A narrative analysis of nurses’ uncomfortable feelings and dilemmas experienced in teamwork

Abstract

This study’s objective is to examine the uncomfortable feelings and dilemmas experienced by nurses in their teamwork, as well as to clarify their common structures. An interview survey was conducted with 10 nurses, and a narrative analysis was performed in regard to the structures of the nurses’stories of incongruities. As a result, the findings of the structural narrative analysis suggested three structural patterns in the reported episodes: 1）the nurse did not take any action（19 episodes）; 2）the nurse took some actions, but they had no effect（10 episodes）; and 3）the nurse took some actions and they had some effect（2 episodes）. Regarding the latter two episodes, one nurse noted that her colleagues were a “good model” while another referred to her previous successful experiences when dealing with the current incongruity. In addition, the reported causes for such incongruities were categorized into three themes: （X）owing to the conventional habits in their nursing teams, （Y）owing to the length of clinical experience, and（Z）owing to nurse–doctor relationships.