Abstract
Caring for patients was regarded as the core aspect of nursing and cornerstone of all nursing work. Caring is morally motivated and centred on the wellbeing of patients. Although caring was seen as a critical component of nursing delivery and regarded as the top essential characteristic of nursing, there seemed to be a gap between theory and practice. Primary Health Care (PHC) professional nurses were observed to be lacking in the moral responsibility of a ‘helping’ attitude and did not always exhibit the qualities of dedication in caring for their patients. The objectives of this study were to explore and describe the experiences of PHC professional nurses and patients of caring in a clinical situation; to develop a conceptual framework for PHC professional nurses to facilitate effective caring for patients; to describe strategies to facilitate effective caring for patients by PHC professional nurses, and to evaluate strategies to facilitate effective caring for patients by PHC professional nurses. This study took place in four phases. In Phase 1, the experiences of PHC professional nurses and patients of caring in a clinical situation were explored and described. The population in this study comprised of patients attending PHC clinics for comprehensive services, and PHC professional nurses working in the PHC clinics in the eastern part of Gauteng Province. All participants were purposively selected. The sample consisted of patients who were attending the PHC clinics for two years and more, as well as PHC professional nurses who were working in the PHC clinics for two years and longer...
D.Cur. (Nursing)