. Other areas addressed were the perceived benefits and negative effects of participating in practice, as well as the factors which ma y inhibit or enable teachers participating in practice. It was found t hat while half the teachers had some participation in practice, only o ne participated on a regular basis. The teachers were generally dissat isfied with their current level of clinical practice. The teachers ide ntified a number of potential benefits of practising, including keepin g in touch with clinical practice, maintenance of clinical skills, imp roved relationships with trained staff and the opportunity to use know ledge and skills in practice. Perceived negative effects were that the ir clinical participation may be misinterpreted, or may impinge on oth er aspects of the role. Some also felt that the limited time which the y would have available, would lead to their clinical practice being in effective. The two major factors which affected whether nurse teachers were able to participate in practice were time and the college philos ophy/culture. Other important factors were support from clinical staff , clinical confidence, and the teacher's role perception and attitude towards practice. As recent publications have inferred the need for nu rse teachers to remain involved in clinical practice, teachers need to identify how clinical practice may best be achieved, and clarify thei r aims for practising. Different models of practice may be appropriate for individual teachers. It seems that a supportive environment and a college culture which values nurse teachers practising would be benef icial if clinical practice is to become part of the teacher's role.