Career choices in health care: Is nursing a special case? A content analysis of survey data

Miers, Margaret E.; Rickaby, Caroline; Pollard, Katherine

Abstract

Background: As demand for nurses and other health professionals continues to outstrip supply it is important to understand what motivates individuals to join a non-medical health profession. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to investigate students' reasons for choosing a particular nursing specialism, midwifery or other non-medical health profession, and to compare motivation factors across professions, gender, age, level of award, prior qualifications, prior experience and over time. Design: A prospective follow-up study collected survey responses at the beginning and end of pre-qualifying professional programmes. Setting: The study took place in one large United Kingdom faculty. Participants: The study participants were 775 first-year students undertaking non-medical health professional programmes and 393 qualifying students. Methods: An open-ended question was included in a self-completed questionnaire administered at entry and at qualification. Content analysis identified themes. Results: Altruism was the most frequently cited reason for wishing to join a non-medical health profession, followed by personal interest/abilities, professional values/rewards, and prior experience of the area. Students entering nursing were less likely to cite an altruistic motivation than those entering other non-medical health professions (χ2 = 21.61, df=1, p < 0.001). On entry, adult nursing, children's nursing and radiotherapy students were least likely to cite professional values/rewards (χ2 = 20.38, df=8, p = 0.009). Students on degree level programmes were more likely to report altruism than those on diploma level courses (χ2 = 17.37, df=1, p < 0.001). Differences were also identified between the two data collection points. The number of students identifying altruism (χ2 = 3.97, p = 0.046) and professional values/rewards (χ2 = 6.67, p = 0.010) decreased over time. Conclusion: Findings suggest that although a service orientation remains a key factor in choosing nursing, students also look for a career which matches their interests and attributes, as well as offering professional values and rewards. Nursing may be in danger of losing service orientated recruits to other non-medical health professions. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Sep 1, 2007
• Journal: International Journal of Nursing Studies
• Print ISSN: 0020-7489
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 44
• Issue: 7
• Pages: 1196-1209
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2006.04.010
• Keywords: career choice, midwifery, motivation, non-medical health professions, nursing, students
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/1033659
• Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2006.04.010
• Related Public URLs: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ijnurstu