Current perceptions of cancer nurses in France about their role and the evolution of nursing practices: Findings and perspectives

Abstract

Background: Florence Nightingale lamented that nurses were seen as merely obedient and devoted. Our two previous oncology studies demonstrated the continuum of strictly curative care and paternalistic care practices among healthcare professionals. At a time when France has just formalized the nursing sciences, this article seeks to shed light on the specifics of the nursing role in oncology and the evolution of standard nursing practices in a rapidly changing environment.

Methods: We performed a secondary qualitative analysis, on the same dataset, focusing only on the nursing population (n = 20), to answer a question not excavated through the two previous studies. The COREQ guidelines were used to ensure the rigorous reporting of this study.

Findings: The data analysis show that the inherent role and application of medical directives characterise the profession of nursing in oncology. The former is essentially an intermediary role, whereby the nurse directs the patient to a professional specialist for a problem identified through clinical nursing expertise. The latter is expressed through the application of various medical instructions. The results highlight a minor evolution in nursing practices, despite an evolving environment. Oncology nurses do not seem to authorise themselves to become agents of change.

Conclusion: Various reforms and studies of the nursing profession, as well as public funding of programmes dedicated to nursing research were designed to facilitate the integration of Evidence Based Practice to encourage the autonomy of nurses in their practices. Education in research is fundamental to awakening critical thinking and considering scientific validity as vital. Continuing education and leadership by advanced practice nurses are two strong levers to acculturate registered nurses to gaining empowerment, improving their ability to question practices, helping them adapt to increasing the quality of care and making oncology nursing care more efficient. For cancer nurses in France, research education is the challenge to be met.

Keywords: Evidence based practice; Nursing; Nursing education; Nursing science; Oncology; Qualitative research.