Pre-registration student nurses' preconceptions, attitudes and experience regarding clinical placement in primary health care

Background: There is a renewed focus on the role of primary health care within health systems owing to an ageing population, increasing cost of acute health care services and an emphasis on developing healthier communities. Associated with this focus is the need for increasing the primary health care workforce capacity. However, primary health care is rarely prioritised within pre-registration nursing curricula. By understanding the perspectives and experiences of student nurses regarding clinical placement in primary health care, educators and industry will be better informed to support the student nurse within this setting.Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the preconceptions, attitudes and experience of pre-registration nursing students who were assigned clinical placement at a primary health care clinic.Method: Naturalistic inquiry and qualitative research methods were used in this study. Eight pre-registration student nurses who had attended clinical placement within a primary health care clinic were recruited and individually interviewed. Interview transcripts were thematically analysed, and findings were developed according to the Preconceptions and Learning Framework (Meheut, 2012).Findings: Three themes were modelled on the Preconceptions and Learning Framework. Theme one is preconceptions, which refers to the varying preconceived ideas the participants held towards primary health care. Theme two is learning and this theme relates to the way in which the clinical placement experience in primary health care altered some participants' preconceived ideas towards this setting. The third theme is knowledge, and it relates to the increased understanding the participants held towards primary health care, and the broader health care system, as a result of the clinical placement experience. Conclusions: To ensure pre-registration student nurses are properly prepared to enter the workforce, they need to be provided nursing education that acknowledges and values the role of primary health care within the healthcare system. Hence, primary health care needs to be integrated throughout pre-registration nursing curricula to ensure understanding and value, and such integration should include clinical placement within this setting