The perceptions of accident and emergency nurses regarding a structured debriefing programme in a private hospital in Gauteng

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine Accident and Emergency (A&E) nurses’ perceptions of a structured debriefing programme based on the model of SP Hattingh. Objectives of the research were to train A&E nurses as peer debriefers to be able to implement a structured debriefing programme, to then implement it and finally to determine the debriefed A&E nurses and debriefers’ perceptions of the structured debriefing programme. A contextual, explorative, descriptive research design, using qualitative methodology, was adopted. The population for this study was all registered nurses working in an A&E unit in a private hospital in Gauteng. Three main themes were identified, namely: positive aspects, negative aspects and recommendations for implementation. Recommendations were made to optimise the use of this programme in the future.