Abstract: Therapeutic relationships are central to mental health nursing. The nurse's role in maintaining professional yet therapeutic boundaries within this relationship can be challenging. When therapeutic boundaries are breeched within the nurse adolescent relationship the adolescent's safety within this relationship is compromised. There is currently limited literature on how nurses are managing professional boundaries in relationships with adolescents in this setting. The adolescent's nature is to push boundaries; therefore the nurse needs to be acutely aware of this boundary pushing in everyday practice settings. For the safety of the adolescent and the nurse it is vital the nurse understands her role in managing the professional boundary. This thesis explores, through the use of narrative inquiry, four adolescent mental health nurses' experiences of assessing, understanding and maintaining therapeutic boundaries with adolescents in a mental health setting in New Zealand. The unique and specific implications for adolescent mental health nursing are discussed. Three key themes emerged from the analysis and findings: the importance of the nurse clarifying his/her role; the learning that occurs throughout the practice journey; and the role of the nurse in keeping the adolescent and the nurse safe. These findings highlight the importance of clinical supervision and open communication with senior nurses and mentors, which assist the nurse in monitoring practice. When nurses do not have sufficient knowledge of the fundamental principles of adolescent mental health nursing; such as knowledge and skills in both adolescent development and psychodynamic nursing, they are at risk of boundary crossings. Recommendations from this research include more emphasis on psychodynamic nursing principles in nursing education and nursing practice. There is a need for specialised education for nurses in child and adolescent mental health nursing. Nursing entry to practice programmes for new graduate nurses working in mental health, could assist in providing this. There is a call for further research into therapeutic relationships and professional boundaries in this complex nursing specialty.

Abstract: In this review, the author illustrates the connection between diabetes, stress and barriers to care, and the impact these have on Maori who have type 2 diabetes. A literature review, which focused mainly on indigenous peoples, and more specifically on Maori was undertaken. The connections between all the factors involved are explored, and combined with reflections from the author's own clinical practice experience. She argues that stress, diet, exercise and barriers to care place a heavy burden on the lives of Maori who live in Aotearoa/New Zealand, suffering from the disease of diabetes. By empowering them to face their situation and see this from a wellness rather than an illness perspective, they can take control of their diabetes and so will live a healthy, longer life, ensuring quality time with their mokopuna/grandchildren.

Abstract: The Primary Health Care Strategy (PHCS) has a stated commitment to defined populations who suffer disproportionately from ill health. This thesis examines whether some prevailing discourses actually decrease the focus on health inequalities. A study of the nursing and medical media found that it focused predominantly on professional and industrial issues, leaving health workers focused mainly on their own professional interests, rather than considering the effects on health inequalities. She goes on to suggest that current Ministry of Health discourse values decentralised community health decision making. This may gloss over factors in community health which are affected by Government policy such as employment policy, and thus should be dealt with centrally by legislation. These factors have been found to be the most pertinent in health inequalities. So while models of community partnerships may seem to place communities as agents in their own health, this downplays the determinants of health which are beyond their control. Having shown that discourse can decrease the focus on health inequalities due to other professional and political drivers, the author then looked at health initiative concepts which are effective, efficient and equitable given the current set up of PHOs and nursing innovations.

Abstract: The aims of this study were to illuminate the joint constructions of exemplary nurses and their lived experiences of being and becoming one. Inherent in being 'exemplary' was the notion of 'becoming', which involved the integration of knowledge and experiences through reflecting on the day-to-day of 'being a nurse'. Being exemplary was not about perfection but learning from every experience and integrating these into becoming. The author developed a creative qualitative and participatory method. Ten exemplary nurses were recruited and interviewed three times. They also provided supplementary data such as photos, poetry and writings. Analysis occurred through first and second level categorising and the use of writing as method. Writing became a way of knowing – assisting discovery and allowing reflection on the data in order to connect the categories and themes together in a coherent and workable whole. The author reports that the above method led to the following emergent findings. The pivotal construct was Authentic Being, through living a reflective life, surrounded by the major constructs of Love of Nursing, Making a Difference, Critical Friends, Walking the Talk and Backpack patients. These constructs directed a specific and comprehensive review of both the philosophical and nursing literature. This review was not used to expand or enlarge the findings but to enlighten, illuminate and clarify. Significant philosophical ideas were extended, developed and synthesised with the findings. The author suggests that the new knowledge that emerged from this research has profound implications for everyday nursing practice, undergraduate and post graduate nursing education, and for Charge Nurses and Senior Nurses, who are of vital importance as role models, mentors and critical friends. The results are significant and are important for nurses and the nursing profession and contribute to, and advance, nursing knowledge.

Abstract: In 2003 the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act was introduced and established separate regulatory authorities for nursing and midwifery. This study is designed to explore the experiences of dually registered practitioners affected by this divide, as now there are two separate and possible paths, and two corresponding sets of competencies to fulfil. The design for this qualitative descriptive study utilised the written and oral narratives of three practitioners affected by this professional regulation and demonstrated its impact on their career development. Individual storytelling, as narrative, provided a theoretical lens aiding insight into their experience and pattern of decision making. In addition, symbolic consideration of the study data was provided by collective storytelling via the perennial myth of the hero journey. Shifting professional ground following the Health Practitioners Competence Act 2003 generated a focus for the inquiry into practitioners' modes of adjustment. For the practitioners in the study, transition between the occupational roles of nursing and midwifery comprised the possible career trajectories. A status passage, as the process of change from one social status to another, is described and includes the transitional experience of anticipation, expectation, contrast, and change. The author suggests that the findings from this research provide illumination of the nuances of professional decision making as a lived experience, and highlight how these practitioners dealt with shifting meaning, values, awareness, choices, and relationships. Aspects of group agency and identity, change management, and professional role transition were revealed. Life pattern, revealed through narrative, was an important research construct for exposing the ways in which the participants negotiated change, and displayed the function of their thinking and reasoning through dilemmas. Perception of individual and group identity revealed attitudes of esteem to the dominant discourse, and exposed dynamic tension between work patterns and life stage. Renegotiating arrangements of personal and professional commitment resulted from this dynamic interplay, and the relationship to stress and burnout was explored.

Abstract: The transition of patients from intensive care to the ward environment is a regular occurrence in intensive care. Today patients are often transferred earlier and sicker due to the demands for intensive care beds. This results in patients with higher acuity being cared for in the wards. Here ward nurses have to meet the ongoing complex demands of caring for higher acuity patients, alongside managing high patient-to-nurse ratios, staffing concerns, and varying levels of experienced nurses. This research explored the experiences of ward nurses receiving patients transferred from intensive care. The aims were to identify any areas of concern, highlight specific problems that occur on transition and to address what information is pertinent to ward nurses when receiving patients from intensive care. A qualitative descriptive methodology using focus groups was utilised to gather information about these experiences. Three focus groups were held with ward nurses from various wards within the study setting hospital. All participants had considerable contact with intensive care and were familiar with the processes of transferring patients. Five themes emerged from the focus groups – Patients as intensive care staff say they are; Time to prepare the biggest thing; Documentation as a continuation of patient care; They forget what its like; and Families, a need to know about them. The theme Patients as intensive care staff say they are relates to reliable information sharing focused on the patient, their needs and condition. Participants expressed their concern that patients were not always in the condition that the intensive care staff stated they were on the referral. Having adequate time to prepare was considered important for the majority of ward nurses receiving patients from intensive care. Documentation was highlighted in the theme Documentation as a continuation of patient care particularly in relation to fluid balances and vital sign history. The theme They forget what its like suggests there is a perception that intensive care nurses have a lack of understanding of what the ward staff can actually manage. Decreased staffing levels during certain shift patterns and a lack of appropriately experienced staff on the wards is a common concern for ward nurses. Ward nurses also recognised that caring for families was part of their role. Patients and families may respond differently to the transfer process and their inclusion in transfer planning was seen as essential. Communication was a reoccurring element throughout all themes.The author concludes that communication is the paramount factor that impacts on a 'smooth transition' for ward nurses. A 'smooth transition' refers to the transfer of patients from intensive care to the next level of care. Subsequently, nurses' perceptions need to change, whereby transfer planning from ICU should be the focus rather than discharge planning. Transfer planning and education for all nursing staff is vital if the transfer process is to be improved. Consequently, transitional care within the context of ICU aims to ensure minimal disruption and optimal continuity of care for the patient. The knowledge gained from this research may provide better understanding of the multifaceted issues linked with transitional care that may be adapted for a wider range of patients in various clinical environments.

Abstract: The author suggests that the thesis as a production of disciplined work presented in a creative style is congruent with performance and presentation best practice in community arts. As a practising nurse artist the author describes creating spaces of alternate ordering within the mental health field environment. “I also inhabit the marginal space of the artist working in hospital environments. This Other Place neither condones nor denies the existence of the mental health field environment as it is revealed. Yet, it seeks to find an alternative to the power and subjectivity of the [social] control of people with an experience of mental illness that inhabit this place both voluntarily and involuntarily. I have used a variety of texts to explore the experience and concept of Otherness. The poems are intended to take you, as a reader where you could not perhaps emotionally and physically go, or might have never envisaged going. They also allow me as the author to more fully describe the Otherness of place that is neither the consumer story nor the nurse's notation, but somewhere alternately ordered to these two spaces. Drawing on the heuristic research approaches of Moustakas and literary psychogeography , particularly the work of Guy Debord, this thesis creates the space to explore the possibilities of resistance and change and the emergence of the identity of the nurse artist within the mental health field environment”.

Abstract: This thesis describes the journey of a practicing independent nurse practitioner and naturopath through the stories of five clients. The thesis is presented as a narrative and begins with an account of the events in the practitioner's life that lead to the specific study of natural therapies and the development of a cohesive practice using holistic health practices from a nursing perspective. The text essentially describes the process of establishing a private practice combining two disciplines of nursing and naturopathy in New Zealand. The study reveals how a nurse and naturopath's practice is based on the premise that it is crucial to recognise that the personal life and professional life of the nurse inform and influence each other and are always part of the process of care in such a practice. Three healing modalities that are central to the practice are described in detail. The description is informed by theory and research from nursing, the social sciences and the natural sciences. The study reveals the practical value of postmodern nurse theorists, Jean Watson and Margaret Newman to this practice. This study also briefly discusses the concepts from quantum theory, evolutionary theory and psychoneuroirnmunology that are used in the practice.