Gaining role clarity in working with sick leave questions—Registered Nurses’ experiences of an educational intervention

Abstract

AIM To describe how a short educational intervention in social insurance medicine was experienced by Registered Nurses and what changes it brought to their work with sick leave questions in telephone nursing. DESIGN Qualitative explorative interview study. METHODS Interviews with 12 purposively sampled Registered Nurses were conducted and analysed using manifest content analysis. RESULTS The intervention increased Registered Nurses' knowledge of the sick leave process and changed their work habits as they now have more of the skills needed to handle sick leave questions. In this way, they gained role clarity in their work with sick leave questions. The new knowledge included rules and regulations, actors' roles and patients' experiences. Learning from peers, reflecting and having the opportunity to ask questions were also described as increasing their knowledge. The skills following the participation were described as knowing what to say and do and knowing where to turn for support.