Från sjuksköterska till distriktssköterska Utveckling i professionell identitet och fördjupad omvårdnad
Background: The district nurse's competence description is comprehensive and sets high standards for a wide range of skills. The population's need for health care will rise according to life expectancy, lifestyle diseases and multi-morbidity increases. To graduate as a district nurse, 75 higher education credits are needed and after graduation, the district nurse must have developed both personal qualities and gained skills that makes it possible to work in primary care, child / school health care and home care. Aim: The aim of this study is to highlight the newly qualified district nurse experiences in developing professional identity and describe on how this development affects nursing.Method: In the pilot study a qualitative method with an inductive approach was used, and data collection was made by four semi-structured interviews. The interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: The results showed that the education contributes the district nurse, to grow as a person, to feel more confident and to develop a different way of thinking. The district nurse put higher demands on the patient regarding their own responsibility and believed that the vast majority are able to cope much themselves through support, encouragement and affirmation. District nurses worked more with preventive health care and saw opportunities to contribute to a more efficient care. Conclusion: During the education, the district nurse developed, personal qualities that were reflected in their professional identity, which contributed to a more advanced care.