Bridging the Gap: Enhancing Nursing Education and Practice

Introduction

One’s education should be structured in a way that prepares a student for his or her future work. However, the educational process often lacks the necessary resources that could help students gain more practical knowledge. For instance, after graduating, nurses may feel that some of their skills are not developed enough to be used in practice effectively. On the other hand, other nurses may believe that their education is sufficient enough to become a valuable part of the staff. This paper aims to assess whether the gap between nursing education and practice exists and examines the main problems that are connected to the period of transition from studying to applying the learned knowledge.

The Gap

The main issue that educators and nursing managers are concerned with regarding new nurses is competence. Nursing competence is a combination of skills and knowledge of a nurse that he or she applies in daily practice. This set of skills should also include the ethical beliefs of a nurse, some personality traits, and overall readiness to participate in the work of a medical establishment or community center. Therefore, the process of education should be able to give the nurse the ability to learn about various competencies and teach every individual how to use them appropriately. In this situation, an issue arises as some novice nurses may be incompetent in some areas of practice.

First of all, the problem of uncertainty is the main reason many nurses main feel anxious about their job. According to Numminen et al., many novice nurses may lack confidence in their skills, which leads them to doubt their professional abilities (813). This issue creates a gap between practice and education as the latter does not provide a required amount of experience for nurses before they enter their careers. Thus, nurses may feel that they are underperforming because of their inadequacy rather than low self-confidence. In this case, educators play a significant role in nurses’ competence. The authors note that managers and educators often assess students’ skills differently, which represents their expectations of novice nurses. Educators, for example, rate their recently graduated students much higher than nursing managers (Numminen et al. 818). Such a discrepancy can be explained by the fact that managers and educators base their assumptions on different viewpoints.

The gap between education and practice is especially visible in some areas. First of all, the readiness of a nurse to become a mentor is perceived differently by educators and managers (Freeling and Parker e44). However, this particular skill is hard to develop in settings other than practice. Therefore, this difference has a logical explanation. Novice nurses do not have much experience working with their peers. Moreover, they do not have any subordinates during their education. Therefore, it is possible to assume that their leadership skills may develop after some time.

Scholars also mention the gap between nurses’ theoretical knowledge and practical implementation of evaluation practices. According to the beliefs of managers, novice nurses may have problems with accurately assessing the satisfaction of patients with their care. Here, the issue of experience arises again as recently graduated professionals may have little exposure to actual patients. Thus, it may be difficult for them to understand the needs of a patient which are not directly related to their current health issue. Communication with patients and experienced nurses should eliminate this problem with time.

Pijl-Zieber et al. note that educators may focus on different skills such as problem-solving and critical thinking (677). Thus, general competencies receive more attention than the skills needed for professional growth. Andreou et al. argue that while there is no accepted model to teach critical thinking to students, this particular aspect of education is one of the essential parts on which learning courses focus their efforts (8). Numminen et al., support this statement as their research shows an agreement between educators and managers in the field of core competencies (819). The differences that novice and experienced nurses possess do not include the knowledge of central principles, basic duties and operations, and data connected to health issues.

On the other hand, the discrepancy of one’s perceptions about the use of evidence-based practice by new and experienced nurses is evident. According to Kaphagawani and Use, novice nurses often cannot implement scholarly theories to practice correctly (181). Moreover, the first years of one’s work may be too action-oriented which limits the nurses’ ability to refer to some evidence-based knowledge. While nursing educators are confident that their students can use research in their work, managers do not share this opinion. However, the studies suggest that the knowledge of experienced nurses in the field of evidence-based practice may be limited as well. Although evidence-based education is a topic of many scholarly works, its implementation of practice is still understudied.

Conclusion

Many scholars prove the existence of the gap between nursing education and nursing practice. Novice nurses may feel as though they are incompetent to perform the duties that are assigned to them. However, the differences between one’s knowledge and experience can be explained by the fact that educators cannot provide all the necessary resources in college settings. Nurses need to continue learning during their work, as their experience and years of practice help them to develop the missing skills and qualifications. The process of becoming a mentor, for example, can only be completed during one’s practice. Therefore, although the gap between one’s education and work is undeniable, novice nurses should not undermine their knowledge and competence and strive to obtain even more skills after their graduation.

Change Process of Improvement

The issue of novice nurses being unprepared to complete some of the duties in their proactive after graduation can be resolved. While the problem itself contains many various parts and cannon be addressed as a whole, its aspects can and should be reevaluated to improve the current state of knowledge implementation. For example, recently graduated nurses who do not have enough confidence in their evaluating skills may be assisted by more experienced employees. The three-stage model of change proposed by Lewin can be implemented to help new nurses feel more comfortable in their workplace.

The first step aims to “unfreeze” the old pattern of behavior to help people to create a new system. In this case, the former model of behavior leaves novice nurses on their own, as they may not receive advice about the evaluation of patients’ satisfaction with the provided care. Helping novice nurses to understand whether their patients are satisfied with their care can not only positively impact their confidence but also influence the overall view of the hospital for the clients. If nurses help their less experienced peers to interact with patients, the latter will feel more appreciated as well.

The next stage deals with the process of change. Novice nurses should not be afraid to ask for help from their peers to better understand the clients’ needs. On the other hand, experienced nurses should strive to help new hires to adapt to their roles. It is possible to devote a specific time for nurses to explain some necessary information about patients and their behavior. The attitude of both sides should change to be more cooperative.

Finally, the last step in this process is the strengthening of the new idea. The interaction between nurses should become incorporated into their routine. This way, the staff will become used to this practice and continue to enforce the new way of behaving. Interacting with novice nurses should become a habit of more experienced professionals. This change may result in higher levels of collaboration, more confident nurses, and more satisfied patients.

Summary

Nursing Education and Nursing Practice

Introduction

• School prepares students for the future.
• Education often lacks the needed resources.
• Graduated nurses encounter a different environment.
• Some nurses feel the inadequacy of their skills.
• Others do not believe the same.

The Main Issue

• Competence is the primary concern.
• Includes nurses’ theoretical and practical skills.
• Also implies ethical beliefs.
• Personality traits are important.
• Education should cover all aspects of competency.

The Issue of Uncertainty

• The anxiety of nurses connected to the lack of experience.
• Educators should assure students of their abilities.
• Managers often underestimate nurses’ skills.
• Educators rate students higher than managers.
• They have different points of view.

The Problem of Becoming a Mentor

• Managers doubt nurses’ ability to become mentors.
• The reasons for this assumption are logical.
• Novice nurses do not have field experience.
• No way to have subordinates during education.
• The problem is resolved with time.

The Issue of Evaluation

• Hard to understand the needs of the patients.
• Novice nurses should consult their peers.
• The issue is based on one’s experience.
• Education does not give enough practice.
• The reactions of real patients differ from training.

Strong Points of Education

• The school teaches basic principles of nursing.
• Ethical beliefs are implemented as well.
• Managers agree with educators about fundamental skills.
• No traditional model of teaching critical thinking.
• Nurses develop critical thinking and logic early on.

The Issue of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

• Implementing theoretical knowledge to practice is hard.
• New nurses cannot use EBP early on.
• The first year of working is action-driven.
• The understanding of experienced nurses is unclear.
• The use of EBP is not researched enough.

Conclusion

• A gap between nursing education and practice.
• The need for experience is evident.
• Nurses cannot learn everything from theory.
• Collaboration between nurses is needed.
• Educators should prepare nurses to be confident.

Change Process of Improvement

Introduction

• Lack of experience among new nurses.
• No interaction with real patients.
• No understanding of basic needs.
• Lewin’s theory of change is used.
• Communication of nurses to understand patients.

The First Stage

• A step to remove the old practice.
• Motivate workers to change.
• Interaction of nurses may lead to:

  • Patient satisfaction.
  • Higher confidence of new nurses.
  • Better collaboration

The Second Stage

• The change in behavior is needed.
• New nurses need to ask for help.
• Experienced nurses need to participate.
• Devote a specific time to interact.
• Encouragement of cooperation.

The Third Stage

• Strengthening of the process.
• New behavior has to be standardized.
• Implementing interaction into nurses’ routine.
• Nurses become more open and confident.
• Patients receive more attention.

Works Cited

Andreou, Christos, et al. “Learning Styles and Critical Thinking Relationship in Baccalaureate Nursing Education: A Systematic Review.” Nurse Education Today, vol. 34, no. 3, 2014, pp. 362-371.

Freeling, Michelle, and Steve Parker. “Exploring Experienced Nurses’ Attitudes, Views, and Expectations of New Graduate Nurses: A Critical Review.” Nurse Education Today, vol. 35, no. 2, 2015, pp. e42-e49.

Kaphagawani, N. C., and U. Useh. “Analysis of Nursing Students Learning Experiences in Clinical Practice: Literature Review.” Ethno Med, vol. 7, no. 3, 2013, pp. 181-185.

Numminen, Olivia, et al. “Do Educational Outcomes Correspond With the Requirements of Nursing Practice: Educators’ and Managers’ Assessments of Novice Nurses’ Professional Competence.” Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, vol. 28, no. 4, 2014, pp. 812-821.

Pijl-Zieber, Em M., et al. “Competence and Competency-Based Nursing Education: Finding Our Way Through the Issues.” Nurse Education Today, vol. 34, 2014, pp. 676-678.