Retention of Native American Nurses Working in Their Communities

Abstract

Native American nurses experienced a great deal of stress and illness as they attempted to fulfill their mission to help their people. The three themes were: (a) paying the price to fulfill my mission, (b) being and connecting holistically, and (c) transcending the system. Recommendations include strategies for nurse educators, tracking the ethnicity of nurses in each Indian Health Service area, documenting their reasons for leaving, and conducting further research to develop community-based interventions to improve retention.

Measuring the Success of a Pipeline Program to Increase Nursing Workforce Diversity

“…The survey, piloted in 2004, was modified based on a qualitative study in 2006 (Katz & ONeal, 2010; Katz, 2007; Katz, Smart & Paul, 2010). The wording of the questions were reviewed by two American Indian consultants, one a nurse and the other the Director of a program to recruit American Indian students in to the health sciences.…”

“…The need for a diverse health workforce has not diminished in the decades educators, providers, and communities have been working to educate and graduate health care students that represent the U.S population (Katz, ONeal, Stickland, Doutrich, 2010). Greater than 30% of the U.S. population identifies as Hispanic while only 9% of physicians, 6% of nursing, 7% of dentists, and 10% of pharmacists share the same identification (Sullivan and Suez Mittman 2010).…”

Tangled pasts, healthier futures: Nursing strategies to improve American Indian/Alaska Native health equity

“…These types of experiences require that nurse educators not only embrace a culturally safe pedagogy, but also build socially and historically cognizant clinical and research partnerships with AI/AN communities (Katz et al, 2010). While there are dozens of urban AI/ AN healthcare facilities and community centers in the United States that are more likely to be located within proximity to the majority of schools of nursing, more remote AI/AN communities may need to accessed at key points in the academic calendar, such as during spring break (Lowe & Wimbish-Cirilo, 2016).…”

Indigenous Nursing Students’ Readiness for Practice Perceptions - Les perceptions d’étudiantes autochtones en sciences infirmières quant à leur préparation à la pratique

“…Indigenous nurses can act as role models, inspiring others of Indigenous heritage to pursue a university education or a nursing career, and they can help reduce economic leakage, being more likely to live in or work with Indigenous communities (Aboriginal Nurses Association of Canada [A.N.A.C. ], 2009; Anonson et al, 2008;Exner-Pirot & Butler, 2015;Katz, O'Neal, Strickland, & Doutrich, 2010;National Aboriginal Health Organization, 2006). Indigenous registered nurses are able to align their cultural expertise with their clinical expertise in order to provide increased access to culturally safe quality health services West et al, 2013).…”