Advancing nursing? Master's level nurses in Jordan

The aim of the study was to examine the extent to which advanced nursing practice was evident in Jordan, with a particular focus on the contribution of Master’s level nurses to advancing practice. It also aimed at understanding the drivers for developing its roles and the factors which might facilitate or hinder their implementation. The study used an ethnographic design in which qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection were used. The study comprised two stages. The first stage involved interviewing key stakeholders and surveying M-level nurses. Stage two involved interviewing and observing M-level nurses working in clinical practice in five Jordanian hospitals and interviewing the main stakeholders with whom those nurses had contact. Three themes emerged from the data: understanding advanced nursing practice, becoming am M-level nurse, and being an M-level nurse. The analysis showed that there was no clear notion of advanced nursing practice in Jordan, although participants did describe a number of different elements of advanced practice. The analysis also revealed that nurses undertake Master’s degrees for professional and self-development reasons. The most frequently cited benefits from M-level education that reflected on practice were the enhancement of cognitive abilities, including critical thinking, problem solving and the questioning of practice, the use of research skills and in-service training. The area with least change was that of the development of new practical skills. The data also suggested that a change of job title or job description, after gaining a Master’s degree, reflects the movement of M-level nurses away from direct patient care to non-direct patient care. Several factors were identified as facilitating or hindering the development of the role of M-level nurses in practice. These were organisational factors, professional factors, and personal attributes. The most significant factors were lack of recognition of the M-level nurse, and the subservient role of the nurse in Jordanian society.