The perceptions of professional nurses regarding the implementation of staff development programmes in a public hospital in Gauteng

Abstract: This study is important because in South Africa the National Department of Health (NDoH) views staff development programmes as a national priority and it features in the National Core Standards for quality. Staff development programmes in healthcare environments are essential for enabling nurses to gain both knowledge and skills, while empowering them to render quality care to patients. The implementation of staff development programmes must be encouraged to ensure the development of a competent and confident professional nurse. The purpose of this study is to explore and describe the perceptions of professional nurses regarding the implementation of staff development programmes in a public hospital in Gauteng in order to develop recommendations that will facilitate the implementation of staff development programmes in the hospital. The research design for this study is qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual in nature. The study was conducted in two phases. Phase one focused on exploration and description of professional nurse’s perceptions regarding the implementation of staff development programmes (SDPs) in the public hospital in Gauteng where this study was conducted. Phase 2 focused on the development of recommendations to facilitate the implementation of staff development programmes based on concluding statements from the integration of relevant literature into the findings and outcomes in phase One. Data was collected by means of focus group interviews from the purposive sample of professional nurses who were selected from staff development attendance registers and who were willing to participate in the study. Data was analysed using Tesch’s method of qualitative analysis. Principles of trustworthiness and principle of ethics namely credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability were adhered to throughout the study to ensure the protection of participants and the scientific, academic quality of the study. The findings of the study identified a central theme that participants have negative perceptions regarding the implementation of Staff Development Programmes in the hospital in Gauteng where this study was conducted...M.Cur