Theme 2: Professional nurses' perceptions of values and beliefs of students

This theme describes how professional nurses perceived the values and beliefs as

displayed by students. This display emerged as the categories ‘disciplined behaviour’,

‘career choice’ and ‘image’. Table 3.4 displays the categories and subcategories related to the theme ‘professional nurses' perceptions of values and beliefs of students’

TABLE 3.4 THEME 2: PROFESSIONAL NURSES' PERCEPTIONS OF VALUES AND BELIEFS OF STUDENTS

Theme Category Subcategory

Theme 2: Professional

nurses' perceptions of values and beliefs of students

Disciplined behaviour  Maintaining discipline  Respect

Career choice  Career choice

Image  Appearance

 Perceptions of the profession 3.3.2.1 Category: Disciplined behaviour

In the category ‘disciplined behaviour’, the subcategories maintaining discipline and

respect emerged as patterns of behaviour from students. Students lack discipline. This finding was previously discussed in the category ‘creator of a learning environment’. Participants expressed concern about ill-disciplined students. They argued that students should be disciplined because the values typical of the nursing profession should be respected. The following statements explain their views:

“… must come together. If they do something wrong we must discipline them.” D1

“So if you work at a certain level or are professionalism and you can enforce that to others even if they don’t like it they won’t do it because that’s just the way it is because those are the values of ward of the hospital or the company that you work for.” D2

Subedar (2008:102) states that professional behaviour is fundamental to all nurses and students should learn the rules and norms of nursing.

In the subcategory respect, the participants perceived students as disrespectful towards

patients and senior persons. The following quotation illustrates their views:

“But being professional and respectful. When, when one of the matrons or senior persons come you will stand, go to your patient even if you just go and say hello.” D1

The participants perceived students as disrespectful when they did not rise from their chairs when a senior person entered a room, or when they wore their nails long when nursing patients. Students not greeting a person, and students leaving the ward without

permission were also reported as disrespectful behaviour in Klerk’s (2010:29) study.

Disrespectfulness is not unique to South Africa, as student disruptive behaviour related to the academic environment was also found in the United States of America (US) (Clark, Farnsworth & Springer 2008:261-262). Gallagher (2007:370) states that respect involves acknowledgment and an appreciation of other persons’ uniqueness.

3.3.2.2 Category: Career choice

In the category career choice, the participants were concerned about the kind of students who chose nursing as a profession, as is evident from the following statement:

“It is not a calling to them, then they won’t be professional, and they won’t respect anything else because they are not happy with what they are doing; they just doing it to get a salary and you have to love what you are doing.” D2

Furthermore, the participants felt that the students entered the profession without passion. They voiced this as follows:

“But I also think it is also a problem that most of the students do not want to be nurses anymore. Uhmm … if you ask them, I think almost 70% will tell you didn’t want to be a nurse.” D1

The participants believed that students pursued nursing as a career for the wrong reasons; as one participant said:

“Yes, I think they still have to have the passion of nursing, they mustn’t take nursing as just ordinary work, they must have a passion for it and they must enjoy it, the more they have passion.” D2

Reasons for choosing nursing as a career could be influenced by factors such as an experience of a family member being ill or internal motivational issues (Chitty & Black 2011:131). A South African study indicated that students selected nursing as a career because they could earn a salary while studying (Breier, Wildschut & Mgqolozana 2009:[3]). This reason was also found to be true in this study.

3.3.2.3 Category: Image

In the category ‘image’, the subcategories appearance and perceptions of the

profession emerged. The participants were concerned about the image that students and professional nurses portrayed. They shared their experiences in terms of physical appearance and their perceptions regarding nursing as a profession. The participants expressed the opinion that the appearance of students and professional nurses did not portray the desired image of the profession. The following statements illustrate their views:

“The way we are dressed, it doesn’t show professionalism; even sisters you will really wonder what went wrong; the way I will dress it doesn’t show professionalism.” D2

Another participant said:

“… image somebody is working in labour. How do you do your PV (vaginal examination). How do you PV your patient with those nails?.” D2

Nursing as a profession has a certain dress code, for example wearing distinguishing devices with the appropriate uniform and short nails to protect the patient from injuries. The dress code has changed over the years, from a white starched linen uniform to a more comfortable dark coloured uniform. Nurses feel very strongly about a dress code. The issue of wearing a white uniform sparked a debate during a Nursing Summit in April 2011. This debate resulted in a request that all stakeholders should advocate the wearing of a white uniform (NEA Newsflash 2011:1). This signifies that the current practices regarding the dress code do not portray the desired image of the nursing profession.

A poor public image of nursing is a matter of concern. The participants described incidents in which they encountered negative attitudes from the public about the fact that they chose nursing as career. One participant stated that when she told someone she was a nurse, the reply was:

“Oh, no. Isn’t there anything else that you could have done?” D2

Not only the public but also the participants themselves were of the opinion that nursing has a negative image.

“I think our profession has got very negative connotations to it.” D2

Nursing as a profession seems therefore to be faced with not only internal challenges, but also public perceptions of the profession. Meiring (2010:108) states that the media contribute to this negative perception.

3.3.3 Theme 3: Professional nurses’ experiences related to the attitude of