Nursing students' perception of the professional nurse's role in four European countries.

BACKGROUND: Understanding how nursing students in European countries perceive their future professional role is an important step in creating awareness of the diversity and similarities between countries. Investigating nursing students' perceptions of their future profession could help in the design of education and the retention of nurses. AIM: To compare nursing students' perceptions of the professional nurse's role between Belarus, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden. METHOD: A cross-sectional design was implemented. The study used two scales of the Professional Nursing Image Survey, which has questions about 10 skills and abilities and 14 functions and duties of a nurse. RESULTS: A total of 392 final-year nursing students in four countries participated in the study. Statistically significant differences were found between countries in terms of all 10 skills and abilities and in the distribution of responses concerning functions and duties of a nurse. CONCLUSIONS: Nursing students in Belarus, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden perceive differently the role of a nurse in terms of some functions and responsibilities. This may influence the adaptation of nurses who enjoy freedom of movement among the countries. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING POLICY: The knowledge gained in this study could be beneficial in improving nursing education, as it could illuminate the discrepancy between educational goals and students' perceptions of their future professional role.

Challenges of conducting experimental studies within a clinical nursing context.

In recent years, several distinguished scholars have advocated for nursing research that may carry strong evidence for practice. Their advocacy have highlighted that nursing science has reached a point where as nurse researchers we need to develop the questions we ask and design studies that have the power to produce solid, translational, evidence-based knowledge. To do so, we need to carry out experimental tests on complex, everyday nursing interventions and activities. We also need to create public space to present accounts of our endeavours pursuing this type of design in clinical practice. This paper will discuss some of the most important insights gained from conducting a quasi-experimental study in which the aim was to investigate the effect of a theory-based intervention, targeting knowledge and attitudes among registered nurses regarding cancer pain management. The importance of careful practical and methodological planning is emphasised, and the need for participation-friendly interventions is discussed.