The importance of nursing research

The role practice approach for exercise and enhancement of nursing research capacity: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Strategies to improve the teaching effectiveness of nursing research courses are a fundamental objective of contemporary nursing educators. The role practice method is the sum of ways, means, and procedures used to perform role-specific practical learning activities through the adaptation of concepts, models and subjective abilities in an authentic environment. This technique enhances teaching effectiveness by encouraging students to actively participate in practice.

OBJECTIVE

The main aim of this study was to explore the effectiveness of the role practice approach within the framework of nursing research courses and provide guidance for subsequent teaching efforts.

METHODS

The purposive sampling method was used to recruit 16 students who participated in teaching of the role practice approach and completed all tasks set within the nursing research course in the third year of the undergraduate nursing program of a comprehensive university in south China. Data obtained from semi-structured interviews were analyzed using Colaizzi's seven-step analysis method.

RESULTS

Three themes were evaluated, specifically, self-improvement, self-inadequacy and course optimization.

CONCLUSION

The role practice method is effective in teaching nursing research courses and can enhance the ability of students to conduct research activities. However, deficiencies in the implementation plan exist that need further revision.

Research Self-Efficacy and Research-Related Behavior Among Nurses in Qatar: A Cross-Sectional Study

AIM

Research self-efficacy helps predict the individual interest and confidence in conducting research. The study was conducted to identify the research self-efficacy among nurses working in a group of tertiary hospitals and their research-related behavior.

METHOD

The study design was descriptive cross-sectional and conducted among nurses at Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar Convenient sampling was done and 500 is the sample size. Data were collected through an online survey during 2 months in 2019 by using a validated "Nursing Research Self-Efficacy Scale" questionnaire. The scale includes 38 items under five domains, and the response was collected on a Likert scale from 1 to 5. The authors of the scale suggested excellent reliability score for the subscales, ranging from .94 to .97 and the existence of subscales was supported by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis.

RESULTS

A completed survey was collected from 780 nurses. The mean self-efficacy score was 2.92 ± 0.97. The mean score for the subscale of obtaining science-based knowledge resources was the highest (3.24 ± 1.03) and the lowest for critically read and evaluate qualitative research literature (2.63 ± 1.12). Nurses with higher educational qualifications and those who enrolled in any educational program further to their nursing education have statistically significantly high research self-efficacy.

CONCLUSION

The overall research self-efficacy of working nurses is moderate. However, nurses' confidence in the ability to perform critiquing research and understand the concept and methodology in research is minimal. Introduction of nurse-tailored research training, which covers fundamental aspects of research to an advanced level, will help make them more confident in research.

Development of Nursing Research in Saudi Arabia: Implications for Policies and Practice

Background: Nursing research in Saudi Arabia can be evaluated based on productivity as well as the quality of publications. The scope of scientific inquiry in nursing research expands to include clinical, health system, and outcome-based research, education, and administration. Aim: The purpose of this article is to track the development of nursing research in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Design: Systematic review. Methods: This study used keywords, databases including MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PubMed to search for published articles on nursing in Saudi Arabia. The search resulted in the identification of 681 publications, from which 360 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Results: The highest percentage of studies (56.7% of articles) focused on nursing clinical practice, and 76.0% of the studies were conducted in a hospital setting, followed by an educational setting. Most of the studies were quantitative and non-funded. More than 50.0% of the studies were first authored by Saudi scholars. Conclusions: This study concluded that nursing research in Saudi Arabia is still in its infancy, with notable improvements in the last 5 years. This correlated with an increasing number of nurses holding postgraduate degrees. With the Saudi government's strong support, the number of scientific research papers published on Saudi nursing has steadily increased over the last year.

Politically Engaged Mindset of Everyday Coping in Relation to Nursing Values: A Phenomenological-Hermeneutic Study of District Nurses' Experiences

Introduction

To accommodate challenges threatening the healthcare sector's sustainability, district nursing in Norway implemented the rehabilitative and health promoting mindset of everyday coping. When implementing new ideas and practices in nursing care, understanding the significance of this mindset on patient care and whether it corresponds to nursing values are important to ensure healthcare quality.

Objective

This study aimed to understand how nurses practice care where everyday coping is implemented in district nursing and their experience of everyday coping as a mindset in relation to nursing values.

Methods

A qualitative study was conducted including 19 observations and 19 narrative interviews with 10 district nurses, during two data collection periods. Data were analyzed using a phenomenological-hermeneutic method. The analysis process consisted of three steps: naïve reading, structural analysis, and comprehensive understanding.

Results

The following two main themes and four sub-themes emerged from the data analyses: (i) Understanding individual patient situations; "Creating a nurse-patient relationship to understand the patient landscape" and "providing care based on individual patient needs," (ii) knowing when and how to motivate or help patients; "distinction between motivating patients and causing stress" and "realistic and desirable demands to motivate patients to perform tasks."

Conclusion

Participants determined how to provide care to patients based on their values, professional knowledge, and individual patient situations. The patient landscape is diverse and everyday coping is unable to capture the diversity of patient groups. Thus, everyday coping is not expressed as an overall mindset in nursing practice.

Utilisation of research in clinical nursing and midwifery practice in Ghana: protocol for a mixed-method study. (Preprint)

BACKGROUND

The International Council of Nurses' 2021 code of ethics mandates nurses to provide evidence-informed care to patients. Globally, using research evidence has led to improvement in nursing and midwifery practice, according to the World Health Organization. A study in Ghana found that 25.3% (n=40) of nurses and midwives use research in clinical care. Research utilization (RU) increases therapeutic effectiveness, improves health outcomes, and enhances the personal and professional development of clinicians. However, it is uncertain the extent to which nurses and midwives are prepared, skilled, and supported to utilize research in clinical care in Ghana.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to develop a conceptual framework that can facilitate RU among clinical nurses and midwives in Ghanaian health facilities.

METHODS

This will be a cross-sectional study with a concurrent mixed methods approach. It will be conducted in 6 hospitals and 4 nursing educational institutions in Kumasi, Ghana. The study has 4 objectives which will be executed in 3 phases. Phase 1 follows a quantitative approach to describe the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of clinical nurses and midwives on the use of research in their practice. Using a web-based survey, 400 nurses and midwives working in 6 health facilities will be recruited. Data analysis will be conducted using SPSS, with statistical significance set at .05. Qualitative methodology, using focus group discussions with clinical nurses and midwives, will be conducted to identify the factors influencing their RU. In phase 2, focus group discussions will be used to examine and describe how nurse educators in 4 nursing and midwifery educational institutions prepare nurses and midwives for RU during their education. Views of nurse managers on the RU in Ghanaian health care facilities will be explored in the second section of this phase through one-on-one interviews. Inductive thematic analysis will be used to analyze the qualitative data, and Lincoln and Guba's principles of trustworthiness will be applied. In phase 3, the stages of model development proposed by Chinn and Kramer; and Walker and Avant will be used to triangulate findings from all objectives and formulate a conceptual framework.

RESULTS

Data collection started in December 2022. Publication of the results will begin in April 2023.

CONCLUSIONS

RU in clinical practice has become an acceptable practice in nursing and midwifery. It is critical that nursing and midwifery professionals in sub-Saharan Africa shift their practice to embrace the global movement. This proposed conceptual framework will empower nurses and midwives to improve their practice of RU.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)

DERR1-10.2196/45067.

Scholarly practice in healthcare professions: findings from a scoping review

Scholarly practitioners are broadly defined as healthcare professionals that address critical practice problems using theory, scientific evidence, and practice-based knowledge. Though scholarly practice is included in most competency frameworks, it is unclear what scholarly practice is, how it develops and how it is operationalized in clinical practice. The aim of this review was to determine what is known about scholarly practice in healthcare professionals. We conducted a scoping review and searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL from inception to May 2020. We included papers that explored, described, or defined scholarly practice, scholar or scholarly practitioner, and/or related concepts in healthcare professionals. We included a total of 90 papers. Thirty percent of papers contained an explicit definition of scholarly practice. Conceptualizations of scholarly practice were organized into three themes: the interdependent relationship between scholarship and practice; advancing the profession's field; and core to being a healthcare practitioner. Attributes of scholarly practitioners clustered around five themes: commitment to excellence in practice; collaborative nature; presence of virtuous characteristics; effective communication skills; and adaptive change ethos. No single unified definition of scholarly practice exists within the literature. The variability in terms used to describe scholarly practice suggests that it is an overarching concept rather than a definable entity. There are similarities between scholarly practitioners and knowledge brokers regarding attributes and how scholarly practice is operationalized. Individuals engaged in the teaching, research and/or assessment of scholarly practice should make explicit their definitions and expectations for healthcare professionals.

Exploring the experience of nursing undergraduates in using gamification teaching mode based on the flow theory in nursing research: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

With the development of evidence-based nursing practice, nursing research courses are important in undergraduate programs. However, nursing research courses are highly theoretical, which is difficult for students to understand. Improving the teaching quality of nursing research courses is a challenge for educators.

OBJECTIVES

To understand the learning experience and the effect of gamification teaching on nursing undergraduates, and to provide new ideas for nurse educators.

DESIGN

A qualitative research design using individual semi-structured interviews.

SETTINGS

Gamification teaching was applied in an undergraduate nursing research course over one semester at a university in Central China.

PARTICIPANTS

Purposive sampling was adopted to select nine undergraduate nursing students who had recently completed gamification teaching in a nursing research course.

METHODS

Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological method.

RESULTS

Three major themes and seven subthemes emerged from the interviewees' experience: (1) positive attitude (e.g., acceptance with pleasure and flow experience); (2) self-perceived competence improvement (e.g., creative thinking, collaboration, and knowledge internalization and application); and (3) challenges of gamification teaching (e.g., learning pressure and rationality of game design).

CONCLUSIONS

The gamification teaching mode based on the flow theory had a positive effect on the students' learning experience in the nursing research course. It is recommended to improve the game design model and to enhance its effectiveness for classrooms in the future.

Global production of nursing research: A 10-year survey of subspecialty nursing journals

AIM

This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of global productivity of nursing research in subspecialty nursing journals and to provide a general view of global nursing research.

METHODS

On 10 January 2020, Web of Science was used for research collection. Publications in subspecialty nursing journals from 2015 to 2019 were analysed.

RESULTS

A total of 34 275 publications were retrieved. The United States (15 155) ranked first, followed by Australia (2439), China (2076), Brazil (1803) and the United Kingdom (1602). High-income economies produced 82.26% of the total number of publications. Research production was not significantly correlated with the population (p = 0.113, r = 0.412), whereas it was positively correlated with gross domestic product (p = 0.030, r = 0.541). The United States had the highest number of total citations (46 297). The Netherlands ranked highest when analysing mean citations, followed by Finland and Australia. Sweden ranked highest after correcting for gross domestic product, followed by Australia and Finland. Australia was the most productive nation when adjusted by population, followed by Sweden and Norway.

CONCLUSION

The United States is the leader in nursing research productivity. Countries with large economies tend to make greater contributions to global nursing research. Some European countries and Australia were found to be more prolific when stratified by population size and economic activity.

Impact of Undergraduate Research Experience on Professional Career Outcomes of Nurses

BACKGROUND

The benefits of engaging undergraduate nursing students in research have been well-identified; however, little research has documented the long-term outcomes of this research assistant (RA) experience on nurses' professional careers. This study evaluated the impact of undergraduate research experience on participants' nursing professional career outcomes.

METHOD

A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted with a purposive sample of two groups (N = 94; RAs = 32 and non-RAs = 62). The questionnaire was administered online.

RESULTS

A comparison of participants' responses revealed statistically significant differences regarding scholarship activities and attitudes toward evidence-based practice. RAs had a greater likelihood of involvement in professional development and higher educational aspirations than non-RAs.

CONCLUSION

Undergraduate nursing research experience appears to have a positive impact on evidence-based practice, professional involvement, continuing education, and scholarship activities. These findings support future investment in undergraduate nursing research experiences to build a knowledge-based workforce and advanced nursing scholarship. [J Nurs Educ. 2021;60(10):570-576.].

The state of nursing research from 2000 to 2019: A global analysis

AIM

This study aims to present a general bibliometric overview of the development status of global nursing research from 2000 to 2019.

DESIGN

A longitudinal bibliometric analysis of nursing research was conducted.

METHODS

Nursing research publications (N = 88,665) were obtained from Web of Science. Bibliometric method was used to map the output and citation impact trends of countries/regions, institutions, disciplines, and journals and analyse the research collaboration among countries/regions and institutions.

RESULTS

The global paper output in nursing research increased steadily over the past two decades and it varied in different countries/regions with the USA being far ahead of the others. The paper output and cross-border collaboration are mainly distributed in several developed countries like the USA, the UK, Australia, and Canada. The University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, University of Toronto, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have high academic influence in the field of nursing. Increasing attention from academic fields has been paid to research on nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing is the most prolific and most cited journal in nursing field.

CONCLUSION

Nursing research has developed steadily over the last two decades. Both the scientific output and research collaboration are disproportionally distributed between high-income countries/regions and low- and middle-income countries/regions. Most research and collaboration have taken place in a few developed countries across North America, Europe, and Oceania.

IMPACT

The study highlighted the need for policy makers and funding agencies, especially those from low- and middle-income countries/regions, to allocate research funding that supports the nursing higher education and international cooperation so as to promote the development of high-quality nursing research in those countries/regions. At the same time, researchers from non-English-speaking countries/regions should attach more importance to publishing papers in English, strengthening the academic exchanges with international nursing colleagues and better integrating into the international academic community.

Simulation Modeling as a Novel and Promising Strategy for Improving Success Rates With Research Funding Applications: A Constructive Thought Experiment

Writing a successful grant or other funding applications is a requirement for continued employment, promotion, and tenure among nursing faculty and researchers. Writing successful applications is a challenging task, with often uncertain results. The inability to secure funding not only threatens the ability of nurse researchers to conduct relevant health care research but may also negatively impact their career trajectories. Many individuals and organizations have offered advice for improving success with funding applications. While helpful, those recommendations are common knowledge and simply form the basis of any well-considered, well-formulated, and well-written application. For nurse researchers interested in taking advantage of innovative computational methods and leading-edge analytical techniques, we propose adding the results from computer-based simulation modeling experiments to funding applications. By first conducting a research study in a virtual space, nurse researchers can refine their study design, test various assumptions, conduct experiments, and better determine which elements, variables, and parameters are necessary to answer their research question. In short, simulation modeling is a learning tool, and the modeling process helps nurse researchers gain additional insights that can be applied in their real-world research and used to strengthen funding applications. Simulation modeling is well-suited for answering quantitative research questions. Still, the design of these models can benefit significantly from the addition of qualitative data and can be helpful when simulating the results of mixed methods studies. We believe this is a promising strategy for improving success rates with funding applications, especially among nurse researchers interested in contributing new knowledge supporting the paradigm shift in nursing resulting from advances in computational science and information technology.

The role of PhD-prepared, hospital-based nurses: an inter-Nordic study

Background

Little is known about PhD-prepared nurses employed at Nordic university hospitals, how they are organised, what their practices look like or what career pathway they have chosen.

Aims

The purpose was to investigate and compare the prevalence of PhD-prepared nurses employed at university hospitals in the Nordic countries, to investigate what functions they fulfil and what research activities they undertake and to document how they describe their ideal work life.

Methods

A descriptive cross-sectional study. An electronic questionnaire was sent to 245 PhD-prepared nurses working at a university hospital in one of six Nordic countries and 166 responses were achieved (response rate 67%). Descriptive analyses were performed using SPSS Statistics.

Results

The study found notable differences among PhD-prepared nurses employed at university hospitals with respect to work function; organisational structure; satisfaction about time split between research and practice; and the mean scores of time spend on research, clinical practice and teaching, supervision and administration.

Conclusions

In order to succeed with capacity building among the nursing workforce, collaboration and networking with other researchers and close contact to clinical practice is important. The role of the hospital-based, PhD-prepared nurse needs to be better described and defined to ensure that evidence-based care is provided.

Engagement in Research: A Clinical Nurse Profile and Motivating Factors

The purposes for this interpretive descriptive study were to gain an understanding of what motivates clinical nurses to be interested and/or engaged in research, describe the motivators for these clinical nurses, and identify common characteristics of these clinical nurses. Results revealed four themes and a clinical nurse profile. Based on findings, educators should encourage clinical nurses who are motivated to participate in nursing research to ignite intrinsic passion, professional growth, and nursing credibility and improve patient outcomes.

Use of Music Lyrics to Engage Millennial Learners in Undergraduate Research

Undergraduate research, a high-impact learning practice, peaks interest and enthusiasm for research and contributes to development of research process knowledge, skills, and competency. Fifty millennial sophomore nursing students participated in the innovative learning activity using lyrics from popular songs to complete qualitative analysis in a research course. Students analyzed, synthesized, and developed themes from music lyrics that helped them to more fully understand the processes and perspectives of qualitative research. This activity taught students about qualitative research and provided an opportunity to develop analysis, synthesis, and teamwork knowledge and skills transferable to the professional environment.

Research Priorities of Clinical Nurses and Midwives in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: a Mixed Methods Study

Effective use of resources in healthcare research is essential in meeting the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 to achieve universal health coverage, increase retention of healthcare workers, and strengthen the capacity of all countries to reduce risk and manage global health risks; the World Health Organization (WHO) also identifies nursing research as an important piece of the framework for improving global healthcare. Determining research priorities to reduce redundancy and ensure a solid evidence base for practice is especially critical in resource-limited countries or those facing healthcare crises such as those in the Middle East. To identify regional research priorities for nursing, focus group discussions composed of hospital-based nurses were conducted in Egypt, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. Forty-eight percent of research priorities were nearly the same as those identified as critical by regional nursing leadership in a previous study, demonstrating consistency between clinician- and administrator-identified research priorities, and suggesting healthcare administrators are well attuned to the research needs of clinicians. Both groups identified critical gaps in population and community health research. Across countries, research priorities identified were related to nursing workforce, health systems research, and quality of care, representing critical issues needing investigation to build a solid evidence base for nursing practice.

Impact of a biomedical research project on the human capital development of emerging researchers

Various evaluative studies have been carried out to obtain the views of multiple stakeholders involved in community-based biomedical research projects. However, rarely have the viewpoints of postgraduate students and junior faculty involved in such initiatives been explored. Thus, the aim of this study was to examine the views of postgraduate students and junior faculty at a rural-based university on the effect of a longitudinal biomedical research project on their acquisition of relevant skills. In-depth interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted. The thematic content analysis technique was used to analyse the qualitative data. Both postgraduate student and junior faculty groups indicated that they had acquired considerable research skills and knowledge; gained experience; were exposed to practical reality; and strengthened their interpersonal skills and general personal development. However, some respondents highlighted that they still believed that training in data analysis and exposure to new laboratory techniques would have strengthened their individual capabilities to conduct cutting-edge research. The results of this study highlight the need for community-based biomedical researchers to equip members of their teams with the skills and knowledge that will help them achieve their academic and career goals.

The State of Nursing Research in Ghana: An Integrative Literature Review

INTRODUCTION

For nursing practice to be responsive to the needs of patients, it must be driven by contextual research evidence. To guide institutional and national nursing research policy, there is need to determine the quantity and quality of nursing research in Ghana.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this integrative literature review was to quantify, critically evaluate, and describe nursing research publication in Ghana from January 2007 to December 2016 with regard to the country's research capacity to sustain evidence-based practice.

RESULTS

Sixty (60) out of 749 articles identified from EBSCOhost, ProQuest, PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Wiley Online Library, and Google Scholar using three keywords (nursing, health, and Ghana) were included. A total of 60,778 human subjects were used in these studies. There were more quantitative (28) studies than qualitative (23) studies. These studies recorded 219 authors from 120 institutions, 55 of which were outside Ghana. Forty-five percent of the articles were published in journals with impact factor. There was a steady increase in publication in Ghana over the decade. A majority of the studies published in education were in curriculum implementation and evaluation.

CONCLUSIONS

The increasing number of peer-reviewed nursing research publications in Ghana and the curriculum implementation and evaluation in Ghana signified an increasing capacity of the country to implement and sustain evidence-based practice.

RECOMMENDATIONS

It is recommended that regular research be conducted to evaluate the responsiveness to old and new nursing programs in Ghana.

Characteristics of Reviews Published in Nursing Literature: A Methodological Review

Integrative and systematic reviews present synthesized research. Scholars have called for increased rigor and reporting in reviews. The purpose of this methodological review was to describe the characteristics of nurse-led reviews. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines directed the review process. Many reviews did not clearly report the search strategy used and methods for data extraction and quality appraisal, indicating that there has not been an increase in rigor. Authors of reviews are encouraged to report sufficient methodological details, so peer reviewers and consumers can determine whether the methods were rigorous enough to contribute meaningful results.

Nurses' knowledge on diabetic foot ulcer disease and their attitudes towards patients affected: A cross-sectional institution-based study

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To assess nurses' knowledge on diabetic ulcer disease and their attitudes towards patients suffering from it and to identify factors which influence them.

BACKGROUND

Diabetic wound care is an evolving specialty with the rising prevalence of diabetes foot complications. As nurses play a key role in wound care, their knowledge and attitudes are important in providing optimum care to patients.

DESIGN

Descriptive cross-sectional survey design.

METHODS

The study was conducted in three teaching hospitals. Data were collected using a pretested, validated, self-administered questionnaire from purposively recruited, voluntarily participating nurses (n = 200) who were in diabetic wound care practice for ≥1 year.

RESULTS

Lack of formal wound care training was reported by 91.2%. Mean knowledge score was 77.9 (range 53.3-100 on a scale from 0-100) with 57.8% of nurses obtaining ≥80%. Nurses demonstrated an overall positive attitude towards caring for diabetic ulcer patients (median = 41, range 23-50 on a scale from 10-50). However, the study identified deficits in core knowledge and some negative attitudes such as insensitivity to pain. Statistically significant associations were seen between nurses' knowledge and duration of nursing, wound care experience and the type of unit they are attached to. In-service education (77.2%) and knowledge sharing with peers (77.9%) were the most popular knowledge-updating sources. Although 98.6% of nurses were interested in wound care, only 8.3% wished to engage in research. No correlation was observed between nurses' knowledge and attitudes.

CONCLUSION

Gaps in core knowledge and negative attitudes may be attributed to inadequate training, suboptimal update of knowledge and lack of interest in wound care research.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Wound care training should be made mandatory to improve quality of care given by nurses to patients with diabetic ulcers. Continuous professional development, evidence-based practices and wound care research should be encouraged.

Using Debates to Teach Evidence-Based Practice in Large Online Courses

BACKGROUND

To engage in evidence-based practice (EBP), baccalaureate nursing graduates' competencies must include locating, interpreting, appraising, and applying research findings. Faculty are challenged to find effective ways to incorporate this content in large online courses.

METHOD

Faculty in a thriving college of nursing used interactive debates to teach EBP skills in a large (200+ students) online undergraduate course.

RESULTS

Students remain highly engaged while practicing critical thinking, team-work, leadership, delegation, communication skills, and peer evaluation through participation in a series of faculty-facilitated online debates.

CONCLUSION

Meticulous course organization and use of structured debates allows one instructor to teach skills for EBP, while keeping students engaged with each other, the instructor, and the material. Use of debates and the amount of engagement among students and faculty achieved could not be accomplished in a large face-to-face course.

Self-assessment of nursing competency among final year nursing students in Thailand: a comparison between public and private nursing institutions

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES

Nurses play a major role in Thailand's health care system. In recent years, the production of nurses, in both the public and private sectors, has been growing rapidly to respond to the shortage of health care staff. Alongside concerns over the number of nurses produced, the quality of nursing graduates is of equal importance. This study therefore aimed to 1) compare the self-assessed competency of final year Thai nursing students between public and private nursing schools, and 2) explore factors that were significantly associated with competency level.

METHODS

A cross-sectional clustered survey was conducted on 40 Thai nursing schools. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires. The questionnaire consisted of questions about respondents' background, their education profile, and a self-measured competency list. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and multivariate regression analysis were applied.

RESULTS

A total of 3,349 students participated in the survey. Approximately half of the respondents had spent their childhood in rural areas. The majority of respondents reported being "confident" or "very confident" in all competencies. Private nursing students reported a higher level of "public health competency" than public nursing students with statistical significance. However, there was no significant difference in "clinical competency" between the two groups.

CONCLUSION

Nursing students from private institutions seemed to report higher levels of competency than those from public institutions, particularly with regard to public health. This phenomenon might have arisen because private nursing students had greater experience of diverse working environments during their training. One of the key limitations of this study was that the results were based on the subjective self-assessment of the respondents, which might risk respondent bias. Further studies that evaluate current nursing curricula in both public and private nursing schools to assess whether they meet the health needs of the population are recommended.

Innovative strategies for teaching nursing research in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

Evidence-based practice is imperative in clinical settings because it bridges the gap between research findings and clinical practice. Promoting nursing student interest and enthusiasm for research is therefore crucial when teaching nursing research.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of thus study was to develop innovative teaching strategies that increase nursing students' interests and engagement in research.

METHODS

This study employed a descriptive, pretest-posttest, quasiexperimental design with 103 participants in the experimental group and 106 in the control group. The Attitudes toward Research Questionnaire, Classroom Engagement Scale, Self-Directed Learning Instrument, Nursing Eight Core Competencies Scale, Value of Teams survey, and a research knowledge test were applied to evaluate the outcomes of the innovative teaching strategies.

RESULTS

Scores for the research knowledge test were significantly higher in the experimental group than in the control group in posttest 1 and posttest 2. After the intervention, participants in the experimental group exhibited higher scores on attitudes toward research, eight core competencies in nursing,value of teams, classroom engagement, and self-directed learning than participants in the control group. Students in the experimental group perceived a lower degree of pressure and higher degrees of interest, enjoyment, and acceptance of the research course than students in the control group.

CONCLUSIONS

This study confirmed that using innovative teaching strategies in nursing research courses enhances student interest and enthusiasm about evidence-based practice.

Steps for successful implementation of proteomic research in the OR

Proteomic studies (ie, the investigation and identification of proteins found in biological samples such as blood and tissue) are at the forefront of the identification of disease biomarkers and the understanding of proteins. These studies promise to enhance diagnostic and prognostic analysis across all disciplines of clinical practice. As the practice of nursing and medicine becomes more preventative in nature and predictive in terms of patient care, successfully integrating and implementing proteomic research will become increasingly important, especially in the OR. It is imperative that perioperative nurses and researchers establish a collaborative process for specimen collection. Steps in establishing and maintaining a successful specimen collection program include implementing and evaluating a protocol, developing good communication, and keeping all participants up to date on the progress of the study.