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Biomedical subjects

B A Parfitt

Publications and source records attributed to B A Parfitt.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Using Spradley: an ethnosemantic approach to research.

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the use of Spradley's (1979) Developmental Research Sequence (DRS) as a research method. In a recent study which I have carried out exploring the practice of expatriate nurses, I chose to use this method for data collection and analysis. One major reason for the choice was that as a method within the qualitative paradigm it offered an explicit, systematic and rigorous approach to the collection and collation of the research data. The aim of my study was to explore the common experience of expatriate nurses working in developing countries in primary health care and to identify the common values that influenced their practices. DRS utilizes an ethnoscientific approach which incorporates a systematic study of the way of life of an individual or a community or group of people, understood through the process of ethnosemantic analysis or the study of the meaning within language. Or more simply, it offers a way of understanding something of the reality of another person's experience from the way that he or she talks about it. A major assumption of the method is that cultural groups or individuals organize their knowledge and subsequent rules for behaviour on the basis of culturally designated similarities and differences. The paper sets out the DRS method using examples from my study. It provides an opportunity to share my experience of using this method with others.

Anthropology, Cultural↗
PubMed1989

A practical approach to creative teaching: an experiment.

The purpose of this experiment was to see if creative teaching methods would prove effective when included in a school of nursing teaching programme. This would be demonstrated by significant differences in levels of achievement in assessments and a demonstration that the knowledge gained was applied to the clinical situation. Didactic teaching methods were exchanged for a more creative approach without alteration of the course structure. The quasi experimental method was used, with four introductory courses of 20 nursing students at two separate district schools as the sample, two groups acting as the control groups and two as the experimental groups. The teaching sessions introduced medical problems associated with poor oxygenation, particularly those consequent to heart disease. The teaching was supported by appropriate care planning within the Roper et al. (1981) theoretical framework. Three distinct areas were identified; fact learning, e.g. anatomy and physiology, problem identifications and planning for nursing, intervention and skill learning. Students in the experimental groups were given work sheets and facilities for self learning whilst those in the control groups continued with a traditional lecture/demonstration format. The results of the experiment were evaluated by testing all four groups using multiple choice objective tests, essays, problem solving and nursing intervention exercises and practical assessments. The findings showed that the experimental groups did no better in the multiple choice objective tests or in the essays than the control groups but they did do significantly better in the problem identification and planning for nursing intervention exercise. In the assessment of practical skills there was no difference between the groups in skill performance but the experimental groups were able to apply the theory significantly better than the control groups.

Creativity↗