Are we pushing the graduate nurses too fast in critical care areas?

Vol.3  No.1

Year: 2013

 
Issue: Feb-Apr

Title : Are we pushing the graduate nurses too fast in critical care areas?

Author Name : Shaista Rajani Meghani, Salma Sajwani 

Synopsis : 

The objective of the literature review is to focus on the journey of transition for new graduate entering in critical care areas that often remains challenging, frustrating and stressful. A systemic search of the literature is performed for the period of 1979 to 2012. A total 20 research articles were reviewed. The results of the literature review indicated that the new graduates generally have limited practical nursing experience, lack social and developmental maturity and struggle with basic clinical work management skills along with balancing time with responsibilities and assigned task. Critical care areas are high tech specialized areas that require nurses’ vigilance, competencies, and expertise to deal with immediate life threatening situations. New graduates feel lack of confidence while working independently in the hospital environment during transition phase. If this is a case for novice nurses working in wards, then critical care areas are even more complex and high tech skilled specialty to accommodate amateurs. This paper will highlight the transition of new graduates in critical care areas, characteristics, and requirements for critical care nursing, stages of transition theory in critical care, and recommendations to offer new graduates to the less critical workplace to make them expert, to ensure in order to deliver safe patient care when transferred to the high-tech skilled specialty areas.