OTRAS SUSTANCIAS DE INTERES

According to the participants, the theoretical knowledge and clinical competence of the professional nurse should support the students in their WIL. It is expected of the professional nurse to be knowledgeable and competent in the clinical area where she works. Professional nurses need to portray knowledge and clinical skills, and have the ability to teach.

3.6.1.1 Knowledge and clinical skills

Participants regarded the professional nurse as the key person in the clinical area to demonstrate application of theoretical knowledge. The professional nurses’ theoretical knowledge and skills should be on an expert level for the specific CLE in order to assist students in their learning.

“She must also be an expert in the area where she is working, because if the students know more than the sister, the trust will be broken.” (D1)

A key requirement for trust and successful training in the clinical areas is appropriate and profound knowledge and skills of the professional nurse. These competencies must be supported by the experience of the professional nurse in the specific clinical area. The expert knowledge and skills of the professional nurse should be shared with students through their teaching role and role modelling.

3.6.1.2 Teaching role of professional nurses

Participants revealed that to their minds professional nurses viewed teaching as the sole responsibility of the educators. The ensuing neglect of teaching by professional nurses resulted in limited learning opportunities for students in the clinical environment. Professional nurses should recognise the teaching moments and teach on the spot.

“They do have a negative attitude in the sense that teaching is not their responsibility, they want us to do all the teaching and all the accompaniment in the clinical area. They expect of us to basically be with that student all the time when they are there.” (A3)

Trentham (2011:16) purports that a lack of guidance and assistance from professional nurses to students might lead to unprofessional conduct. Professional nurses should take the responsibility to guide students in the CLE.

However, participants’ viewed that professional nurses suffered a lack of confidence to teach. This decreased their willingness to teach and guide the students in the clinical environment. If professional nurses taught students, it would be to the benefit of students’ learning, and it would result in better nursing care for patients. Teaching and mentoring of students can support professional nurses by decreasing their workload because they could delegate tasks to the students. Contrary to this, however, participants mentioned that professional nurses could be confident to teach, but that they had a negative attitude to their teaching role. Participants maintained that the reasons given by the professional nurses for not teaching were that there was a shortage of personnel, that they were too busy, and that they lacked time to teach students. It was also mentioned that professional nurses might be too insecure to teach the students.

“So they will say ... we are too busy to help students, and then it is also, the sisters, from their side they do not understand. A student that is doing third year, there are a lot of duties and activities with which they can help them in the ward.” (B2)

This participant also claimed that the professional nurses in the maternity wards did not want students with them, because it is difficult to supervise them and keep an eye on everything they do. According to the participant B2 in some clinical areas students are welcome, but in others it seemed as if the professional nurses were scared to have students there – in the participant’s own words: “… but they do not feel like having students with them … . “ She continued:

“Yes they normally cite the problem of shortage, so I also think it is a lack of confidence with them. Because I always believe even if there is a shortage, for example, a mature student, a third year, if you teach her something the first week she comes, the following week the student will be of much help. Because she is building on something that she already knows, it is not like a first-year student. So they ... I think they are not confident enough to say that they can teach the student.” (B2)

“So it is basically an attitude problem, more than confidence. I do not really think they do not have the competence to do the work; it is just that they do not feel like it is their work to do it. Maybe they are overloaded with work.” (A3)

Bolzern-Konrad (2015:353) argues that a positive attitude towards people will initiate the trust processes. Hence, positive, open attitudes and approachability from professional nurses will inspire trust in them - from the side of educators and students.

Not all professional nurses were negative towards teaching; there were those who were very motivated to teach students. Some professional nurses accepted their responsibility, did their teaching and training job well, and created learning opportunities for students.

“And then we also have clinical areas where the staff is very motivated to help the students, and then they also learn more. The staff will take them and say let we show you this, and we do this with you, or let us discuss this about patients.” (A3) “But some of them they do support them, they are different. Some of the wards they are really taking responsibility and they teach the students. ... They [the students] like those wards, because they will normally mention it to the lecturers, ... they were happy in ward X, ‘cause we are really being taught. They gain so much, it is just that the ward is hectic, so they have to work hard, but at least they gain something. ... But when that specific sister is there then she is into teaching the students.” (B1)

Bencsik and Machova (2016:42) mentioned that people sometimes are unwilling to share knowledge, because they consider knowledge as personal and valuable for themselves. Bencsik and Machova (2016:43), however, recommend that sharing of knowledge should be encouraged to build trust.

The teaching role of the professional nurse was discussed as an important component of teaching in the CLE. Professional nurses should assist students to be able to integrate the theory and practice in all CLEs. Trusting relationships should exist between the educators and professional nurses, as well as between the professional nurses and students. Supporting students will enhance trust between students and professional nurses. Whenever educators experience professional nurses as not competent to teach, those educators will not trust the professional nurse. The professional nurses’ role in the clinical environment is to create learning opportunities for students, and if they fail to do that, the trust relationship suffers.