Professional Development Needs of Non-Radiology Nurses: An Exploration of Nurses’ Experiences Caring for Interventional Radiology Patients

Nursing in interventional radiology is diverse and multifaceted. This area of specialty nursing has not yet been acknowledged as such or embraced in Canada. Professional development for interventional radiology nurses is lacking with even fewer educational opportunities for non-radiology nurses who care for interventional radiology patients throughout the hospital to develop needed interventional radiology knowledge and related skills. This qualitative descriptive study explored the experiences non-radiology nurses have caring for interventional radiology patients. Interviews with ten non-radiology nurses in a Canadian hospital provided rich data for analysis. Thematic analysis revealed that these nurses did not receive formal IR education in their nursing curriculum, acquired their knowledge through self-teaching, lacked knowledge about imaging modalities and IR procedures, were impeded to build trusting nurse-patient relationships, and felt ineffective communication disrupted the continuity of care they provided. Addressing professional development needs related to creating interventional radiology education, increasing awareness of the specialty of interventional radiology nursing, and enhancing clinical collaboration is a key recommendation.