Strategies for bridging the theory-practice gap from the perspective of nursing experts

The gap between education and the clinical practice has always been challenge for educational experts in the field. This article aims to explore the perspective of Iranian nursing experts about strategies used for coordinating education and clinical performance in nursing. This qualitative study was conducted by using a conventional content analysis approach; individual interviews were conducted at the participants’ work place; while focus group discussions took place at the Nursing and Midwifery Faculty of Iran University of Medical Sciences. Participants in this study included nursing instructors, educational supervisors and nursing managers with a clinical background and teaching experience of at least five years. In addition, a graduate nursing student and a nursing PhD candidate were also interviewed to ensure data saturation. Purposive sampling was conducted between April 2016–October 2017 among scholars and nursing professional experts who were highly experienced in this field. The two focus groups, obtained the views of nursing managers and educational supervisors working in educational hospitals. Analysis involved open stepwise coding with an emphasis on continuous comparison of data, and reference to written notes of the interviews. The analysis process was carried out in three main phases of preparation, organization, and reporting. The results of this study were classified in three main categories: developing context base curriculum, interactive collaboration among nurses and faculties, the Design and Implementation of a Standard Clinical Guideline. It seems that strong intention and active participation of all beneficiaries are needed to bridge the gap between theory and practice. Creating an appropriate context for nurses and nursing trainers for mutual learning along with the use of pragmatic language in the form of clinical guidelines can help decrease this gap.