Abstract
PURPOSE: Older people are generally enjoying longer lives and good health. However, there is a growing group of older people who have complex health care needs and comorbidities. Although working in the aged residential care sector is not seen as an attractive option by many registered nurses (RNs) and student nurses, nurses who are specialists in gerontology care nursing are required to care for this increasing group of the population. Attracting and retaining nurses in the rural sector has further challenges such as social isolation and fewer opportunities for professional development and career advancement. This study looked at the relationship between attitudes to ageing and the willingness of pre-registration nursing students to work in aged residential care, and in rural New Zealand. Research indicates that negative attitudes to ageing are related to less likelihood of working in aged residential care.
DESIGN AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study using a self-administered on-line survey tool. The study was conducted with third year nursing students who attended tertiary institutions within one District Health Board (DHB) region. The survey included demographic information, the Expectations Regarding Ageing survey (ERA-38) and questions relating to working in aged care and rurality. All students had received course content about gerontology and all had had a clinical placement in an aged care facility.
RESULTS: The final year nursing students reported relatively neutral scores in the ERA-38 indicating more positive attitudes to ageing. However, only 5.8 percent of nursing students surveyed stated that it was very likely that they would consider working in aged residential care on completion of their Bachelor of Nursing training.
DISCUSSION: Students who were willing to work in aged care did not necessarily have more positive attitudes to ageing however, some students advised that they had considered a career in aged care but would prefer to gain clinical experience in an acute setting prior to working in aged care. Preparing nursing students for caring for the older person requires aged residential care clinical placements where students work alongside registered nurses as well as health care assistants. Furthermore, it was noted that aged care clinical placement opportunities are limited in rural areas despite nearly half of the aged care facilities in the research region being located outside urban areas.
CONCLUSION:
All nursing students should be provided with gerontology course content which addresses older persons health matters and attitudes to ageing, and be provided rural aged residential care clinical placements which inform and provides a better understanding of the specialist nature of the role of the RN in aged care. Improving the likelihood of new graduate nurses choosing to work in aged residential care, and in the rural sector, requires a collaborative approach where incentives and support are provided to new graduates.