Nursing students’ daily experiences in clinical spaces

Abstract

Objective: To comprehend the daily experiences of nursing students in their clinical spaces.

Method: This is a qualitative study using a phenomenological method. Data were collected through 8 in-depth interviews to senior students enrolled in the Nursing Baccalaureate at the Nursing Superior School, Culiacan, Mexico. After gathering their corresponding informed consents, students were individually updated on the study development, always respecting the data confidentiality and veracity. The discourse analysis allowed to identify significant concepts, and assign them codes to form categories. The validation of the results included credibility, confirmability, and transferability.

Results: Preliminary results refer to the analysis of the first category, 1) meanings of the clinical space, with its three sub-categories: 1.1: satisfaction in the clinical spaces, 1.2: learning in the clinical spaces, and 1.3: symbolical figure in the clinical spaces.

Conclusions: Students expressed satisfaction and comfort because they go motivated to learn, and they perform novel activities in the clinical spaces. Also, the service nurse is a symbol of support and teaching within the clinical spaces. Nevertheless, while addressing their care duties, students stated that this learning is focused on planned and fragmented spaces and based on techniques and procedures such as vital signs readings, making beds, and medication dispensing.