Combining health and social protection measures to reach the ultra ...

Research resourcesNursing research: meetingtoday’s health challenges –perspectives from theInternational Council of NursesArticle by Judith A Oulton (pictured) and Patricia CaldwellToday’s health systems face an ever burgeoning numberof challenges, ranging from health care reform to thedemands of shifting demographics; the growing burdenof chronic, noncommunicable diseases; emerging and reemerginghealth problems; shrinking resources; and healthworkforce shortages. The quest for quality and cost-effectivehealth care has brought evidence-based practice and nursingresearch to the forefront.This article begins by briefly exploring nursing’scontribution to health research. It highlights nursing researchpriorities and concludes with an overview on strengtheningnursing’s contribution to research and offering suggestions onthe way forward from an international perspective.Nursing’s contribution to health researchNursing research plays a major role in optimizing the healthand welfare of individuals, families, communities andpopulations, and in reducing inequalities in health. Nursingresearch encompasses inquiry into all aspects, components,activities and phenomenon relating to health and of interestto nurses 1 . It covers all facets of health and disease, spanningfrom health promotion and illness prevention, to curative,rehabilitative and supportive care 2 . Nursing research examinesthe provision of care across all health settings includinghospitals, long-term care facilities, workplaces, schools,community health centres, clinics, rehabilitation centres andhomes 3 . The knowledge generated through nursing researchprovides the scientific basis and evidence that help shapenursing practice, enhance delivery models and systems, guidehealth service planning and policy, inform education and,most importantly, improve patient safety and quality of care.Nurses are active in various aspects of research. They serveas principal investigators, project directors and co-principalinvestigators. As well they participate as advisory board andcommittee members on research projects and function as datacollectors. Nurses may work independently, together with othernurses or in multidisciplinary research teams alongside otherdisciplines such as medicine and pharmacy. Increasingly,nurses are employed by the pharmaceutical industry tocoordinate clinical trials evaluating new medications.Box 1 provides a number of examples illustrating the variedexpertise and contribution nurse researchers are making tonursing, health and health systems research.Indeed, the past decade has witnessed an exponentialgrowth in both the quantity and quality of nursing research.Its development has been influenced in part by therecognition of the importance of research to the professionand an expansion in the number of graduate and doctoralprogrammes available to nurses. A rise in the number ofinstitutions funding, supporting and conducting nursingresearch has also been a good indicator of its growth anddevelopment. Examples of such organizations include theUnited States National Institute of Nursing Research; theInternational Center for HIV/AIDS Research and ClinicalTraining in Nursing; the Research Centre for Nursing andMidwifery Practice in Australia; the Canadian Health ServicesResearch Foundation; the World Health OrganizationCollaborating Centres for Nursing Research andDevelopment; and the Working Group of European NurseResearchers. Also noteworthy is a steady increase in thenumber of high-quality journals and text books devoted tonursing research and the growth in scientific events atnational, regional and international levels. In addition, morecountries have begun developing and adopting nationalresearch plans for nursing, such is the case in Ireland andDenmark 14,15 .Nursing research prioritiesThe International Council of Nurses’ (ICN) position withrespect to nursing research is embodied in the 1987statement on the organization’s role in research andconsidered equally relevant today:“ICN is convinced of the importance of nursing research asa major contribution to meeting the health and welfare needsof people. The continuous and rapid scientific developmentsin a changing world highlight the need for research as ameans of identifying new knowledge, improving professionaleducation and practice, and effectively utilizing resources[….] ICN believes that nursing research should be sociallyrelevant. It should look to the future while drawing on the118 ✜ Global Forum Update on Research for Health Volume 4