Transition of internationally qualified nurses in Australia: Meta-synthesis of qualitative studies

Kurup, Chanchal; Burston, Adam; Miles, Sandra

doi:10.1016/j.colegn.2022.10.002

Cited by 5 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 43 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The lack of career development opportunities, such as limited chances for employment in their preferred speciality and limited career development within registered nursing positions, posed a significant challenge for IQNs who seek to integrate into the Australian nursing workforce. Despite seeking better career opportunities being a major push factor for immigration, participants in this study reported limited opportunities in their speciality area as a significant barrier to career advancement, which is consistent with previous research (Kurup et al., 2022; Smith et al., 2022).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Transition pathways are recognized as necessary for graduate nurses (Bakon et al., 2018) but often lacking for IQNs. In general, the responsibility for specialist skill transition is solely placed on the IQN (Kurup et al., 2022). This indicates that there is a noticeable gap in the support and guidance provided to IQNs during their transition to the Australian healthcare system.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hospital‐based tailored specialty skill transition programs play a crucial role in assisting internationally qualified nurses in effectively transitioning their specialized experience into a new healthcare system (Kurup et al., 2022). These specialized programs represent a marked departure from the often fragmented and culturally biased generic transition support programs that inadequately consider IQNs' specialized knowledge and skills (Matiti, 2005; Taylor, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Internationally qualified nurses (IQNs) play a significant role in the healthcare workforce of developed countries, which increasingly rely on the immigration of nurses from developing countries to meet their nursing needs (Kurup et al., 2022). As a result, IQNs form a substantial portion of the healthcare workforce in major English‐speaking countries (Kurup et al., 2022). In Australia, an IQN is defined as a registered nurse who has obtained their nursing qualification from a country outside of Australia (Australian Nurses and Midwifery Accreditation Council [ANMAC], 2016) and has subsequently immigrated to Australia.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

The perspectives of internationally qualified nurses regarding their specialty skill transition to Australia: A cross‐sectional survey

Kurup,

Burston,

Betihavas

et al. 2023

Journal of Advanced Nursing

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

AimTo identify barriers and facilitators of speciality skill transfer for internationally qualified nurses in Australia from the nurses' perspective.DesignA cross‐sectional study.MethodsA cross‐sectional online survey was distributed through social media, snowballing and nursing professional organization. Data analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences.Data SourcesOnline survey data from participants matching the inclusion criteria were collected from July to September 2022.ResultsSurvey results reveal facilitators (competence, scope of practice, linguistic sufficiency, understanding of decision‐making) and barriers (lack of opportunity, transition pathways, confidence in overseas education, financial instability) for internationally qualified nurses' speciality skill utilization in Australia.ConclusionIdentifying and addressing barriers and facilitators, along with developing tailored transition pathways, are crucial for maximizing speciality skill utilization among internationally qualified nurses. These findings have implications for policymakers, healthcare organizations and nurses. They highlight the need to address barriers, facilitate smooth transitions and implement proactive measures for internationally qualified nurses to effectively utilize their specialty skills.ImpactThe study addresses maximizing skill usage for internationally qualified nurses, identifies barriers and facilitators for specialty skill transfer in Australia and will impact policymakers, healthcare organizations and nurses by guiding strategies for safe nursing service delivery and optimizing patient care.Reporting MethodSTROBE checklist.Patient or Public ContributionA total of 71 internationally qualified nurses contributed their experiences and opinions.What Does this Paper Contribute to the Wider Global Clinical Community? Lack of opportunity and the lack of transition pathways inhibit the use of specialty nursing skills by internationally qualified nurses. This study's findings contradict the result of other studies that suggest language is a significant obstacle to the utilization of specialty skills of internationally qualified nurses. Trial and Protocol RegistrationThe protocol is registered on OSF. The data for this study are available for sharing with the reviewers upon request. However, it is worth noting that ethical approval has not been obtained specifically for web sharing, and therefore, the data has not been posted in any repositories or public platforms.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The perspectives of internationally qualified nurses regarding their specialty skill transition to Australia: A cross‐sectional survey

Kurup,

Burston,

Betihavas

et al. 2023

Journal of Advanced Nursing

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Strategies employed by developed countries to facilitate the transition of internationally qualified nurses specialty skills into clinical practice: An integrative review

Kurup,

Betihavas,

Burston

et al. 2023

Nursing Open

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundRecruitment of internationally qualified nurses as a labour source is a long‐standing human resource strategy being implemented to address the current and increasing global nursing shortage. Internationally qualified nurses transitioning into the health workforce of developed countries following immigration often possess specialty skills. A lack of a clear pathway of specialty skill utilisation makes recognising and using these specialty skills complex for many nurses. The ability for nurses to transition between countries and maintain specialty practice demands immediate attention in the current atmosphere of the global pandemic and the predictions to recruit more specialist nurses from overseas.AimTo identify and synthesise strategies taken by various developed countries in transitioning specialist internationally qualified nurses into practice.MethodsAn integrative review was conducted to identify common themes, patterns, and best practices in order to inform policy development and improve the successful integration of internationally qualified nurses into the healthcare systems of developed countries. The study employed the Whittemore and Knafl five‐stage integrative review approach. To conduct a comprehensive search, four electronic databases, namely Medline, CINAHL Complete, ProQuest Health, and EMBASE, were systematically searched in October 2021. The search was updated in March 2022 to ensure the inclusion of the most recent literature. Additionally, Google Scholar was utilised to avoid overlooking any important articles. Prior to the full‐text review, three reviewers independently evaluated titles and abstracts. The included papers' quality was determined using the JBI critical appraisal tools.ResultsThis study included 10 papers, comprising three studies and seven reports. However, none of these documents provided information on how internationally qualified nurses could transfer their specialty skills acquired overseas to developed countries after immigrating. The guidelines and policies reviewed only offered generic advice on becoming a specialist nurse. Although some countries mentioned that post‐graduate qualifications were not mandatory for nurse specialists, the majority of documents in this review emphasised the need for a national framework of education at level eight or higher (equivalent to a post‐graduate level) to attain the status of a nurse specialist. Moreover, the included documents did not provide clear information on whether an international specialisation degree would be recognised during the registration process. As a result, confusion persists regarding the requirement of post‐graduate qualifications for nurses aiming to specialise and the recognition of international specialisation degrees during the registration process.DiscussionThe lack of consistency in defining nurse specialty and the skill transferability among institutions and state borders were evident in this review. According to all the 10 documents analysed, developed countries appear to have minimum policies on the transfer of internationally qualified nurse's specialty skills. Recommendations for policymakers, employers, and aspirant migrants have been proposed. Limited research has been done on how developed countries used their internationally qualified nurses' overseas‐acquired specialist skills after immigration, indicating a lack of a distinct specialist skill transition pathway.ConclusionsThis review presents data to support the need for greater research in this area to better utilise the abilities that internationally qualified nurses bring from their home country and put them to constructive use in the host country, especially in the context of a global pandemic.

show abstract

Internationally qualified nurses' perspectives on transitioning specialty skills within Australia: A content analysis

Kurup,

Burston,

Betihavas

et al. 2024

Nursing Open

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

AimTo explore internationally qualified nurses' perceptions regarding the facilitators and barriers to specialty skill transfer in Australia.DesignThe study utilised a descriptive research design with a cross‐sectional survey. Data were collected from July to September 2022.MethodsA self‐designed survey was distributed through social media, snowballing and nursing professional organisations. The survey included six open‐ended questions which were analysed using thematic content analysis.ResultsSixty‐three participants completed the open‐ended questions in the survey. The findings identified a range of facilitators (support, previous experience, self‐agency) and barriers (systems barriers, bias/discrimination, being undervalued, lack of trust) to skill transition.ConclusionRecognising and addressing facilitators and barriers, coupled with creating customised pathways for specialty skill integration, are essential for optimising the utilisation of specialised skills in internationally qualified nurses.ImpactThis study aims to explore the barriers and facilitators involved in maximising skill utilisation among internationally qualified nurses in Australia. Identifying these barriers and facilitators is essential for improving patient care, as it will guide the development of strategies for safe nursing service delivery and the optimisation of skill usage. These findings hold significant implications for policymakers, healthcare organisations and nurses, providing valuable insights into how to address these obstacles and capitalise on the factors that make skill transfer smoother and more effective.Patient or Public ContributionSixty‐three internationally qualified nurses shared their experiences and opinions.

show abstract

Transition of internationally qualified nurses in Australia: Meta-synthesis of qualitative studies

Cited by 5 publications

References 43 publications

The perspectives of internationally qualified nurses regarding their specialty skill transition to Australia: A cross‐sectional survey

The perspectives of internationally qualified nurses regarding their specialty skill transition to Australia: A cross‐sectional survey

Strategies employed by developed countries to facilitate the transition of internationally qualified nurses specialty skills into clinical practice: An integrative review

Internationally qualified nurses' perspectives on transitioning specialty skills within Australia: A content analysis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About