Browsing by Author "Mncadi, Mponang Elizabeth"

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    Experiences of nursing students in the management of HIV /AIDS patients in a selected public hospital in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
    (University of Zululand, 2017) Mncadi, Mponang Elizabeth
    Background and Introduction: General nursing students are expected to learn how to care for patients suffering from different conditions, including communicable diseases such as HIV/AIDS. Wide ranging empirical work has been done focussing on the experiences of registered nurses caring for HIV/AIDS patients, however there is limited published research looking at the experiences of student nurses caring for HIV/AIDS patients. Aim of the study: The aim of the study was to explore and describe the experiences of nursing students in the management of HIV/AIDS patients at an identified public hospital in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. Methodology: Using a qualitative research design, individual in-depth interviews (n=20) were conducted with purposively selected participants. Manual data analysis was conducted using Brink’s steps of analysis. Results: - Nursing students offered wide ranging insights into their experiences of providing care to HIV/AIDS patients. Participants described a number of concerning situations that included discriminatory attitudes, overwhelming workloads, a shortage of staff, inadequate supervision by expert clinicians and stress related to fear, as challenges that compromised the care offered to HIV/AIDS patients. Importantly, they alluded to serious knowledge deficits that posed noteworthy challenges. Similarly, the description of policies related to the care of HIV/AIDS suggested that many were overly restrictive and were not responsive to the change needs of students and the patient group. Recommendations: The following were recommended in the study: infection control improvements, a need for managerial support, improving educational curriculum and a need for further research opportunities.