Light at the end of the tunnel: New graduate nurses' accounts of resilience: A qualitative study using Photovoice

Background: Resilience is the ability to overcome any stressful situation. The ability to bounce back is said to enable a person to emerge stronger, perform better, and become more confident and selfefficient. The new graduate nurses' journey is a stressful experience as they become immersed in the day-to-day work pressures. Objective: The study explored the new graduate nurses' accounts of resilience and the facilitating and impeding factors in building their resilience. Methods and Participants: A qualitative study using Photovoice was employed in this study and guided by the theory of Sense of Coherence. Nine new graduate nurses from one university and working for a year in one university-affiliated hospital in Singapore were interviewed and data was subjected to thematic analysis. Findings: Four themes emerged: (1) resilience is persevering and overcoming obstacles; (2) resilience is accepting one's responsibilities and fulfilling them; (3) resilience is adapting to new situations; and (4) resilience is taking control of own learning. The exhaustive account of their resilience is portrayed as “light at the end of the tunnel”. Conclusion: In spite of the stressful working environment and obstacles encountered as new graduate nurses, participants' resilience is built upon the comprehensibility, meaningfulness and management of any situation they face in their personal, spiritual and professional life. Future research is needed to objectively measure their level of Sense of Coherence and association with their level of resilience.