Abstract
It is essential that neonatal practitioners are able to use their theoretical knowledge in
clinical practice in an appropriate manner, in order to render competent quality care to
the critically ill neonate. However, theory and practice integration is also very
difficult to achieve. Managers of neonatal units and neonatal students had voiced
concerns regarding the integration of theory and practice in the neonatal programme
offered by an Institution of Higher Education (IHE). Therefore the purpose of this
research was to develop standards and criteria to facilitate the integration of theory
and practice in the IHE Neonatal Programme
A combined qualitative/quantitative exploratory, descriptive, contextual approach was
followed, based on Muller's Model for the Development of Nursing Standards
(1990:49-55). The design consisted of a development phase and a quantification
phase. Standard development began with conceptualisation, that is, the definition of
the research concepts and the integration of the study into existing theoretical
frameworks. The legislative frameworks used for the study were those of the South
African Qualifications Authority and the South African Nursing Council, that govern
nursing education and nursing practice. The theoretical frameworks promote
theory/practice integration. Standards and criteria were developed from the legislative
and theoretical frameworks in order to facilitate the theory/practice integration of the
IHE neonatal programme. Ten experts who met specific criteria for inclusion in the
study were then asked to validate the standards. The quantification phase consisted of
the statistical determination of the content validity of the standards, using a
questionnaire. The original ten experts together with another forty participants who
complied with specific inclusion criteria, were asked to evaluate the standards, using a
four-point rating scale. A standard or criterion with a content validity index of 3.5 to
4. 0 was accepted as valid.
The results of the data analysis for the fifty participants showed that all criteria had a
mean score of over 3. 5 and thus could be considered valid and useful as a guideline
for neonatal programmes. However it was evident from standard deviation scores that
the expert group showed greater consensus than the additional participants regarding
the validity of the standards. Further research may therefore be required in order to
confirm the validity of the standards and criteria.