Abstract
M.Cur.
It is explicit that the change in the South African government since 1994 accompanied by the transformation of nursing services with its new policies and practices is inevitable, and poses challenges for the nursing service managers in Gauteng hospitals. The transformation of nursing services can be a difficult process creating a period of fear, uncertainty, stress and role ambiguity for the nursing service managers. The transformation has been so extensive that the nursing service manager's role responsibilities have changed to such an extent that they are now required to manage grossly reduced levels of resources, multicultural societies with different values, beliefs and attitudes and increased numbers of patients, resulting in overcrowded hospitals. The transformation of nursing services demands the demonstration of appropriate nursing service management. The abilities of the nursing service managers are critical to the effectiveness of the future. Most nursing service managers are unprepared for their new roles and the present concern is for the quality of the management of the transformation
process. No written standards for transformation management in a nursing service are available in Gauteng public hospitals. Consequently, nursing service managers find themselves making major decisions about nursing service transformation with little information about the effectiveness of alternative approaches. The experiences and perceptions of the nursing service managers regarding transformation of nursing services in selected Gauteng hospitals are also not known. Understanding the nursing service
managers' experiences and perceptions will provide a basis for the formulation of standards for transformation management in a nursing service.