Examınatıon of the roles of nurses who work ın the fıeld of ınfertılıty and the dıffıcultıes they experıence

Objective: This study was performed in a definitive way for the purpose of examining the roles of nurses, who work in the field of infertility and the difficulties they experience.Method: The sampling of the study is consisted of the members of İstanbul Reproductive Health and Infertility Nurses Association and İzmir Infertility Nurses Association, as well as a total of 117 nurses, who worked and/or are still working at various infertility centers in the provinces of İstanbul, İzmir and Ankara, and who accepted to participate in the study. The data of the study were collected with e-mails and the method of face-to-face interview. Survey form, which was prepared by the researcher, was used as the data collection tool. The form includes questions, which were prepared in an attempt to define the introductory information, roles and difficulties of nurses who work in the field of infertility. Definitive statistical analyses, such as number, percentage and average, were used for the analysis of the data.Results: Roles of nurses who work in the field of infertility were examined under three main titles as practioner, education/consultancy and researcher roles. It was determined that practises which were performed by nurses regarding their practioner roles at the most are the patient preparation/care before and after the invazive proceedings. 80.7% of nurses provide education/consultancy at their institutions. It was determined that the subject in which the nurses provide the greatest education/consultancy is the oral and/or subcutaneous drug implementation. 56% of nurses who work in the field of infertility do not conduct research on their own; on the other hand, it was determined that the subject in which the nurses conduct the greatest research is the complications of the treatment and nursing care. Nurses who work in the field of infertility have difficulties, since the patients experience financial and monetary problems.Conclusion: It is thought that when the roles and responsibilites of nurses who work in the field of infertility are defined and the certified nurses are assigned in centers, this will contribute to the reduction of difficulties experienced by nurses in this field and presentation of a more effective and integrated care for patients.Keywords: Infertility, Infertility Nursing, Roles of Infertility Nurses