Abstract

Background: A transition journey took me as a Saudi Senior Registered Nurse (SRN), and a woman seeking continuous challenges and improvements, overseas to prepare for a Specialist Palliative Care Nurse role (SPCN). This is also due to the lack of opportunities in my country. This paper describes my preparation, sheds some light from transition theories, including the transition challenges involved in general and more specifically to my case. More importantly, the learning and blessings gained throughout the process.

Methods: Owing to the nature of the transition process, I use complex mixture of methods. Through auto-ethnography self-reflection, I deliberately make myself vulnerable as I attempt to provide a clear analysis of the diverse experiences of a transitioning SRN to a SPCN role. My literature review draws from a wide range of sources, disciplines and compares these to my experiences. Additionally, I use different tools and means to gain more understanding.

Results: Challenges of transitioning to SPCN include role ambiguity, the need to fill the educational gap, and adapting to a new culture. Benefits include increased space to pursue my passion and ability to make a positive impact as well as self-awareness and change.

Conclusion: True improvements in quality of healthcare needs to be more inclusive and consider smooth transition of RNs to SPCNs. The Saudi government and stakeholders are encouraged to provide more opportunities for nurses to fulfill the increasing demands. Nurses are encouraged to seek opportunities to improve life.

Keywords: SRN; SPCN; Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS); Advance Nursing Practice; Hospital; Role Transition; Leadership; Teamwork; Communication; Referrals; Culture and Paternalism; Skills; Challenges; Reflection; Auto-ethnography

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Citation

Citation: Fatimah Alabduljabbar. "Journey of Profound Life Lessons, Learning, Change and Self-awareness: Preparation for a Role Transition from a Senior Saudi Registered Nurse to a Specialist Palliative Care Nurse". Acta Scientific Medical Sciences 4.11 (2020): 112-137.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2020 Fatimah Alabduljabbar. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.