Background Nurse researchers are constantly seeking novel methods of maintaining philosophical congruence while advancing their knowledge of the human condition using paradigmatically diverse means.

Aim To provide an overview of the research philosophies underpinning the mixed methods grounded theory (MM-GT) methodology, illustrate its optimal use and introduce a quality-appraisal tool being developed with reference to extant literature.

Discussion The utility of MM-GT has been effectively demonstrated in the nursing and health literature. Yet, there are examples of how it has been under-used and sub-optimally applied. This article includes a two-phase MM-GT study protocol guided by a pragmatic research philosophy and best practice recommendations that aims to explain neonatal nurses’ professional quality of life.

Conclusion Optimal use of MM-GT’s five essential components – purposive sampling, constant comparative methods with iterative coding and analysis, theoretical saturation, memoing and theory development – combine to produce high-quality, defensible research outputs and new nursing theory.

Implications for practice Research outputs, such as publication and presentation, expounding the multifactorial influences affecting neonatal nurses’ professional quality of life will not only benefit the neonatal nursing community but also contribute to the corpus of nursing and midwifery research and enhance the health, well-being and retention of nurses and midwives more broadly.