Utilizing narrative inquiry to evaluate a nursing doctorate program professional residency

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Professional Development

Background:

• Innovative nursing educational reforms present unique program evaluation challenges.
• Ensuring the quality and effectiveness of advanced nursing programs is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the Nursing Doctorate (ND) professional clinical residency from student perspectives.
• To explore the process of becoming an ND nurse and the characteristics of an ND nurse.
• To understand how interactive processes influence residency experiences.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a narrative inquiry framework for qualitative analysis.
• Collected data through monthly student vignettes and verbal conference sharing.
• Focused on student descriptions of significant residency experiences and reflections.

Main Results:

• Student progression through the residency followed four distinct developmental phases.
• Students demonstrated growth towards achieving ND outcome behaviors.
• Attained outcomes included holistic clinical proficiency, client advocacy, and peer professional development.

Conclusions:

• The ND professional clinical residency facilitates formative development and summative attainment of advanced nursing competencies.
• Student perspectives provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of nursing educational reforms.
• The findings support the integration of narrative inquiry in evaluating complex educational programs.