Nurses' Use and Ways of Understanding Web-Based National Guidelines for Child Healthcare

The national Rikshandboken for child healthcare is both a Web-based guideline containing knowledge and methodological guidance and a national child healthcare program in the process of being implemented in Sweden. The aim of this study was to examine child healthcare nurses' use and ways of understanding the national Web-based Rikshandboken. A mixed-methods study with sequential explanatory design in two phases was used; a Web survey with descriptive statistics was followed with telephone interviews with phenomenographic analysis. The study showed variations in use and contributed deeper knowledge of child healthcare nurses' ways of understanding the unit Rikshandboken whose varied parts interact with each other. To be reliable, useful, and relevant for nurses in their specific contexts, Rikshandboken must be kept updated and involve the end users in the development process. With access to technical devices and optimal use of the possibilities of information and communication technology, Rikshandboken can be a resource for continuing learning, a tool in everyday work, and a possible determinant to equality in child healthcare. The study contributes valuable knowledge for the design of Web-based national guidelines for healthcare, making them useful and relevant for the end users.