Title : Student nurse career preferences in Scotland: Implications for the nursing workforce
Abstract:
Background: For many years there have been global concerns about equitable access to healthcare, and the impact of this on the health of nations. In Scotland, a variety of complex and inter-related factors have meant that recruitment into some nursing posts remains challenging. The combination of an ageing population with increasingly complex healthcare needs, and Government policy aimed at moving aspects of healthcare into the community, have compounded the nursing workforce issues in Scotland. Equitable access to quality healthcare requires adequate numbers of trained nurses who are willing to work in areas where the need is greatest. No exploration of nursing student career preferences in Scotland has been published, although some excellent international work has been published about student nurse career preferences, and in Scotland work has been published that explores medical student career preferences. Exploring the issues around student nurse career preferences in Scotland, and the factors influencing these preferences, will lead to greater understanding of the career decision-making process of student nurses in Scotland, which may in turn help in the development of educational, and recruitment and retention strategies to help ensure access to good quality healthcare for all of Scotland’s population.
Aim: To investigate and describe the career preferences of adult field student nurses at Scottish Higher Education Institutions.
Methods: Prospective cohort study across all Scottish Higher Education Institutions providing adult nurse education, with a questionnaire survey at two time points (year one and year three of undergraduate nursing programmes).
Results: Data collection for the first phase (year one) is now completed, with over 1,700 questionnaires returned. Data entry and analysis for this phase is ongoing, and both descriptive and inferential statistics will be used to describe career preferences, and the reasons for these preferences, including any trends across the demographic variables.
