Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to, through the frontline nurses’ perspectives, in-depth understand their viewpoints of and expectations from nursing assistants. Contacted was a convenience sample of 14 staff nurses, who worked at a medical center or at a regional teaching hospital in southern Taiwan.
Methods:
Using data triangulation method, this study applied focus group conferences, questionnaires survey, and individual interviews to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. This study was conducted three times focus groups interviews at two hospitals in Taiwan. 14 nurses from a medical center and a regional teaching hospital in southern Taiwan.
Results:
The result deduced three themes as (a) nurses’ demands and needs for assistants, (b) the expected work content of nursing assistants, (c) promote skill-mixed collaborative interaction. The results revealed that staff nurses positively support the role of nursing assistants. Many of their working experiences and expectations should be valuable references on developing the scope of practice and establishing the qualification and training of nursing assistants.
Conclusion:
The results suggest that the type of hospitals (such as acute or subacute care), the unit characteristics (such as workload and length of stay), and the nursing care model (such as primary or team nursing) should be considered while establishing nursing assistantship. Clear scope of practice of both staff nurses and nursing assistants is conducive to release more nursing hours for staff nurses in playing their professional roles and, in turn, leads to construct a quality nursing work environment.