Student nurses' perceptions of accident and emergency nursing: do they match the reality?

This study explores student nurses' perceptions of, and attitudes to, working in an Accident and Emergency (A & E) department prior to allocation there. An assessment of the students' actual experience within the department was then taken. This allowed the students' perceptions to be compared with the reality of the work. The sample consisted of all students training for part 10 of the register who were allocated to the unit over a 4-week period (n = 22). Data was collected by two self completion questionnaires, one given pre-allocation the second post-allocation, a 100% response rate was achieved for each. The results of the study indicate that students' perceptions of the A & E department do not match the reality of the work involved. These perceptions may cause increased anxiety and apprehension for students before they start in the department and this may hinder clinical learning. The results suggest that appropriate preparation prior to the period of clinical experience may help alleviate these difficulties.