Responsibilities of a Beginning Nurse Researcher PDF

Lesson OutlineCHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 1 5 RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE Chapter...

Lesson OutlineCHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 1 5 RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE Chapter RESEARCHER Lesson Outline Responsibilities of a Beginning Nurse Researcher: I. Engage in Nursing or Health-related Research II. Evaluate a Research Study/Report III. Applies the Research Process on improving patient care Objectives: At the end of this chapter, the learner will be able to: a. Explain the involvement of nurses in nursing or health-related research. b. Discuss the process in evaluating a Research Study/Report. c. Describe the application of research process on improving patient care.  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 2 I. ENGAGE IN NURSING OR HEALTH-RELATED RESEARCH Why do nurses engage in Nursing or Health-Related Research? Nursing research is a scientific process that validates and refines existing knowledge and generates new knowledge that directly and indirectly influences nursing practice. Nursing research is the key to building an EBP for nursing (Brown, 2014). Nursing research is also needed to generate knowledge about nursing education, nursing administration, healthcare services, characteristics of nurses, and nursing roles. The findings from these studies influence nursing practice indirectly and add to nursing’s body of knowledge. Research is needed to provide high-quality learning experiences for nursing students. Nursing administration and health services studies are needed to improve the quality, safety, and cost-effectiveness of the healthcare delivery system. What is your Role in Nursing Research? Generating a scientific knowledge base with implementation in practice requires the participation of all nurses in various research activities. Some nurses are developers of research and conduct studies to generate and refine the knowledge needed for nursing practice (Grove et al., 2013). Whatever their education or position, all nurses have roles in research; The research role that a nurse assumes usually expands with his or her advanced education, expertise, and career path. BSN Degree ✓ Nurses with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree are knowledgeable about the research process and have skills in reading and critically appraising studies. ✓ They assist with the implementation of evidence-based guidelines, protocols, algorithms, and policies in practice. ✓ In addition, these nurses might provide valuable assistance in identifying research problems and collecting data for studies. MSN Degree ✓ Nurses with a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) have the educational preparation to appraise critically and synthesize findings from studies to revise or develop protocols, algorithms, or policies for use in practice (see Figure 1-4). ✓ They also have the ability to identify and critically appraise the quality of evidence-based guidelines developed by national organizations. ✓ Advanced practice nurses and nurse administrators have the ability to lead healthcare teams in making essential changes in nursing practice and in the healthcare system based on current research evidence. ✓ Most MSN programs provide an opportunity for students to conduct a thesis or research study under the direction of a faculty mentor and thesis committee. ✓ MSN-prepared nurses could identify problems requiring research and sometimes conduct studies but usually do so in collaboration with other nurse scientists (AACN, 2006; ANA 2010a, 2010b).  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 3 DNP Program ✓ The doctorate in nursing can be practice-focused (Doctor of Nursing practice [DNP]) or research-focused (doctor of philosophy [PhD]). ✓ DNPs are educated to have the highest level of clinical expertise, with the ability to translate scientific knowledge for use in practice. ✓ These doctorally prepared nurses have advanced research and leadership knowledge to develop, implement, evaluate, and revise evidence-based guidelines, protocols, algorithms, and policies for practice (Clinton & Sperhac, 2006). ✓ In addition, DNP-prepared nurses have the expertise to conduct and/or collaborate with clinical studies focused on translating evidence-based interventions into practice. PhD Program ✓ PhD-prepared nurses assume a major role in the conduct of research and generation of nursing knowledge in a selected area of interest. ✓ These nurse scientists often coordinate research teams that include DNP-, MSN-, and BSN- prepared nurses to facilitate the conduct of quality studies in a variety of healthcare agencies. ✓ The post doctorate-prepared nurse usually assumes a full-time researcher role and has a funded program of research. ✓ They lead interdisciplinary teams of researchers and sometimes conduct studies in multiple settings. These scientists are often identified as experts in selected areas of research and provide mentoring of new PhD prepared researchers (AACN, 2006).  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 4 II. EVALUATE A RESEARCH STUDY OR REPORT Research Reports Research Journal Articles are descriptions of studies published in professional journals. Manuscripts are reviewed by two or more peer reviewers (other researchers) who make recommendations about acceptance of or revisions to the manuscript. Reviews are usually blind—reviewers are not told researchers’ names, and authors are not told reviewers’ names. At conferences, research findings are presented as oral presentations or poster sessions. o In an oral presentation, researchers are typically allotted 10 to 20 minutes to describe key features of their study to an audience. o In poster sessions, many researchers simultaneously present visual displays summarizing their studies, and conference attendees walk around the room looking at the displays. Conferences offer an opportunity for dialogue: Attendees can ask questions to help them better understand what the findings mean; moreover, they can offer the researchers suggestions relating to clinical implications of the study. THE CONTENT OF RESEARCH JOURNAL ARTICLES Many research articles follow an organization called the IMRAD format. This format organizes content into four main sections—Introduction, Method, Results, and Discussion. The paper is preceded by a title and an abstract and concludes with references. The Title and Abstract In qualitative studies, the title normally includes the central phenomenon and group under investigation. In quantitative studies, the title communicates key variables and the population (in other words, PICO components). The abstract is a brief description of the study placed at the beginning of the article. The abstract answers questions like the following: What were the research questions? What methods were used to address those questions? What were the findings? and What are the implications for nursing practice? Readers can review an abstract to judge whether to read the full report. The Introduction The introduction to a research article acquaints readers with the research problem and its context. This section usually describes the following: o The central phenomena, concepts, or variables under study o The study purpose and research questions or hypotheses o A review of the related literature o The theoretical or conceptual framework o The significance of and need for the study  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 5 The Method Section The method section describes the methods used to answer the research questions. In a quantitative study, the method section usually describes the following, which may be presented in labeled subsections: o The research design o The sampling plan o Methods of measuring variables and collecting data o Study procedures, including procedures to protect human rights o Data analysis methods The Results Section The results section presents the findings that were obtained by analyzing the study data. The text presents a narrative summary of key findings, often accompanied by more detailed tables. Virtually all results sections contain descriptive information, including a description of the participants (e.g., average age, percent male, female, and other). The Discussion Section In the discussion, the researcher presents conclusions about the meaning and implications of the findings, i.e., what the results mean, why things turned out the way they did, how the findings fit with other evidence, and how the results can be used in practice. The discussion in both quantitative and qualitative reports may include the following elements: o An interpretation of the results o Clinical and research implications o Study limitations and ramifications for the believability of the results References Research articles conclude with a list of the books and articles that were referenced. If you are interested in additional reading on a topic, the reference list of a recent study is a good place to begin. CRITIQUING RESEARCH REPORTS A critical reading of a research article involves a careful appraisal of the researcher’s major conceptual and methodologic decisions. A research critique is an objective assessment of a study’s strengths and limitations. Critiques usually conclude with the reviewer’s summary of the study’s merits, recommendations regarding the value of the evidence, and suggestions about improving the study or the report. Peer reviewers do a comprehensive review to provide feedback to the researchers and to journal editors about the merit of both the study and the report and typically offer suggestions for revisions. Critiques designed to inform evidence-based nursing practice are seldom comprehensive.  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 6 CRITIQUING WITH KEY RESEARCH CHALLENGES IN MIND In critiquing a study, it is useful to be aware of the challenges that confront researchers. The worth of a study’s evidence for nursing practice often relies on how well researchers deal with these challenges Inference Inference is an integral part of doing and critiquing research. An inference is a conclusion drawn from the study evidence using logical reasoning and taking into account the methods used to generate that evidence. Reliability, Validity, and Trustworthiness Reliability refers to the accuracy and consistency of information obtained in a study. The term is most often associated with the methods used to measure variables. Validity is a more complex concept that broadly concerns the soundness of the study’s evidence Trustworthiness encompasses several different dimensions—credibility, transferability, confirmability, dependability, and authenticity. Bias A bias is a distortion or influence that results in an error in inference. Bias can be caused by various factors, including study participants’ lack of candor, researchers’ preconceptions, or faulty methods of collecting data. Research control Research Control usually involves holding constant influences on the outcome variable so that the true relationship between the independent and outcome variables can be understood. Reflexivity Reflexivity is the process of reflecting critically on the self and of analyzing and noting personal values that could affect data collection and interpretation Generalizability and Transferability Generalizability is the criterion used in quantitative studies to assess the extent to which the findings can be applied to other groups and settings. Transferability is the extent to which qualitative findings can be transferred to other settings. III. RESEARCH PROCESS ON IMPROVING PATIENT CARE The NURSING PROCESS is an orderly and systematic manner of determining the client’s problems, making plans to solve them, initiating plans, or assigning others to implement them, and evaluating the effectiveness of those plans.  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 7 The nursing process and research process have important similarities and differences: SIMILARITIES: DIFFERENCES: o The two processes are similar because o The research process is more complex they both involve abstract critical thinking than the nursing process and involves the and complex reasoning. rigorous application of a variety of o These processes help identify new research methods. information, discover relationships, and o The research process also has a broader make predictions about phenomena. focus than that of the nursing process, in o In both processes, information is which the nurse focuses on a specific gathered, observations are made, patient and family. problems are identified, plans are o The theoretical underpinnings of the developed (methodology), and actions research process are much stronger than are taken (data collection and analysis). those of the nursing process. o Both processes are reviewed for o All steps of the research process are effectiveness and efficiency—the nursing logically linked to each other, as well as process is evaluated, and outcomes are to the theoretical foundations of the determined in the research process. study. o Implementing the two processes expands o The conduct of research requires greater and refines the user’s knowledge. precision, rigor, and control than what are needed in the implementation of the nursing process. o The outcomes from research frequently are shared with a large number of nurses and other healthcare professionals through presentations and publications. COMPARISON OF THE PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS, NURSING PROCESS, AND RESEARCH PROCESS PROBLEM-SOLVING NURSING PROCESS NURSING RESEARCH PROCESS Data collection Assessment Knowledge of nursing Data collection (objective world and subjective data) Clinical experiences Data interpretation Literature review Problem definition Nursing diagnosis Problem and purpose identification Plan Plan Methodology Setting goals Setting goals Design Identifying solutions Planning intervention Sample Measurement methods Data collection Data analysis Implementation Implementation Implementation Evaluation and Evaluation and Outcomes, revision modification communication, and synthesis of study findings to promote evidence-based nursing practice  CHAPTER 5: RESPONSIBILITIES OF A BEGINNING NURSE RESEARCHER 8 References: Textbook 1. Polit, D. & Beck, C. (2018). Essentials of Nursing Research. 9th Ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health. 2. Nieswiadomy, R. & Bailey, C. (2018). Foundations of Nursing Research. 7th Ed. Boston: Pearson. 3. Grove, S., Gray, J. & Burns, N. (2015). Understanding Nursing Research: Building an Evidence-Based Practice. 6th Ed. Missouri: Elsevier Saunders.