[A phenomenological study of the shift change experiences of clinical nurses in Taiwan]

Background: The process of changing shifts requires that clinical nurses engage in critical communication and interaction activities. Little research has examined the shift-change phenomenon. How Taiwanese nurses interpret their lived shift-change experiences deserves further exploration.

Purpose: This study explores the meaning of the shift-change experiences of nurses in Taiwan.

Methods: A hermeneutic phenomenological design was used. Data from interviews, participant observations, and field notes were analyzed. Twenty-six nurses with shift-change experience volunteered in a snowball sampling process. Data were collected using in-depth interviews. Hermeneutical analysis was used to explain the meaning of the nursing shift-change experience.

Results: The shift-change experiences of participants revealed their existential meaning and struggles toward self-transformation, adaptation, and self-settlement for survival. The meaning of the shift-change experience of clinical nurses in Taiwan are characterized by three themes: (a) 'A relay for accomplishing collective nursing goals', (b) 'An associated duties to be carried out jointly', and (c) 'An experience transmission as well as power practice'.

Conclusions / implications for practice: Our study highlights the cultural implications and existential meaning of the clinical shift change experience to nurses in hospitals in Taiwan. These findings provide a better understanding of the nursing shift-change experience in terms of both practical issues and nurses' perceptions. Findings may be used to improve in-service training programs and to suggest solutions to problems encountered during the shift-change period.