Qualitative Nursing Research

Qualitative research is a method of gathering no numerical data. It focuses on the qualities of an entity or process and meanings that you cannot examine or measure terms of quantity, intensity, frequency or amount. For example, you can conduct a qualitative nursing research on job satisfaction among nurses and conclude that a certain percentage of the respondent are satisfied with their work. However, it is still impossible to determine a standard and an accurate scale of measuring the precise level of job satisfaction.

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Qualitative research outcomes help nurses and their other healthcare professional colleagues to understand patient experiences on illnesses and health.

Analysis of qualitative research is an open-ended question requiring a respondent to write down their answers. It is naturalistic research as the researcher surveys a natural setting like a clinic. Qualitative research on a nursing phenomenon is at the point where it takes place such as a hospital or clinic.

Qualitative nursing research helps to reveal underlying reasons, motivations, and opinions. It gives an insight into problems and developing of ideas or hypotheses for another research. It is also instrumental in uncovering trends and deeper insight into a problem.

Qualitative Nursing Research Methods

There are different ways to conduct qualitative research in nursing. Depending on the phenomena under study, you may use one the following methods:¬

Phenomenology:Study of life experiences

Ethnography: Systematic study of different cultures.

Historical method: Examining of social phenomena through study their past or historical context.

Case study:An in-depth description of critical dimensions and processes of something that you are studying.

Grounded theory:A method of collecting, analyzing, and using data to develop theoretical explanation and generate hypotheses for more follow up research..

A frequent method of gathering data for qualitative nursing research include focus groups, observations and interviews with individuals, diary accounts and open-ended questions. The sample size for qualitative nursing research is small, and the surveyor selects respondents to fulfill a certain quota.

Importance of Qualitative Nursing Research

Improves quality of nursing care

Nursing is growing field subject to many changes in patient care. Qualitative research outcomes help nurses to know about new advancements in practice and promote evidence-based care. It also helps nurses to advocate the needs of their patients in a better way.

Provides Better insights into patient experiences

The scope of qualitative research in nursing mainly is on lived experiences by patients as well as nurses. In a field where professionals deal with chronic illnesses, qualitative research reveals what living with a chronic disease means and some of the processes for caring/treating the chronically ill patients. After studying the outcome of qualitative research on chronic illnesses, nurses gain more understanding of the lived experience by patients and think of the best care methods for such people. The finding offers better insight if you use them with outcomes from quantities research.

Provides essential knowledge for evidence based practice (EBP)

Evidence based practice integrates best available evidence for direction and improvement of patient outcomes by using experiences to determine the precise requirements for patients. It helps in devising the best care methods for patients. Nurses who are in the process of mastering EBP face a challenge of searching for best evidence for supporting assessment, interventions, policies, and development of new practices. It is complex to determine what comprises substantial evidence.

Qualitative research method helps to generate valuable knowledge for EBP by presenting findings through the words and narration of the participants. When in this form, the results are easy to implement in nursing practice as nursed know the precise needs of the patients. Qualitative research is attractive to evidence based practice where what matters is the individual knowledge and understanding of the patients.

Qualitative nursing research has more methodological options and should take. It is necessary to plan on the best method for conducting research.