'I can actually talk to them now': qualitative results of an educational intervention for emergency nurses caring for clients who self-injure.
OBJECTIVE
This Australian study evaluated the effectiveness of a solution-focused education intervention in extending and improving emergency nursing responses to patients who present because of self-injury.


BACKGROUND
Emergency nurses commonly report lack of training and feeling unskilled in managing people who present because of self-harm. Most educational interventions have provided content knowledge, yet rarely have they focused on conveying the value of health promotion strategies such as proactive skills and coping strategies.


METHODS
A mixed method pretest-posttest group design was used.


METHODS
Nurses (n = 36) were interviewed to examine differences in professional identity, awareness of self-injury and clinical reasoning.


RESULTS
The qualitative results are presented in this paper and these showed improvements in knowledge and understanding of self-harm, self-belief in nurses' capacity to positively influence clients and the value of health promotion skills. The intervention produced a positive attitudinal shift towards clients and an expressed intention to act in ways that were more person-centred and change oriented.


CONCLUSIONS
The solution-focused education intervention appears to show promise as an intervention for enabling nurses to value their unique contribution to providing a health service that is more proactive and health-promoting.


CONCLUSIONS
Interactive education bringing psychosocial skills to technical nursing staff builds confidence, competence and more person-focused care.
University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore, Australia. mmcallis@usc.edu.au
Margaret
M
McAllister
Wendy
W
Moyle
Stephen
S
Billett
Melanie
M
Zimmer-Gembeck
D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D002983:Clinical Competence; D016529:Emergency Nursing; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior; D000078329:Workforce