Exploring the Responses and lived experiences of British African Caribbeans to careers in

426 Pages·2014·4.87 MB·English

“…Here to stay… so… deal with it…”

Experiences and Perceptions of Black
British African Caribbean People
about Nursing Careers.

NAOMI ANNA WATSON

Doctor of Philosophy.
DeMontfort University.
Mary Seacole Research Centre
Leicester UK.

September 2014.
1. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
DEDICATION

This thesis is dedicated to the memory of my
maternal grandparents, the late Levi and
Kathleen Beatrice Clarke, whose enduring love
and unending affirmation continue to nurture,
motivate and remind me of the strength and
resilience of my ancestors. Their ‘overseeing’
spirits remain integral to my everyday
experiences and ensure they are never forgotten.

“It always seems impossible until its done” Nelson Mandela.1918-2013.
2. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Acknowledgements

I would like to take this opportunity to thank those who have been
supportive throughout my studies for the preparation and presentation of
this thesis.

Firstly, grateful thanks to God for helping me to stay the course, despite
many difficult challenges along the way.

My thanks to Professor Mark Johnson for his patience, respect and
understanding of the issues facing mature part time students who have to
juggle their full time jobs and family commitments while they study.
Without this understanding my completion would have been much more
difficult, and indeed, may not have happened. Thank you!

Many thanks to Dr Sam Parboteah for his early guidance as a member of
my supervisory team, and to Dr Perry Stanislas for kindly consenting to
come on board during the last stages.

My gratitude extends to my colleague and friend, Dr. Vivienne Connel-Hall,
whose constant persistent encouragement served as a key factor in helping
me get back on track after some early disappointing experiences which had
led me to consider giving up this quest. Thank you Viv!

The task of getting to grips with the statistical analysis of my survey for this
project would have been impossible without the initial support of Dr. Terry
Sithole, whose patience and willingness to help, despite her very busy
academic schedule, was of invaluable help in getting me through the early
stages.
3. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Thanks to Terrence Owen, who graciously and patiently helped me with the
follow-on stage of the survey analysis, by not allowing the distance to be a
problem, but kindly setting up a number of Skype tutorials with Team
viewer to help guide me through the difficult process.

Thanks to Dr Yoseph Araya for helping me to consolidate the quantitative
statistical work in its final stages, and to Professor Jeune Guishard-Pine,
OBE, who reassured me that unrealistic deadlines can be met with a little
extra vitamin B push. It worked! Thank you.

My thanks to all my family, friends and colleagues who have provided me
with respite in their homes, and a listening ear throughout my studies. To
my mum Minteena and each of my ten siblings and their families, who have
loved me, comforted me and said many prayers on my behalf. Thank you for
believing in me and for the constant reassuring reminder of the resilient
spirit of my ancestors willing me to keep going.

To Jenny Douglas whose consistent and regular peer support was such a
tremendous help, and to Gloria Gulab and Lorna James for going the extra
mile to help me with data access issues when the going got tough.

To all those who participated in interviews, shared their experiences with
me and filled out questionnaires, many thanks. I hope I have done justice to
your determination to contribute to being a part of the solution.

Thank you to my employer, The Open University, for partially funding my
studies as part of my continuing professional development.

Finally, but in no way least, to my daughter Abeni Kaylee Aretha Watson,
for making sure that I understood without any doubt, the meaning of
‘resilience’ and ‘staying the course despite all the ‘happenings’. Thank you
4. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
for providing enough distractions that I would never have experienced if I
had to choose them. Their contribution to my learning and development,
though at times unwelcome, cannot be denied. On reflection throughout
this journey, we have both grown and learned useful ‘life’ lessons from
those distractions, which I hope will help us both in future endeavours and
our travel together. Over to you!
5. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Terminologies and Meanings.

This glossary of terms used in this thesis is provided for non-specialist and
other readers. Usage, in some cases, may be different in the literature,
however, for the purpose of this thesis, the terms and meanings identified
here will have the same consistent meaning throughout the work.

African Caribbean

The term 'African Caribbean’ in this context is used to denote people of

African descent of Caribbean origin.

Black

This term generally describes all individuals of African, Asian and
Caribbean descent, having been chosen as a term of positive self-identity
and as an assertion of political solidarity by some.

Black British

In the context of this project, this term is used to denote those who identified
themselves as such, having been born and/or schooled in the British
education system, and while their parents may or may not be British born,
they have no physical experience of an education system outside of
the United Kingdom (UK) This subsequently also gives them a British

perspective on culture and lifestyle.

Their ancestors may have originated from Africa, The Caribbean or they

may be from mixed parentage of African Caribbean, Asian or White lineage.

Culture:

This can be complex, however it is used here to denote a shared set of
values, perceptions, assumptions and ways of viewing and doing things
within our social groups, which are based on history and language.
6. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Indigenous community

In this research, the term is used to denote host local people whose origins
are from the country concerned, in this case referring to white British
people.

Discrimination

The term in this context denotes unfair and/or unequal treatment because of
skin color, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, gender and/or disability.

Diversity:

This term, when used in this research, refers to the recognition of the
individual as unique, with individual differences which may include race,
ethnicity, gender, ability, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, age,
religious and political beliefs. Recognizing diversity should promote respect
and acceptance and lead to conscious and deliberate practical actions in the
promotion of inclusive behaviours in society generally and the workplace
specifically.

Ethnicity:
In this thesis, the term is used to identify an individual’s ancestry or place of
origin, religion, language and cultural heritage. It tends to be used as a
matter of self -perception rather than objective fact, however,which makes it
difficult to define.

Institutional Racism:

This term is used to denote health, educational and social inequalities which
could result in inappropriate service provision that is not accessible to
certain individuals or groups. It is embedded in systems, structures and
policies which inform organizational practices. It may lead to discriminatory
outcomes for minority ethnic employees irrespective of the motives of the
7. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
employer or organization. It often leads to the needs of minority ethnic
groups being ignored.

Minority Ethnic:

Used to denote all people from varied cultural groups in the United
Kingdom (UK), some of whom may not necessarily identify themselves as
Black.

Prejudice:

Refers to negative opinions, beliefs and judgments which are held about
individuals by virtue of their membership of certain groups or categories in
society. Negative views lead people to act in negative ways towards
individuals or groups and may lead to discrimination.

Race:

This term is usually used to denote differences that are based on
biological/genetic constructs between groups of people with identifying
physical features such as the color of the skin and type of hair, as
definitive aspects.

Racism:

Negative actions and outcomes against an individual or group because of
their race. The consequences can affect many areas of life, including social
interactions, educational achievement, health care access, employment and
housing.
In this context, this term is used to refer to actions or inactions, which
result in the disadvantaging of minority ethnic individuals in this country,
or similar countries.
8. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Racialisation

Used in the context of this research to identify the combination of actions
and processes, which together intersect to influence perceptions and
negative actions against Black people. These actions include, but are not
limited to, gender, ethnicity and social class.

White People:

This is a term used for convenience in this study to denote European people
in general.
9. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.
Abbreviations used in the Study

BBAC Black British African Caribbean
BME Black and Minority Ethnic

BTEC Business and Technical (Qualification)
CAMS Complementary and Alternative Medicines

CATS Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme
CRE Commission for Racial Equality
CYP Children and Young People.

DH Department of Health

DFES Department for Education and Science
ECU Equality Challenge Unit

EN Enrolled Nurse
ENB English National Board
FE Further Education

GP General Practitioner

GCSE General Certificate School Examinations
HCA Health Care Assistant.

HE Higher Education.
HEI Higher Educational Institution
HSJ Health Service Journal
IT Information Technology

MIND Mental Health Organization

NIEC National Institute for Education and Culture
NMAS Nursing and Midwifery Admissions Council.
NMC Nursing and Midwifery Council.
NVQs National Vocational Qualifications.

ONS Office For National Statistics.
PJ2000 Project 2000
10. ©Naomi A. Watson PhD Thesis.