Perceptions of nurses after completion of the Enrolled to Registered Nurse Conversion Course

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions of nurses after completion of the Enrolled Nurse to Registered Nurse conversion course. The objectives were to investigate whether there were perceived benefits in knowledge, skills and attitudes after conversion. This study also sought to understand the reasons behind undergoing the conversion course, and to explore why they had chosen to be Enrolled nurses in the first place. Through a descriptive, exploratory study, forty two nurses were investigated using a structured self-administered questionnaire. At least one year after conversion, nurses reported benefits as regards their knowledge, clinical skills and attitudes as a result of undertaken the course. These benefits are indicative of a successful transition to frrst-level nursing. These findings are similar to the other findings in the literature. However, in this study there was a less definite response where opportunities were concerned. As regards continuing education, the conversion course appears to have reached the aim of instilling the ethos of professional development, since the majority of nurses intended to enroll into continuing education courses after the conversion course.