Conference Proceedings - School of Nursing & Midwifery - Trinity ...

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin: 8 th Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference
Transforming Healthcare Through Research, Education & Technology: 7 th – 9 th November 2007
Conference Proceedings
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What is health? An exploration of nursing students
observations
Maurice Murray (RPN, RGN, BNS, MSc)
Kevin O’Brien (BSc, PGDip, PhD)
Department of Nursing & Health Studies
Letterkenny Institute of Technology
Port Rd
Letterkenny
Co. Donegal
Telephone 074 9186399
Fax 074 9186005
maurice.murray@lyit.ie
Abstract
There is an extensive literature in the social sciences examining
concepts of what health means to lay samples. However there
seems to be a gap in the literature regarding what health care
professionals consider health to be. In an effort to address this gap
in our existing knowledge this study investigates what health means
to a group (52) of year 4 nursing students (comprising general,
mental health & intellectual disability disciplines) within eight weeks
of undertaking their final examinations. We proceeded by
developing an exploratory questionnaire based on the literature
review to tap into possible influences on notions of health. When the
questionnaire responses were analysed similar findings to those
identified by other researchers on lay samples (e.g. Blaxter 1997;
Macintyre 2006) were established. These themes were then
explored in a focus group constituted from the original sample.
Perhaps somewhat unexpectedly nursing students on the brink of
their professional career displayed similar understandings to the
question ‘what does health mean’ as reported by McCluskey (1987)
–that health is associated with functionality as well as the absence
of illness. Possible reasons for this finding are considered and
limitations of the study discussed.
Introduction
Health is an elusive concept that has attracted a lot of attention
over the years (Zola 1966; Friedson 1970; Herzlich 1973; Blaxter
1982; 1992; McCloskey 1989). One of the recurring themes to
emerge from the literature is that is that health means different
things to different social groups based on a range of variables
including gender, age, occupation and socio-economic status
(Blaxter 1997). Developing an understanding of what health means
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