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Biomedical subjects

G Rolfe

Publications and source records attributed to G Rolfe.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

An action research project to develop and evaluate the role of an advanced nurse practitioner in dementia.

This paper outlines the first phase of a project to generate and evaluate the role of an advanced nurse practitioner inductively from first principles. The role was developed by interviewing a wide range of health-care professionals, careers and patients. The resulting role is responsive to perceived need at grassroots level rather than to the needs of managers with no clinical experience. Although the role might not be generalizable to other settings, the method can be applied to any role in any clinical area.

Dementia↗
PubMed1995

Playing at research: methodological pluralism and the creative researcher.

In its quest for acceptance by the scientific community, mental health nursing research has developed an unhealthy obsession with methodological rigour. This paper draws on the work of several writers from the philosophy of social science to argue that this focus on methodology stifles individual creativity and acts as a gatekeeper to the profession which excludes many of our brightest and most creative researchers. The author proposes a new approach to doing research that facilitates the creative process by encouraging a playful approach that temporarily abandons the accepted rules and methods of the research process in favour of an 'anarchistic epistemology' and a variety of unusual and not necessarily externally validated methods. It is only at the end of the research process that valid and generalizable methods are introduced, and the author calls for journals to open a creative dialogue by being more willing to publish papers describing the early, exploratory stages of research, based on a judgement of their creativity and innovation.

Creativity↗
PubMed1994

Some factors associated with change in patient-centredness of student nurses during the Common Foundation Programme in Nursing.

This longitudinal study examines the changes in patient-centredness of a group of student nurses during their Common Foundation Programme in Nursing, and attempts to explore some of the social, psychological and educational factors which might be associated with such change. The Patient-centredness Multi-choice Questionnaire (PMQX) was administered to a sample of 267 student nurses on commencement and completion of their Common Foundation Programme in Nursing, and significant positive as well as negative changes in PMQX scores were found, although the mean scores for the sample were unchanged. A number of factors were found to be associated with high levels of patient-centredness on commencement of the course, including marital status, age, and radicalism. Positive change in patient-centredness during the CFP was associated with a variety of variables such as class size, a student-centred climate and a tenderminded attitude. Other factors, such as psychological stability and extroversion, were associated with both increase and decrease in patient-centredness during the CFP.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Listening to students: course evaluation as action research.

Course evaluation is an important but often neglected aspect of the education process, usually carried out too late and in a cursory fashion. The writer argues that evaluation should play an important part in curriculum development, and outlines a student-centred evaluation process in which the course members themselves design and implement a programme that uncovers issues that they feel are relevant and of value. Furthermore, the scheme described here is fully integrated into the curriculum, and the process of carrying out the evaluation is an important learning experience in itself. By implementing the findings and recommendations from the evaluation while the course is still in progress, students are able to reap the benefits of their own work, at the same time contributing to a living, growing, dynamic curriculum.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1994

Towards a new model of nursing research.

Nursing research is generally located within the paradigm of the social sciences, and therefore reflects the concerns and agenda of social research. In particular, nursing has become embroiled in the ongoing dispute between the advocates of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. However, it is argued in this paper that whereas the aim of social research is to develop knowledge, the aim of nursing research is primarily to advance practice. This paper offers an alternative model of nursing research which categorizes approaches to research not according to the methodology employed but on the extent to which the research process is likely to bring about change. These approaches are termed level 1, level 2 and level 3 research, where level 1 researchers are concerned with generating information for others to conceptualize and implement, while level 3 researchers see their aim as directly bringing about clinical change. Two approaches to level 3 research are suggested, and examples of projects at all three levels are examined. Finally, it is contended that only by adopting an appropriate model of research for a practice-based discipline can nursing address the real issues of relevance to nurses and patients in clinical settings.

Clinical Nursing Research↗
PubMed1993

A framework for a process-driven common foundation programme for graduates.

This paper discusses some of the problems encountered in writing a shortened Common Foundation Programme in nursing for graduates, and outlines a course which takes as its starting point the particular educational needs and requirements of the student group. Thus, the first question to be addressed by the curriculum writers when designing the course was "How can we teach these students?", rather than "What can we teach them?". The resulting process-driven course is heavily influenced by the student-centred philosophy of Carl Rogers, and utilizes a variety of large- and small-group methods to facilitate the students in gradually taking responsibility for, and making decisions about, their learning needs. The paper continues with some strategies for ensuring a smooth transition from a tutor-led, syllabus-driven start to the course, to a student-led, process-driven finish for both the theoretical and clinical components, and for the assessment schedule. Finally, a student-centred approach to evaluation is briefly outlined, and the paper concludes by suggesting that the principles employed in designing and implementing this course could be successfully transferred to a wide variety of other educational settings.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1993

Towards a theory of student-centred nurse education: overcoming the constraints of a professional curriculum.

Student-centred learning is an educational philosophy which became popular during the 1960s, but which has gradually fallen from favour as the educational and political climate has changed over the years. This is particularly true of nursing, where the transition to higher education ushered in by Project 2000 has signalled a return to traditional teaching methods such as the lecture and the seminar. This paper argues that the current demands for holistic practice, professional autonomy and primary nursing can best be met by educationalists by employing a student-centred approach to learning. However, it is recognised that a radical student-centred approach will conflict with the constraints imposed on curriculum writers by a professional body, and that a modified strategy is required. The paper goes on to identify several of the more pressing constraints, and suggests some methods for overcoming these problems within a student-centred framework, while maintaining the requirements of a professional training which confers upon the students a license to practise. The paper concludes by suggesting that most problems will only be identified once courses are up and running, and that a new student-centred framework can only emerge from educational practice. Teachers and curriculum writers are therefore encouraged to come together to share ideas and experiences in order to carry forward the theory and practice of student-centred nurse education.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1993

The Patient-Centredness Multi-Choice Questionnaire: developing an instrument for the measurement of patient-centredness in student nurses.

An earlier paper by the writer reported on the construction and administration of an instrument for the measurement of therapeutic attitudes in student nurses. This paper continues that work by producing a short, appropriate and easily administered test, known as the Patient-Centredness Multi-Choice Questionnaire. The instrument was tested for validity and reliability, and was piloted on a large group of new Project 2000 students from several colleges and institutes of nursing, to produce a database for use in further studies.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1990

The role of clinical supervision in the education of student psychiatric nurses: a theoretical approach.

A system of clinical supervision for student psychiatric nurses is suggested as an educational response to the rapidly changing role of the nurse. In addition to the small but expanding body of literature from the field of psychiatric nursing, research from social work, counselling, psychotherapy and teaching is also considered. A theoretical model is outlined in which supervision of students is by qualified and skilled practitioners. This is neither therapeutic nor didactic, but rather a 'parallel process' in which the supervisor-student relationship is employed as a tool to explore the student-client relationship and the therapeutic process.

Humans↗
PubMed1990

The assessment of therapeutic attitudes in the psychiatric setting.

Although 'attitude change' is included as one of the aims of the 1982 training syllabus for psychiatric nurses, curriculum designers are given little guidance as to what constitute desirable attitudes in the psychiatric nurse, and how those attitudes are to be assessed and evaluated. This study has three aims: to attempt to outline what might count as desirable attitudes; to propose a theoretical framework for the measurement of those attitudes; and to devise a test instrument and pilot it on three groups with differing amounts of counselling skills and experience. The outcome of the pilot study produced surprising results, leading to the tentative hypothesis that counselling training and/or experience may have a detrimental effect on so-called 'therapeutic attitudes' in the nurse.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗