Pediatric Nurses’ Thoughts and Experiences Regarding Clinical Practices: A Qualitative Study

Objective: This study was conducted to reveal the thoughts and pediatric nurses' experiences of clinical practices.Methods: This study was designed as a qualitative phenomenological study. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews with 17 nurses working in pediatric wards. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis.Results: The themes that mostly emerged based on the question of what it means to be a nurse in a pediatric ward were “love for children”, “being selfless” and “empathizing”. According to the participants’ responses, the factors that made it difficult to be a nurse in a pediatric ward were “presence of a parent”. Pediatric wards were determined to be different from other wards in terms of the following: “invasive procedures undergone by pediatric patients”, “presence of a parent” and “calculations of medication dosages”. When the participants were asked, “What is it like being a nurse in a pediatric ward?”, the majority of them responded to the question as “mother”. Although many factors make it difficult to be a nurse in pediatric wards in Turkey, nurses want to work under the leadership of "love of children".Conclusion: Being a nurse in a pediatric ward is different from being a nurse in other clinics in many ways because nurses working in this field should try to overcome difficulties by exhibiting love for children, being selfless and empathizing.