20: ENHANCING THE DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE DEGREE ■ 453
- Qualitative research data collection strategies — using a study on women’s experi-
ences of myocardial infarction as an exemplar
- Mixing data, design and analysis : Triangulation as a qualitative research
strategy — using examples from studies on student midwives’ views of their ed-
ucation and quality of life at end- of- life care
- Qualitative sampling issues —using field notes, memoing, and interviewing,
focusing on a grounded theory approach and using a study on sexuality in
mental health nursing as an exemplar
Unlike the prevailing paradigm in the United States, Trinity College of Nursing
and Midwifery faculty are trying to hone their quantitative research program, while
American nursing faculty are still grappling with balancing qualitative and quantita-
tive research as equal partners. These presentations provided valuable opportunities for
discussion, as the Drexel DrNP program is a hybrid nursing doctorate, and all doctoral
candidates complete a clinical dissertation. Thus, the PhD students at Trinity and the
DrNP students from Drexel appreciated and benefited from exploration of each other’s
research projects during our day visit.
In the context of their multicultural study- abroad education, students and fac-
ulty experienced such activities as the Unmanageable Revolutionaries: Women in Irish
History Walking Tour, a Dublin Literary Pub Crawl, and an incredible night of tragic
drama attending Arthur Miller’s All My Sons at the famed Gate Theater in Dublin.
During the Irish women’s history tour, it was startlingly apparent to us that the accom-
plishments of Irish women were sadly missing as a major aspect of Irish history. Foreign
domination, a historically patriarchal society, religious oppression, and lack of child-
bearing rights appear to have largely contributed to Irish women’s invisibility in Irish
history. This walking tour alone led to a great discussion about the Irish role of women
and of women’s right globally that permeated the classroom. Having attended the
London program once and now the Dublin program, each was uniquely different, and
both were incredibly rewarding for students and faculty.
■ CASE STUDY II: The DrNP- in- Dublin Program: A Doctoral
Student’s Perspective
As an adult doctoral student with multiple responsibilities, including a full- time
career and family, the thought of adding an international study- abroad pro-
gram seemed daunting. As the time neared, however, with all the planning and
packing upon us, the excitement grew. Spending 2 weeks in Ireland with my 11
peers, learning about health care and health care education, as well as taking
two courses would soon be a reality, and not just a paragraph on paper, or as a
small blurb describing the DrNP program. The courses selected to be taken in
Ireland were oriented to qualitative research methods and legal issues in nurs-
ing academia, both very appropriate for study abroad. I do not think we could
have experienced and learned more about qualitative research in any better way
than with the opportunities we were given in Ireland. We had multiple qualita-
tive researchers, all well established in their fields, coming to the Dublin School
of Business and give us lectures about their own research, as well as various
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