Preparation of Nurses Who Precept Baccalaureate Nursing Students - Essay Example

Change from qualitative to quantitative s Introduction This present research paper s on how a previous qualitative study could be converted to a quantitative study based on certain parameters. This research paper has used a qualitative article as its case sample for the study; the qualitative article is a descriptive study on the preparation of nurses whom precept baccalaureate nursing students. It is of essence to first note that qualitative study mainly deal with descriptions while quantitative study deal with numbers, therefore qualitative data is mainly word data from participants while quantitative data is numerical in form of statistics and/ or percentages (Creswell, 2008). Research problem In the qualitative article written by Rogan (2009), the research problem or area of concern was that, there were insufficient research studies that focus on the perceptions of preceptors concerning the preparation they undertake for their respective role as preceptors. Therefore, the descriptive study was carried out to close this gap in the research studies that focus on perception of preceptors concerning the preparation they undertake for their role. In the quantitative study, this research problem would remain the same. Research purpose Rogan (2009 p. 565), in her descriptive study, stated the purpose of carrying out the qualitative research was to, “investigate the perceptions of nurses who precept Baccalaureate Nursing (BSN) Education students about their preparations as preceptors.” Additionally, Rogan (2009) intended to explore whether there was a difference in the perceptions because of difference in the educational background, preceptor’s years of nursing experience, years of preceptor experience, and area of nursing experience. Furthermore, it can be stated that the purpose of the qualitative research that was carried out by Rogan (2009), was to collect information from nurses who precept students, unlike other research studies that collect information from critical care nurses who work with new employees or graduates. It is significant to note that even in the quantitative study; this research purpose would remain unchanged. Research questions In the present qualitative study by Rogan (2009) the research questions were as follows; a) What kind of preparation do nurses who precept students believe is required for them to perform their role? b) Is there a difference in the perceptions about preceptor preparation based on the preceptor’s years of nursing experience, area of practice, or years of preceptor experience? While conducting a quantitative study, the research questions would be reworded as follows; a) What are the ratings in terms of most important and least important preparations that nurses who precept should undertake in order to perform their role? b) What is the correlation between perceptions about preceptors’ preparation and variables such as the preceptor’s year of nursing experience, area of practice, and years of preceptor’s experience? It is significant to note that the new research question will enable the collection of data in numerical form. Informed consent and ethical considerations According to Creswell (2008), it is an ethical research practice for the researcher to first seek consent from the participants and equally inform them of the research objectives. Under the qualitative study, Rogan (2009) adhered to research ethics by ensuring that she obtained approval from the institutional review board as well as the two hospitals from which research participants were recruited. In addition, Rogan (2009) maintained confidentiality of the participants by withholding their name. Research design The new research design will be the quantitative research design, which means that quantitative data will collected and then analysed using the quantitative methods. Summarily, the new research design will involve more factual and empirical evidence that uses figure or numbers to substantiate information within the paper. Research sample In the qualitative study carried out by Rogan (2009), the research had a sample population of 138 respondents of whom only 77 returned filled questionnaires out of which two were invalid. The sample comprised of nurses who were employed by either the academic medical center or the private healthcare facility. In addition, the sample was also selected from the category of nurses who satisfied the State Board of Nursing’s criteria for preceptors, and had initially precepted a student in the past twelve to eighteen months. Data collection In the qualitative study, the researcher collected data by first issuing the hospitals’ managers with surveys of which they distributed the surveys to the nurses who met the standards required for the sample population. After filling out the surveys, the nurses mailed them back to the researcher who had earlier also issued the managers with stamped envelope for the return purpose. It is vital to note that even under the quantitative approach, the research would still use the same data collection method that was previously used. Method of data analysis Under the quantitative study, data will be analysed using quantitative analysis method. Under quantitative analysis, the responses of the first research question will be presented in a percentage pie chart, which will indicate the most important and least important preparations. For responses of the second research question, the researcher will conduct a regression analysis using SPSS to show the relationship between the variables and perceptions about preceptors’ preparation. Advantages and disadvantages of both qualitative and quantitative research methods According to Creswell (2008), the advantage of qualitative research methods is that it is unearths people’s experience and the background reason for the feedback given. The main disadvantage of qualitative research method is that it does not enable the collection of statistical data. Secondly, qualitative findings cannot be used to make assumptions outside the sample population. Creswell (2008) stated that the disadvantage of quantitative research is that it can only be applied in limited areas, for example, it is practically hard to use it in psychology. Secondly, quantitative methods only collect a narrow dataset of which sometimes it can be superficial. The advantage of quantitative research method is it clearly identifies the independent and dependent variable and, the qualitative findings lack biasness. Conclusion It can be conclusively stated that the difference between qualitative and quantitative research methods arises from the research questions, method of collecting data, and analysing data that are applied . Therefore, to change the study from qualitative to quantitative, one needs to change the research questions, method of data collection, and method of data analysis. Reference Creswell, J. (2008). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches. (3rd edition). New York: SAGE Publications, Inc Rogan, E. (2009). Preparation of Nurses Who Precept Baccalaureate Nursing Students: A Descriptive Study. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing. Vol. 40 (12) Read More