Exploring the role of the nurse in opioid use disorder treatment: A focused ethnographic study
Date
2022-09
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Abstract
Opioid use disorder (OUD) affects people across the continuum of life, in all geographic locations, irrespective of gender, age, nationality, and socioeconomic status. From January to March 2021, 1792 opioid toxicity deaths occurred in Canada. As front-line healthcare professionals, nurses make substantial contributions toward the prevention, treatment, and management of OUD. However, little research has been conducted regarding the role and impact of the nurses working in these unique practice settings. Using focused ethnography, this qualitative study aimed to explore the understanding of the role and impact of the nurse working in OUD treatment. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with ten registered nurses who worked across the spectrum of OUD treatment. Analysis of the qualitative data revealed six themes to better understand the role and impact of the nurse: (a) the art of addiction nursing, (b) direct patient care, (c) indirect patient care, (d) the shared experience of stigma, (e) perceived barriers, and (f) looking to the (uncertain) future. The present study offered several implications for nursing practice, education, and research. Study results identify similarities and differences of the role of the nurse working across a variety of treatment programs; future research opportunities exist to explore the role of the nurse in specific OUD treatment programs, and the role of the nurse in OUD treatment transnationally. Nurses working in this practice area are hardworking, compassionate, and deeply committed to providing high-quality healthcare to patients with OUD across various practice areas. Despite this, nurse participants emphasized perceived challenges and barriers that negatively impacted their ability to meet patient’s needs.
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Keywords
opioid use disorder, nurse role, harm reduction, focused ethnography
Citation
Kerber, A. (2022). Exploring the role of the nurse in opioid use disorder treatment: a focused ethnographic study (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.