Abstract: The aim of this qualitative study is to explore four clinical tutors' perceptions of their role on facilitating Bachelor of Nursing students' learning in the practice setting of the health sector in New Zealand. Participants were asked to share their personal experiences including the positive aspects and the difficulties and challenges they encountered when working with students.Contract clinical tutors, are employed because of their clinical experience and expertise to enable students to apply the knowledge learned in theory and the professional competencies learned in the laboratory into the reality of clinical practice. This requires that clinical tutors be familiar with the curriculum so that their role as supervisor, teacher, facilitator, guide ands mentor can assist the student in fulfilling their learning requirements when in clinical practice. They are not, however, involved in the development or the teaching of the theoretical component of the programme. The difficulties and challenges identified by the contract clinical tutors in this study, resulted in discussion concerning strategies that could be adapted by the faculty to support clinical tutors in their role of ensuring the students receive the best possible learning opportunities when assigned to the clinical areas.Focus groups interviews were chosen as a means of collecting data from four registered nurses currently or previously employed as contract clinical tutors to work with students from an undergraduate degree programme at a small polytechnic.A two hour focus group interview was held as a means of uncovering the shared thoughts and experiences of participants. A second focus group interview was conducted to qualify information and elaborate on some issues. From the data collected a number of recommendations were identified which if adopted by polytechnics will enhance quality teaching by contract clinical tutors.

Abstract: Hospital-based health systems have the potential to be high stress environments, as staff work towards meetings the many and varied demands of the patients and their families / whanau in a situation of limited resources and unpredictable workloads. Dealing with physical and emotional trauma, and the 'normal' exigencies of daily life in what may be a far from normal workplace may compound the stresses facing health workers. Nurses, who are often at the interface between patients and other health professionals, may be caught in a cross-fire of transferred stress while also coping with stressors associated with their jobs. As well as being likely to have a negative effect on their well-being and job satisfaction, any such compounding impact of stress and stressors could have adverse impacts on patients and their supporters. The primary focus of this study has been to identify stress levels among nurses in a woman's health service, and to establish the causes of elevated stress. All staff were surveyed (with a 68% response rate). Midwives made up the largest portion, followed by nurses, doctors, therapies, support and clerical groups. The Job Stress Survey (JSS) and the General Health Questionnaire – 12 (GHQ-12) were used to help detect emergent stressors, and stress effects that staff were experiencing at the time. Aggregate data was used, focusing on the six occupational groupings and the nine areas within the health service. Findings from the JSS confirm that the staff had experienced a number of stressors, while indications of deleterious mental health effects in some staff emerged from the GHQ-12 scores. Occupational stress is a subset of general stress, making it difficult to separate one from the other as spheres of our lives overlap and interact. The stressors that were identified should contribute to the discussions and policies that might abet the reduction of stress. On the other hand, it is not possible to attribute the effects describes by the GHQ-12 as being derived primarily from occupational stress. A stressed staff member, no matter what the source of their stress might be, still needs support in order to cope. The author notes that the negative outcomes of occupational stress manifests themselves in many ways such as; mistakes, absenteeism, horizontal violence, burnout and turnover. These all affect the quality of the patient care delivered, leading to decreased patient satisfaction and and need to be addressed for these reasons.

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 stories of the women who live and work in rural settings in New Zealand have begun to reveal unique contributions that they have made to their families and community. This research study evolved from a trend the researcher observed as a district nurse providing community palliative care in rural New Zealand; that the majority of carers of those who are terminally in home-settings are in fact women. This qualitative study aimed to explore through guided conversational interviews the experiences of four women who have cared for their terminally ill partners who have subsequently died. The study investigated if these women's experiences were comparable to that of other women in existing palliative care literature. This research project focused particularly on elucidating the women's experience of intertwining the role of partner and caregiver. Heidegger's hermeneutic philosophy informed the methodology because he focused on what it meant to 'be' rather than 'how we know what we know'. The project focused on the meanings the women made of this dual role in their lives. Women already in the role of partner were now faced with the added responsibility of caregiver to meet the complex needs of their loved one. Usually they had no training to prepare them for this experience. The study reveals ways in which the visiting palliative care nurse becomes very important to them. The women's own voices reveal the high level of respect for their partners and address the harsh realities, revealing poignant and striking concerns in their lives. These stories are shared with the intent of enriching nurses' and other health professionals' understanding of the women's experiences. The author notes that understanding these women's experience is not only a way of honouring these remarkable women but more widely it will inform and possibly transform practice through guideline and policy refinement.

Abstract: This paper presents an exploration of a foundational goal of palliative care nursing which is to help patients die with dignity. The paper presents this practice exploration as a journey to gain understanding of the concept of dignity; the author notes that it does not avoid the difficulties encountered in practice situations because dying with dignity is unique and curiously also invisible and different for everyone. Much of human life is conducted through stories and much of nursing involves telling and listening to stories. Many of our social institutions are comprised almost entirely of opportunities for telling and retelling stories. Nurses are constantly listening to patients telling them what is going on in their lives and because of this the stories related here are written bold and raw. The three stories explore and reveal in-depth details of nursing practice that evolved and changed after reflection. The paper also reveals and explores the untold and often painful stories that challenge nurses' capacity to offer dignified care. To deepen the exploration towards discovering ways to articulate the complexity of dignity, the author reflected on the nature of the practice changes documented in the stories and then used a range of diverse literature and her love of the paintings and philosophy of a New Zealander, Ralph Hotere, to support her ideas that dignity is indeed a complex phenomenon.

Abstract: The author notes that responses to questions from dying people and their families are as individual as each nurse, patient, family member, or situation. This is well recognised and an unspoken truth in palliative care practice. This paper explores the subjective nature of knowledge in palliative care generated through capturing moments of practice and subsequent reflections. This demonstrates how the author uses her model of care to open a space that enables the person and their family to find meaning from their experience and articulate what they need at the time. The author identifies her interest in the paradoxical reality of knowing and not knowing and describes how that paradox contributes to her role in supporting individuals' needs within their realities.

Abstract: This project undertakes a critique and review of a decade (1990-2000) of available New Zealand literature to reveal the current state of nursing informatics utilisation in nursing practice. Since the early 1990s, nurses from diploma and baccalaureate nursing programs have been graduating with knowledge and skills in nursing informatics. Yet, when scrutinising the two main nursing publications for New Zealand, the author found scant publication of articles that pertain to this topic area of nursing. Competencies as product of the 1989 Guidelines for Teaching Nursing Informatics are a key consideration in this discussion, including ways in which the articles may reflect the content or intent of the Nursing Informatics curriculum as prescribed in these guidelines. This commentary discusses how nursing informatics has evolved in New Zealand nursing practice, situating its growth, or lack of, in the context of concurrent sociopolitical influences as well as conditions created by national and international nursing trends. Several recommendations are discussed to guide the future direction of nursing informatics for nursing education and practice in New Zealand.