Amanda Jenkinson

Challenges to research productivity of doctoral program nursing faculty

The Institute of Medicine, responding to a national health care crisis and related nursing labor force concerns, has called for an increase in the proportion of registered nurses with baccalaureate or higher degrees to 80% and a doubling of the number of nurses with doctorates by 2020. Simultaneously, large numbers of senior faculty are starting to retire, whereas the movement of doctorally prepared nurses into academia is insufficient to replace them. Issues associated with the efforts of nursing programs to increase their capacity to respond to the Institute of Medicines recommendations, particularly the effect on scholarly productivity among nursing faculty in doctoral programs, are examined in this article. Creative strategies for promoting scholarly productivity among doctoral program faculty are identified.

A Profile of U.S. Nursing Faculty in Research- and Practice-Focused Doctoral Education

PURPOSE This study, which is part of a larger project, was conducted to profile the nursing faculty in the United States teaching in PhD and DNP programs. DESIGN This is a descriptive study. A sample of 554 nursing faculty who teach in PhD and DNP programs was recruited by email solicitation to represent all geographic regions of the United States. Data were collected from November 2013 through January 2014 using an online survey instrument. METHODS The instrument was developed based on results of review of the literature and of focus groups of doctoral faculty (faculty teaching in doctoral programs) to ascertain characteristics of faculty teaching in doctoral programs and of the schools in which they teach. Frequencies and descriptive statistics are reported. FINDINGS Growth in DNP programs has outpaced growth in PhD programs, and DNP graduates have moved into doctoral education in greater numbers than PhD graduates. DNP faculty report less prior experience and current productivity scholarship than faculty in PhD programs only or both types of programs. CONCLUSIONS Strategies are needed to ensure that doctoral programs are staffed by faculty who are prepared for doctoral education and the development of nursing science. CLINICAL RELEVANCE The Institute of Medicine has recommended doubling the number of doctorally prepared nurses in the United States by 2020 to ensure that sufficient numbers of faculty are available to prepare the nursing labor force that is needed for delivery of healthcare services. Nurse scientists are needed to contribute to improvement in patient care quality and safety, and practice leaders are needed to facilitate the translation of research into safe, high-quality, and cost-effective care. The landscape of doctoral education in nursing is rapidly changing.

Nursing Doctoral Faculty Perceptions of Factors That Affect Their Continued Scholarship

This focus group study was undertaken as part of a larger investigation of how the demand for increased production of nurses with doctorates affects doctoral facultys scholarly productivity. This study provided a basis for development of the national survey questionnaire. Two focus groups that included 29 faculty teaching in doctor of philosophy and/or doctor of nursing practice programs took place at one of two national conferences. The focus group interviews were transcribed and content analyzed for the identification of themes; all members of the research team reached consensus. The three major themes were the demands of teaching, the importance of institutional structure and climate, and the sustainability of ones self, the institution, and the discipline. Participants identified strategies for enhancing scholarly productivity. Findings are limited by the small sample size and the voluntary participation of conference attendees. The strength of emotion that participants revealed underscores the need for nursing leaders to address the increasing academic expectations for faculty. If the profession does not address the needs of its current and future faculty, goals explicated by the Institute of Medicine in The Future of Nursing cannot be achieved, and the health of the nation will suffer.

Work-life balance of nursing faculty in research- and practice-focused doctoral programs.

OBJECTIVES The growing shortage of nursing faculty and the need for faculty to teach doctoral students to address the shortage call for examination of factors that may contribute to the shortage, including those that are potentially modifiable, including work-life balance.This descriptive study examined work-life balance of a national sample of nursing faculty teaching in research-focused and practice-focused doctoral programs. METHODS Data were collected through an online survey of 554 doctoral program faculty members to identify their perceptions of work-life balance and predictors of work-life balance. RESULTS Work-life balance scores indicated better work-life balance than expected. Factors associated with good work-life balance included higher academic rank, having tenure, older age, years in education, current faculty position, and no involvement in clinical practice. Current faculty position was the best predictor of work-life balance. CONCLUSIONS Although work-life balance was viewed positively by study participants, efforts are needed to strengthen factors related to positive work/life in view of the increasing workload of doctoral faculty as the numbers of doctoral students increase and the number of seasoned faculty decrease with anticipated waves of retirements.

Psychometric Analysis of the Work/Life Balance Self-Assessment Scale.

Background and Purpose: This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Work/Life Balance Self-Assessment scale among nurse faculty involved in doctoral education. Methods: A national random sample of 554 respondents completed the Work/Life Balance Self-Assessment scale, which addresses 3 factors: work interference with personal life (WIPL), personal life interference with work (PLIW), and work/personal life enhancement (WPLE). Results: A principal components analysis with varimax rotation revealed 3 internally consistent aspects of work–life balance, explaining 40.5% of the variance. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for reliability of the scale were .88 for the total scale and for the subscales, .93 (WIPL), .85 (PLIW), and .69 (WPLE). Conclusion: The Work/Life Balance Self-Assessment scale appears to be a reliable and valid instrument to examine work–life balance among nurse faculty.

Inner strength in women with chronic illness.

Objectives This literature review summarizes research relevant to the meaning of inner strength in females living with a chronic illness. This review also examined studies that have used The Inner Strength Questionnaire to examine inner strength among chronically ill females. Methods Using the search terms inner strength and women, CINAHL, PubMed, and ProQuest Nursing databases were searched for the years 1990–2016. Ten articles met the inclusion criteria. Results Inner strength in women is a mental health construct that women can encompass to positively affect their quality of life while living through challenging life events. The Theory of Inner Strength appears to be a useful a framework for understanding how physical, psychological, and spiritual health can promote well-being, quality of life, and spirituality in women. Discussion The limited number of studies identified suggests the need for further investigations to explore the relationship between inner strength and quality of life among females living with chronic health conditions. The Inner Strength Questionnaire is a unique tool with adequate psychometric properties to measure inner strength in chronically ill women that includes a holistic assessment of living with a chronic illness that encompasses women’ social, physical, emotional, and spiritual needs.