Experiences of Faculty in Nursing Colleges:
A Descriptive Phenomenology Study
T. Angel Priya, R. Beutlin, J. Agnes Philo, Nisha
1Principal, The Salvation Army Catherine Booth College of Nursing, Nagercoil.
2Associate Professor, The Salvation Army Catherine Booth College of Nursing, Nagercoil.
3Nursing Tutor, The Salvation Army Catherine Booth College of Nursing, Nagercoil.
4Nursing Tutor, CET College of Nursing, Kanyakumari District.
*Corresponding Author Email: priyabangel@gmail.com
ABSTRACT:
The future of patient care is being paved by nurse educators, who mentor, teach, and inspire the next generation of novice nurses. Without them, aspiring nurses wouldn't be prepared to handle the constantly shifting needs of the modern, dynamic healthcare system. Nursing faculty needs to be knowledgeable and competent in evidence-based practice, informatics, quality improvement, inter-professional teamwork, and patient-centred care that are delivered with a focus on a culture of safety. As nursing faculties perform multidimensional work with balancing their home environment can create chaos in their life. Hence this aspect lit a spark within us to conduct a qualitative study on Nursing facultiesof southern region of Tamilnadu to analyse their work experiences. Further the study was led by in-depth face to face interview by using semi structured questionnaires. The data saturation was attained with sixteen participants. Colaizzi’s method was incorporated to analyse the data from the nursing faculty. This qualitative study lead a hand for us to showcase various themes like daily routine, job satisfaction, work life balance, interpersonal relationship and difficulties and challenges. There were also various subthemes which gave us insight on work atmosphere of the staff. Hence this study gave us an in-depth knowledge and understanding of individual nursing faculty and improvement so that the work balance could be maintained.
KEYWORDS: Faculty, Life experiences, Nursing colleges, Work life balance.
INTRODUCTION:
The future of patient care is being paved by nurse educators, who mentor, teach, and inspire the next generation of novice nurses. Without them, aspiring nurses wouldn't be prepared to handle the constantly shifting needs of the modern, dynamic healthcare system. The most effective nurse educators make the time to personally invest in their teams and students. Nursing faculties are in charge of creating and revising curricula to make sure they comply with the most recent nursing standards, evidence-based procedures, and technology developments.
They must keep up with the most recent advancements in the industry to fulfil this essential job and integrate them into teaching. Typically, nursing faculty roles involve teaching, research, scholarship, and service.
Nursing faculty needs to be knowledgeable and competent in evidence-based practice, informatics, quality improvement, interprofessional teamwork, and patient-centred care that are delivered with a focus on a culture of safety. Nursing faculty need to understand new models of health care delivery and be competent with the use of health care technology. Maintaining a commitment to lifelong learning and participating in on-going faculty development activities is essential for faculty to stay abreast of the practice of nursing. This may mean returning to school or taking continuing education courses to maintain our competence and develop new skills. It can be extremely stressful and cause burnout to try to strike a balance between all of these demands and a healthy work-life balance. Hence this study was conducted to understand the experiences of nursing faculty in nursing colleges by qualitative approach.
MATERIALS AND METHODS:
Research approach: Qualitative research approach
Research design: Phenomenology design
Setting: Nursing colleges- South Tamilnadu
Sampling technique: Purposive sampling technique
Inclusion criteria:
· Minimum one year of experience in Nursing colleges
· Currently working
· Qualification: postgraduate and above
Data collection procedure:
Participants were approached individually and explained about the purpose of the study. Participant information sheet was provided which includes study description, details of data collection, option of withdrawal, confidentiality of data and informed consent. In-depth face to face interview was conducted with the participants based on the semi structured interview questions and probing facilitated in gathering additional information. Key notes were taken and the interview was recorded. The duration of the interview was around 20-30 minutes. The information collected was kept confidential and coding was done for the substitution of names and it is maintained throughout the process of data transcription, analysis and report.
Data analysis and interpretation: It is done systematically based on Colaizzi’s method.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION:
Table 1: Participant characteristics
|
Participant No |
Age |
Gender |
Educational Status |
Designation |
Years of experience |
Marital status |
No of children |
|
1 |
41 |
F |
PhD (N) |
Professor |
14 years |
Married |
2 |
|
2 |
39 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asso. Professor |
13 years |
Married |
0 |
|
3 |
34 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
6 years |
Married |
1 |
|
4 |
45 |
F |
PhD (N) |
Professor |
16 years |
Married |
2 |
|
5 |
41 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asso. Professor |
14 years |
Married |
2 |
|
6 |
36 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
7 years |
Married |
2 |
|
7 |
34 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
5 years |
Married |
2 |
|
8 |
37 |
M |
MSc (N) |
Asso. Professor |
10 years |
Married |
2 |
|
9 |
38 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asso. Professor |
9 years |
Married |
1 |
|
10 |
33 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
5 years |
Married |
1 |
|
11 |
28 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Tutor |
2 years |
Married |
1 |
|
12 |
33 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
6 years |
Married |
2 |
|
13 |
29 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
3 years |
Married |
0 |
|
14 |
37 |
F |
MSc (N) |
Asso. Professor |
9 years |
Married |
2 |
|
15 |
39 |
F |
PhD (N) |
Asso. Professor |
10 years |
Married |
2 |
|
16 |
32 |
M |
MSc (N) |
Asst. Professor |
4 years |
Married |
2 |
Majority of the participants are females (14) married (16) with two children (10) and age above 30 years (14) with more than 5 years of teaching experience (13).
The study identified five main themes and two or three subthemes aligned with study central questions.
Table 2: Themes and Subthemes
|
Themes |
Subthemes |
|
Daily routine |
Theory classes Clinical postings Register and record maintenance |
|
Interpersonal relationship |
Students Colleagues |
|
Job satisfaction |
Rewards and recognition Work accomplishment |
|
Work life balance |
Facilitating factors Hindrance factors |
|
Difficulties and challenges |
|
Theme 1: Daily routine in nursing colleges:
Sub theme: Theory classes
Nursing teachers performs multiplicity of task in colleges including teaching, departmental activities, conducting research, extension and administrative activities. The work of the nursing professor in a university is intense, complex and multifaceted, presenting high psycho-affective, cognitive and physical demands, because in addition to teaching lectures, the teacher also accompanies students in practical activities and supervised internships. Also linked to teaching activities in the theoretical and practical fields, in developing research guidelines and extension, sharing and offering the technical and scientific knowledge to the community, the teacher further acts in administrative activities and actively participates in the management area. Sixteen participants informed that taking theory classes, supervising clinical postings and maintenance of registers and record as the daily routine. Majority (14) participants informed that regular routine starts after morning devotion.
Routinely I attend morning devotion and have two to three hours of classes. Other hours I utilize for preparing lesson plan, power point preparation and register work completion.
I am class coordinator for MSc (N) I year so morning I take attendance and continue with theory classes. Remaining hours I utilize in completing register work and report preparation. As I am in charge for student’s nurses association I have works related to that.
After attending prayer, the regular routine works starts with theory classes, completion of registers, I conduct unit test towards the end of the unit and gives guidance and support to the students who are in need. I coordinate in efficient functioning of final year.
Subtheme: Clinical postings:
It is imperative that undergraduate nurses receive clinical education as it is a fundamental component of their curriculum and essential for bridging the gap between theory and practice. Nurse educators must take full responsibility for conveying theoretical knowledge to nursing students during clinical practice to ensure the successful integration of theory and practice. The clinical component of nursing education is essential in preparing students to be competent and skilful practitioners. Clinical instructors play a vital role in moulding clinical competencies. Capacity building of nurse educators helps in delivering quality nursing education.
Clinical postings are night mare for me as I need to go early for postings than regular college timings. Completion of log book is a big task, but demonstrating procedures in client make me to feel satisfied.
Requirement completion is big task in clinical postings. I have greater responsibility in ensuring safety of the patient especially in supervising procedures. Conducting nursing rounds with my students gives excitement and correction of care study, care plan and attending viva is tedious in nature.
I usually get heap of care study, care plan, assignments for correction during postings. Routinely I allot cases, supervise procedures , health education, conduct rounds and teaching.
Sub theme: Register and record maintenance:
Student records are an essential and invaluable asset for any educational organization. They meticulously document and preserve a student's academic journey and their interaction with the institution. These records contain vital information about a student's skills, competencies, and aptitude, making them a crucial resource for assessing a student's suitability for work and life.
Apart from taking classes, maintenance of register and record consume maximum time for its completion. I feed boredom in updating the register.
Register and record maintenance is a tiresome and boring job especially when writing admission and cumulative register. It is time consuming and need more patience and vigilance.
I maintain mark register I enjoy doing it because I am good in maths. I am interested to write the admission register as it conveys information about the student background.
Theme 2: Interpersonal relationship:
One of the most important factors in effective teaching is the relationship between teachers and students. This relationship creates an emotional connection that directly impacts student achievement. When teachers and students have a positive and encouraging relationship, it fosters collaboration and motivation in students, which are crucial for success. Moreover, the reciprocal care between teachers and learners can effectively diminish negative emotions such as tedium, depression, and apprehension, and can sustain student engagement. Therefore, it is essential that teachers prioritize building a supportive relationship with their students to promote academic success and emotional well-being.
Subtheme: Students
Only minimal relationship with students as the students can take advantage. My relationship limits with doubt clarification and discussion and not beyond that.
I maintain a good relationship with them. Apart from clarifying doubts I enquire about the learning difficulties and problems they encounter in classroom. I listen to their personal problems and give guidance.
Now a days students likes the staff who guides and motivates them and not the one who lectures. So I changed myself and maintain a good relationship with them.
Subtheme: colleagues:
Effective and meaningful collaboration between colleagues is vital for the success of any organization. Interpersonal relationships, which are close associations between individuals working together, are the backbone of such collaborations. Therefore, it is essential to nurture and maintain such relationships as they play a crucial role in achieving favourable outcomes in the workplace.
I maintain a good relationship with my colleagues especially among the team where I belong. I am in this institution for the past six years so I know about my colleagues personally. Really I love coming to college without absenteeism.
I maintain only professional relationship with them. I clarify doubts with them, if needed request professional help. I don’t go beyond that.
I maintain good relationship with my colleagues. Deals with them based on their mood. I like the common lunch area where we have fun.
Theme 3: Job satisfaction:
Job satisfaction is the most widely investigated job attitude. Job satisfaction is a vital concern across the globe and a fundamental aspect of any job. Despite its importance, it has been given little attention, particularly in developing countries. While some studies have explored parts of job satisfaction, there is a significant dearth of information on the overall job satisfaction of nursing faculties at both national and international levels. It is essential to understand their needs and expectations and address them proactively. In nursing education, maintaining and evaluating the satisfaction of teaching faculties is crucial. They are responsible for producing nursing personnel who provide essential health services to patients. The quality of a teacher determines, to a large extent, the quality of nurses produced. When nursing faculties are satisfied with their jobs, they are more enthusiastic about their work, which results in the delivery of higher quality education. This, in turn, leads to lower faculty attrition, an improved reputation of the institution, and higher recruitment of the most qualified students. Therefore, it is imperative to prioritize the job satisfaction of nursing faculties for the betterment of nursing education and healthcare services.
Subtheme: Rewards and recognition:
I have 100 per cent job satisfaction in my workplace. My principal appreciates the staff after each activity and gives feedback. Moreover principal mam is concerned about professional growth and make necessary arrangements for that.
I have 70-80% of job satisfaction because I am not getting the output based on the input given. Many times my work is not recognised and I feel depressed because of that.
I am not satisfied as the salary package is low. Though the management and principal appreciate me and recognise my work but still the salary has to be improved.
Sub theme: Work accomplishment:
I can complete all the work allotted to me in time because I am provided with all facilities and amenities to complete it. It gives me sense of pride and achievement. Many times it is not possible to complete all the works on time because I am engaged in administrative work as well. So I will set priorities and complete the given task. When it is completed it gives a satisfied feeling.
Before start of work I will prioritize the work and complete within the stipulated time. Difficulties arise during special occasions such as departmental activities, conferences, admission time, and examination time.
Theme 4: Work life Balance:
Achieving work-life balance is crucial for both employees and organizations. It allows employees to maintain their physical and mental health, leading to increased productivity and job satisfaction. Meanwhile, organizations benefit from reduced absenteeism, higher employee retention rates, and improved overall performance. Therefore, it is imperative to prioritize work-life balance and promote policies that facilitate it.
In today's academic and research sectors, achieving a sense of balance between work and life can be an uphill battle. Academics are expected to manage a multitude of tasks and duties during a typical workweek, often at the expense of their own well-being. The current academic work environment focuses heavily on productivity, and as a result, many academics are finding themselves with less time for research due to increasing administrative burdens and teaching loads. It is time for universities and research institutions to recognize the importance of a work-life balance and make the necessary changes to support their employees in achieving it.
Subtheme: Facilitating factors:
I have no issues in work life balance. I handle both areas smoothly, because majority of the household works is handled by my mother in law. She takes care of my son as well so I concentrate on my work without any tension.
I get up early in the morning 4 am complete my household works reach college in time and prioritize myself for the day’s work. My children are grown up and I concentrate only on the studies which I can manage in the evening time.
I am supported by my parents in house hold works and my colleagues help me in the college work so maintaining balance life has become easier.
Subtheme: Hindrance factors:
Many times I have faced difficulties as my husband is working abroad and I have no one to take care of my children. So on regular days I don’t face any difficulties but during special occasions like university examination, admission time, conference, inspection I have to spend long time in college this distort my balance.
Professional advancement activities like research works, attending seminar conference disrupt the normal routine activities so some difficulties are faced in disrupting the work life balance.
Theme 5: Difficulties and challenges:
I have difficulty in accommodating with newer syllabus. As years goes on I hope I will get accustomed to it. Capturing student’s attention is another challenge that I face often.
I am much worried about the discipline of the students. After COVID I could see tremendous changes in student’s behaviour. Students are expecting activity related learning than lecture classes.
Log book completion is the major challenge and majority of the college management are student centric and it adds on burden for the staff. Their attention span is less so taking class for more than half an hour is difficult.
CONCLUSION:
Nursing faculty members are the backbone of the nursing profession, and their role is critical in strengthening the nursing workforce. The job satisfaction of nurse educators is a vital factor that impacts their productivity, motivation, absenteeism, tardiness, accidents, mental/physical health, and overall life satisfaction. Workplace and physical working conditions can significantly impact their satisfaction level. However, the COVID-19 pandemic's rapid shift to online teaching has created additional stress and workload issues for nurse faculty, leading to burnout. This situation poses a severe threat to the nursing profession and national healthcare system, which continues to face a shortage of nursing faculty. The growth of the nursing workforce is directly linked to the retention of qualified nursing faculty. Therefore, it is vital to promote work–life balance and workload management for nursing faculty members by reducing teaching assignments and service commitments, providing adequate time for research activities, and pausing the tenure clock for pre-tenured faculty. Such measures will not only improve faculty satisfaction and retention but also benefit the overall nursing profession and the national healthcare system.
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Received on 16.03.2024 Modified on 20.05.2024
Accepted on 04.07.2024 ©A&V Publications All right reserved
Asian J. Nursing Education and Research. 2024; 14(3):173-177.
DOI: 10.52711/2349-2996.2024.00034