Nurses presenting in English: Needs and requirements in the Spanish University

Abstract

Disseminating nursing research in English is always a difficult task when English is not a primary language. In the case of Spanish nurses, the literature suggests that while nurses are starting to get used to the idea of delivering presentations in English, they still find it a more difficult process than writing for publication. The aim of this research was to better understand how nurses view presenting in English from two perspectives: both as presenters and as listeners. In addition, we also wanted to find out how nurses approach the task of giving presentations in English and what assistance they need with these presentations, in both the preparation and the performance stages. The study follows a micro-ethnographic approach based on a questionnaire and selected follow-up interviews. Participants were working as nurses and/or in higher education as nursing lecturers, and all of them had participated in international academic conferences as speakers or attendees. The results provide a view of the dissemination of nursing research in Spain and give a more accurate picture of how the presentation of nursing research in international forums is still in its infancy. Our findings will also be useful for teaching purposes.