Yes, it might seem strange that an English language teacher and vocational educator by trade would be interested in researching the professional identity positioning of internationally qualified nurses (IQNs). But, as an applied linguist, I'm keen to explore how IQNs' storied experiences of workplace interactions with colleagues in New Zealand healthcare settings might reveal aspects of their professional identity.
My goal is to recruit eight IQNs, who have been working in New Zealand for at least three years, via recruitment posters and word-of-mouth advertising. Once I have collected data using semi-structured interviews, journals, and focus group meetings, I'll apply positioning analysis to reveal ways in which participants position self and others through their storied experiences of positive and challenging workplace interactions. I hope my research findings may result in the creation of guidelines for managers within medical contexts to help IQNs develop their applied knowledge of New Zealand nursing culture and communication practices.
So, what really did make me want to study nurses? Well, as one of my doctoral supervisors observed when we were discussing options for researching migrants' professional identity, "With nurses, communication is life or death..." I believe that this study is significant because IQNs' stories of positive and challenging workplace interactions in New Zealand healthcare settings are a communication channel for migrant nurses' voices to be heard and for their experiences of social interactions to be better understood. This enhanced understanding may lead to IQNs being supported in their choice to continue living and working in New Zealand, thereby helping develop a more skilled and diverse nursing community.
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