Publication Title
2022 WIN Conference - Western Institute of Nursing
Document Type
Abstract
Publication Date
4-2022
Keywords
california; pcstmc
Abstract
Background/Intro:
Nursing leaders at acute care hospitals often lack knowledge of how best to support nurses who wish to engage in nursing research and evidence-based practice. Inclusion of the nurses who have direct bedside contact with patients is integral in improving patient outcomes.
Problem Description-Patient facing nurses have cited a lack of leadership support in conducting research. A lack of research knowledge by nursing leaders has also previously been identified. I determined to learn other barriers nursing leaders would identify and if a brief module on basics of nursing research might mitigate these barriers.
Purpose/aims:
To determine what barriers nursing leadership identified that inhibit support of nursing research.
Methods/Approach:
Design: A translational research study (Doctor of Nursing Practice project) utilized the Barriers to Nurses’ Participation in Research Questionnaire.
Sample: The sample consisted of 17 nurse leaders with an even distribution of managers/assistant managers, charge nurses, and directors/chief nursing operating officers.
Setting: Six mid-sized acute care hospitals.
Intervention: Nursing leaders were provided links for a pre-test, an interactive learning module on clinical scholarship (nursing research), and a post-test.
Time frame: Surveys were collected August 19-October 14, 2021
Data: Demographics typical of nurses was collected, such as age, education, position, years of employment, along with perspectives of barriers to nursing research. The Barriers to Nurses’ Participation in Research Questionnaire (BNPRQ) provided the basis for the data. The BNPRQ asked which barriers the nursing leader experienced such as lack of time, knowledge, mentors, infrastructure, incentives, nursing research council, leadership support, and training. Participants were given the opportunity to provide some qualitative answers.
Analysis: Paired and un-paired t-tests, descriptive statistics, and a qualitative analysis were performed.
Results:
Demographics: The pre-test group (n = 17) breakdown of nursing leaders was 5 CNOs/directors, 7 assistant managers/managers, and 5 charge nurses. The post-test group (n = 8) consisted of 3 CNOs/directors, 3 assistant nurse managers/managers, and 2 charge nurses.
The Pre-test group (n = 17) cited “lack of time” as the number one barrier. Nearly 50% felt a lack of knowledge hindered, and 52.96% either strongly agreed or agreed that the intervention improved their research knowledge. Near this same percentage agreed that lack of time, mentors, and resources also hindered their ability to support or conduct research. However, in the qualitative portion, a lack of leadership support on the lower levels, lack of data collection/tools, the need for a research mentor on site, and guidance for developing research inquiry were identified.
Conclusion:
Nursing leaders also felt many of the same barriers that front-line nurses have reported experiencing and surprisingly also included a lack of leadership support. The intervention improved nursing leaderships’ knowledge and support of nursing research in 50% of the respondents. Limitations: while this was a small sampling, the same sentiments were aggregated from six different hospitals.
Implications for practice:
Organizations can realize that even though they are research and evidence-based practiced focus in theory, that nursing leadership requires support in several ways. It begins with the basic tools of research, local leadership support, technical advising, and a designated nurse researcher contact if they are to conduct and support nursing research.
Specialty/Research Institute
Health Care Administration
Specialty/Research Institute
Nursing
