Browsing by Author "West, Lindsay Judy"

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    Factors associated with attrition in the undergraduate diploma nursing programme
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013-03) West, Lindsay Judy; Klopper, C.; Khondowe, Oswell; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Interdisciplinary Health Sciences. Nursing Science.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The issue of attrition of undergraduate participant nurses has remained a concern for an extremely long time. Attrition has been labelled as complex and in order to understand attrition it is important to pay attention to the rate, reasons and trends in South Africa. To understand attrition in South Africa, the trends internationally need to be taken into account to determine whether South Africa has a unique problem. Due to the enormous financial cost to the state and the students’ self-confidence, as well as their belief and understanding of why all the systems that have been put into place fail, it has become a concern. The reasons why students choose nursing and their academic progress throughout secondary schooling should give a clear indication to the educational authorities how successful the students could be. The aim of this study was to determine possible reasons for attrition in students who do the undergraduate diploma nursing course. The objective was to determine the attrition rate of students in the undergraduate course. Reasons for attrition involve a close investigation into age, home language, subjects taken in secondary school, family support, reasons for going into nursing, problems experienced, reasons for not completing the course and how these affected them. The objectives was met through a descriptive study with a quantitative approach. The target population (N=260/100%) consisted of all students that had not completed their undergraduate diploma nursing course over four years between the years 2007-2010, from a Nursing College in the Western Cape. The sample population (n=58/22%) voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. A telephonic questionnaire was administered with closed-ended questions and a small section which had a likert scale. Data was collected by the researcher and a trained field worker. Ethical approval was obtained from the Health Research Ethics Committee at the Faculty of Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University. Permission was also obtained from the Western Cape Provincial Administration to conduct the research. Informed consent was obtained from the students. Reliability and validity was supported by a pilot study conducted on (n=10/10%) of the students at the Western Cape College of Nursing to ensure feasibility of the study. The data was analysed by a statistician and presented in tables and graphs. Statistical analysis was determined by ordinal and nominal data. The results showed that there were numerous factors that contributed to the attrition of undergraduate nursing diploma students. The results showed that the majority of the students’ home language was Xhosa 43% (n=25/58) with the majority being female, single with one child. The main reasons for choosing nursing was because it was a vocation/calling. The recommendations were to ensure that all nursing colleges be integrated into institutions of higher education, thereby ensuring more stringent selection criteria. There needs to be a bridging year where the students are taught to improve their literacy and numeracy so that this will give the students a better understanding of the lectures being delivered in English. There needs to be systems in place to assist the students that are mediocre or struggling. The conclusion was that attrition is complex and requires more concrete systems to stem the rate. A total reformation of undergraduate diploma nursing programmes needs to be addressed.