Sammendrag
Introduction: Nurses educated in the European Union and European Economic Area are automatically given professional
authorization to work in all member states, facilitating workforce mobility between countries. Along with many other
European countries, Norway faces nursing shortages in healthcare. European Foreign Educated Nurses are often recruited
to work in Norway by agencies or apply for work themselves.
Aims: To explore the experiences Foreign Educated Nurses from European Union and European Economic Area had with
their preparation and orientation programs and their first year of work in Norwegian elderly care institutions
Methods: The study followed a qualitative explorative design. Nine open, dialogue-based, semi-structured interviews were
conducted with Foreign Educated Nurses from Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Iceland, and Spain. Data were analyzed using
qualitative content analysis.
Findings: One main theme, struggling to adjust to professional competence standards, and four subthemes emerged from
our data (1) deficiencies in preparation and orientation by recruitment agencies and institutions, (2) language skills and
communication challenges at work, (3) cultural differences in the nursing role in clinical practice, and (4) social interactions
at work.
Conclusion: More comprehensive preparation and orientation programs regarding language skills and local healthcare
systems are needed. Foreign Educated Nurses make important contributions to the Norwegian healthcare work force, but
the challenges brought to light in this study negatively affected their work conditions and can possibly threaten patient safety.
More research is suggested to address the lack of collaboration between agencies, healthcare institutions, and other
stakeholders in establishing professional standards and appropriate support for Foreign Educated Nurses from European
Union and European Economic Area.
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