JNPD
Journal for Nurses in Professional Development & Volume 30, Number 1, 34Y41 & Copyright B 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Evaluation of a Reflective Practice Intervention to Enhance Hospitalized Elderly Care A Mixed Method Study Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN
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Francine Ducharme, PhD, RN
The purpose of this mixed method study was to evaluate effects of a reflective practice intervention on the attitudes, knowledge, and interventions of nurses who care for hospitalized older adults. The study showed the potential of using a reflective practice intervention as a professional development approach to improve nurses’ attitudes toward older adults.
T
he aging population requires that nurses adapt their professional practice to the specific needs of hospitalized older adults. The need of seniors to maintain autonomy is often inconsistent with the increased workload of nurses in hospitals, the lack of gerontology training for most nurses, and the negative attitudes and stereotypes regarding older adults. In this context, professional development should be maintained and supported in clinical settings where there is a desire to offer better care and services to elderly patients. Reflective practice (RP), defined as being a learning and development process through self-assessment of professional practice that includes experiences, thoughts, emotions, actions, and knowledge (Atkins, 2004; Duffy, 2007), can be used to promote the professional development of nurses (Andrews, 1996; Gustafsson & Fagerberg, 2004; Johns & Freshwater, 2005). RP, which involves reviewing practical experience to describe, analyze, and assess it, requires the acquisition and development of various skills, such as awareness of self and others, critical analysis, and evaluation (Atkins, 2004). RP can be operationalized through
Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN, is Assistant Professor, Faculty of Nursing, Universite´ de Montre´al, Canada. Francine Ducharme, PhD, RN, is Full Professor, Chairholder of Desjardins Research Chair in Nursing Care for Seniors and Their Families, Faculty of Nursing, Research Centre, Institut Universitaire de Ge´riatrie de Montre´al, Universite´ de Montre´al, Canada. The authors have disclosed that they have no significant relationship with, or financial interest in, any commercial companies pertaining to this article. ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE: Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN, Faculty of Nursing, Universite´ de Montre´al, C. P. 6128 Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal QC H3C 3J7, Canada (e
Journal for Nurses in Professional Development & Volume 30, Number 1, 34Y41 & Copyright B 2014 Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Evaluation of a Reflective Practice Intervention to Enhance Hospitalized Elderly Care A Mixed Method Study Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN
ƒ
Francine Ducharme, PhD, RN
The purpose of this mixed method study was to evaluate effects of a reflective practice intervention on the attitudes, knowledge, and interventions of nurses who care for hospitalized older adults. The study showed the potential of using a reflective practice intervention as a professional development approach to improve nurses’ attitudes toward older adults.
T
he aging population requires that nurses adapt their professional practice to the specific needs of hospitalized older adults. The need of seniors to maintain autonomy is often inconsistent with the increased workload of nurses in hospitals, the lack of gerontology training for most nurses, and the negative attitudes and stereotypes regarding older adults. In this context, professional development should be maintained and supported in clinical settings where there is a desire to offer better care and services to elderly patients. Reflective practice (RP), defined as being a learning and development process through self-assessment of professional practice that includes experiences, thoughts, emotions, actions, and knowledge (Atkins, 2004; Duffy, 2007), can be used to promote the professional development of nurses (Andrews, 1996; Gustafsson & Fagerberg, 2004; Johns & Freshwater, 2005). RP, which involves reviewing practical experience to describe, analyze, and assess it, requires the acquisition and development of various skills, such as awareness of self and others, critical analysis, and evaluation (Atkins, 2004). RP can be operationalized through
Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN, is Assistant Professor, Faculty of Nursing, Universite´ de Montre´al, Canada. Francine Ducharme, PhD, RN, is Full Professor, Chairholder of Desjardins Research Chair in Nursing Care for Seniors and Their Families, Faculty of Nursing, Research Centre, Institut Universitaire de Ge´riatrie de Montre´al, Universite´ de Montre´al, Canada. The authors have disclosed that they have no significant relationship with, or financial interest in, any commercial companies pertaining to this article. ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE: Ve´ronique Dube´, PhD, RN, Faculty of Nursing, Universite´ de Montre´al, C. P. 6128 Succ. Centre-Ville, Montreal QC H3C 3J7, Canada (e
