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THE USE OF REPERTORY GRIDS TO EXPLORE NURSING STAFFS’ CONSTRUAL OF ADULT SERVICE USERS ADMITTED TO A PSYCHIATRIC INPATIENT WARD
[Thesis]. Manchester, UK: The University of Manchester; 2016.
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Abstract
Acute inpatient mental health nursing staff provide mental health care for individuals when they are most vulnerable and unwell. The therapeutic relationship can facilitate positive changes and recovery for individuals. Therefore, understanding nursing staff’s attitudes is paramount. In this thesis, the attitudes of nursing staff towards those experiencing mental health difficulties was explored. In the systematic review, the attitudes of European nursing staff supporting those experiencing severe mental health difficulties were synthesised and evaluated. A total of 14 cross-sectional studies met the inclusion criteria. The review identified that the role of personal experiences of mental health difficulties through friends or family members was shown to elicit more positive attitudes. Overall attitudes amongst nursing staff were varied, and factors that influenced these attitudes were less clear and consistent. The limitation of using cross-sectional questionnaires to explore attitudes was also discussed. Moreover, recommendations regarding further research priorities as well as clinical implications were identified.Nursing staff’s attitudes towards adults who were either ‘informal’ voluntary clients or those who had been admitted under the Mental Health Act (1983) to an inpatient ward were explored in the empirical paper. The attitudes of nursing staff have the potential to impact on the development of therapeutic relationships and therefore upon treatment outcomes. Repertory grid interviews were completed with twelve nursing staff. All staff made critical judgements about some of their clients; however, staff who used more dimensions to construe clients made less clear distinctions between clients and non-clients. The findings highlight the need for support mechanisms that enable staff to formulate clients’ difficulties and explore the complexity of interactions. The implications of these results are discussed, as well as future research directions. The final paper consists of a critical reflection of the research and the research process. This includes an evaluation of the decision making processes and discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of this research.
Keyword(s)
inpatient ; mental health or mental illness; nursing or psychiatric nursing ; staff attitudes