UNIVERSITY OF MALAWI KAMUZU COLLEGE OF NURSING Nurse Educators’ engagement in research in Christian Health Association of Malawi Nursing Colleges A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of Master of Science Degree in Nursing and Midwifery Education Presented by: Victoria Nyirenda (Kcn/Msc/Ned/16/04) Supervisor: Mr J.H.C. Mfuni, B.Ed, M.Ed Co Supervisor: Wanangwa W. N. Chikazinga, B.Ed, M.Ed (Ppl) December 2018 Declaration I, Victoria Nyirenda declare that this research report is my own work. It is being submitted for Master of Science in Nursing and Midwifery Education at Kamuzu College of Nursing. Full legal name: Victoria Nyirenda Signature: vnyirenda Date: 3rd December 2018 1 Dedication I dedicate this work to the Almighty God for giving me wisdom and courage. I also dedicate this work to my parents, late brother Friday, Isaac Nyirenda, late Agnes Nyirenda, siblings and friends. 2 Acknowledgement I would like to thank God Almighty for making it possible that I produced this research project. Special thanks should go to my supervisors (Mr. J Mfuni and Mr.Chikazinga), Dr K Wella, Evelyn Chibwe, Dr Sosten Lankhulani and Isabel Yangairo. Furthermore, I would like to thank my employer Ministry of Health for giving me study leave. I am also grateful to CHAM for allowing me to conduct the study, Malawi College of Health Sciences lecturers for taking part in pilot study, all lecturers from the CHAM Nursing and Midwifery colleges who participated in the study. Lastly, special thanks go to my parents, siblings, relatives and friends for supporting me materially and psychologically. Your words of encouragement, and prayers have helped me to reach this far. God bless you! 3 Abstract Engagement of nurse educators in research is required to enable students to develop a clear understanding of how to take care of patients. The study aimed at assessing the extent of nurse educators' engagement in research in CHAM Colleges. The study used the quantitative approach. A descriptive research design was used to obtain data from 98 nurse educators in CHAM Colleges. Data was analyzed in SPSS. Data was presented in frequency tables and graphs. The findings revealed that only n=37 (37.8%) respondents have ever conducted research. Majority of the respondents have been involved in research activities in one way or the other though involvement was low. However, a good number of the respondents do apply research findings in the teaching practice n= 68 (69.4%). The results also revealed the two greatest barriers in engaging research which were inadequate research grants n= 52 (53.1%) and n= 43 (43.9%) inadequate training on research methods. The findings suggest increase intakes of post graduate nurse educators, adequate funding, provision of research grants and building research capacity in order for nurse educators to engage in research. 4 List of abbreviations CHAM - Christian Hospitals Association of Malawi COMREC- College of Medicine Research and Ethics Committee KCN- Kamuzu College of Nursing MZUNI- Mzuzu University NMCM- Nurses and Midwives Council of Malawi NMT - Nurse Midwife Technician UNIMA- University of Malawi 5 Working definitions Conducting research- carrying out the research study Engagement in research- conducting research and participating in research activities Research based practice- is the hallmark of professional nursing and is essential for high quality clinical and cost effective nursing care. Nurse educator- a nurse-midwife who teaches and prepares student nurses-midwives into workforce. Nursing college-An educational institution that offers undergraduate nursing programs Research- systematic inquiry designed to develop knowledge about issues of importance to the nursing profession, including nursing practice, education and administration Student nurses-people who are studying or training to be nurse-midwives. 6 List of Tables Table 1: Population and Samples of Nurse Educators from CHAM Colleges ......................................... 30 Table 2: Respondent Demographic Characteristics .................................................................................. 34 Table 3: Factors that act as barriers to engaging in research…………………………………………….Error! Bookmark not defined.8 7 List of |Figures Figure 1: Extent to which nurse educators conduct research .................................................................... 36 Figure 2: Extent to which nurse educators involve in research activities ................................................. 38 8 Table of Contents Declaration ................................................................................................................................................ 1 Dedication .................................................................................................................................................. 2 Acknowledgement ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Abstract ...................................................................................................................................................... 4 List of abbreviations ................................................................................................................................. 5 Working definitions .................................................................................................................................. 6 List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................. 7 List of |Figures ........................................................................................................................................... 8 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 13 1.0 Chapter Overview ............................................................................ 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Bookmark not defined. 1.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 13 1.2 Background of the Study ................................................................................................................ 14 1.3 Problem of Study ............................................................................................................................ 16 1.4 Broad Objective .............................................................................................................................. 16 1.5 Specific Objectives ......................................................................................................................... 16 1.6 Significance of the Study ................................................................................................................ 17 9 1.7 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 17 CHAPTER TWO Literature Review ................................................................................................... 18 2.0 Chapter Overview ........................................................................................................................... 18 2.1. The extent to which nurse educators conduct research and their involvement in research activities ................................................................................................................................................... 19 2.2 Factors that act as barriers to nurse educators engagement in research .......................................... 21 CHAPTER THREE Research methodology ....................................................................................... 25 3.0 Chapter Overview ........................................................................................................................... 25 3.1 Research Paradigm and Approach .................................................................................................. 26 3.2 Research Design.............................................................................................................................. 26 3.3 Setting ............................................................................................................................................. 26 3.4 Target Population ............................................................................................................................ 27 3.5 Sampling Method ............................................................................................................................ 27 3.6 Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria for Participants ........................................................................... 27 3.6.1 Inclusion criteria ...................................................................................................................... 27 3.6.2 Exclusion criteria ..................................................................................................................... 28 3.7 Sample size ..................................................................................................................................... 28 10 3.8 Data Collection Instrument ............................................................................................................. 30 3.9 Data Collection Procedure