Biomedical subjects

Julie E Hall

Publications and source records attributed to Julie E Hall.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Professionalizing action research--a meaningful strategy for modernizing services?

BACKGROUND: This paper outlines how a specific action research approach can be used to secure practice development in services which have found sustained change difficult. For the purpose of this paper discussion focuses upon using professionalizing action research (a form of action research) to secure transformation in acute inpatient mental health services. This speciality has experienced long-term difficultly in meaningful practice change. Not limited to this context parallels can be made with other health and social care services requiring significant modernization. AIM: The aim is to critically discuss the use of professionalizing action research as an approach to sustainable change. DISCUSSION: clarifies whether this method is a suitable vehicle for change, which is ideally suited to services which have a poor record of practice development. METHOD: A review of action research and practice development literature forms the basis of this paper. The literature is sourced through bulletin boards, electronic databases and the British Library Classification Scheme. Keywords searched are action research, team learning, managing change and practice development. Following definition; the components of professionalizing action research are analysed using the themes of educative base, problem focus, improvement and involvement. FINDINGS: The educative base of professionalizing action research is collaborative reflective practice which is used to initiate meaningful change, rooted in everyday practice. The benefit of this is that change actions are based in real-time situations. The problem focus component of professionalizing action research is used to emphasize the views of service users and carers. This is positive in terms of the patient and public involvement agenda although this theme does emphasize limitations of the approach. The final components are involvement and improvement, these are debated as pluralistic notions and the implications of this are acknowledged. CONCLUSION: Reviewing the literature and theoretical application indicates the value of professionalizing action research as a process for modernization. The strength of the approach lies in the opportunity for team learning and change which is grounded in the context of services and pursued through collaboration.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed2004

Pluralistic evaluation: a situational approach to service evaluation.

BACKGROUND: The increasing emphasis upon fiscal accountability within the British National Health Service has contributed to demand for evaluating the effectiveness of specific interventions and programmes of care. Whilst there is need for proficient measures of effectiveness, the achievement of this ideal is illusive. Issues of perspective, method and the social nature of healthcare contribute to the complexities of evaluation research. Presented with the task of evaluating the effectiveness of health services, academics and healthcare professionals are striving to seek responsive and adaptive methods of measuring success. AIM: This paper critically debates an approach to healthcare evaluation, which claims to respond to the dynamic and thorny issues that arise. Discussion clarifies whether a pluralistic approach to evaluation can measure success upon a criterion which represents the views of key stakeholders. METHOD: This paper is underpinned by a review of the literature and reflects health, research and management opinions. Literature search methods follow the custom of electronic databases, bulletins boards and the British Library Classification Scheme. Keywords searched are healthcare evaluation, evaluation research, pluralistic evaluation, organizational and policy evaluation. FINDINGS: The integration of policy perspectives and evaluation studies suggests that the pluralistic approach can formulate situational healthcare evaluation. However, there remains a likelihood of marginalizing the viewpoints of particular stakeholder groups. The role of the researcher is to co-ordinate reliable findings and safeguard against the bias associated with traditional professionally dominated methods of healthcare evaluation. CONCLUSION: Analysis suggests that pluralistic evaluation has the potential to develop a deep and real illustration of service provision and provide a basis upon which to develop recommendations.

Community Participation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Restriction and control: the perceptions of mental health nurses in a UK acute inpatient setting.

In the United Kingdom there has been growing unease over standards of care and treatment in acute inpatient psychiatric services. Although recent reforms have declared nurses as pivotal to the social transformation required, few accounts inform modernisers about the reality of social systems, relations, and events in modern acute psychiatric services. This qualitative study explores the situation of nurses working in acute inpatient psychiatric services. It particularly describes the social control elements that continue to influence working norms. Five nurses were interviewed and texts of these interviews were transcribed and analysed using content analysis. As a further source of data, documents were interpreted to illuminate social mechanisms. Issues of objectivity, validity, and reliability were considered throughout. Ethical issues were considered throughout and approval for the study was gained from the appropriate Research Ethics Committee. Social control functions portrayed by day-to-day rituals and operating norms emerged as a central theme in the findings. Social control is a prominent working norm. This is described through activities of observation, surveillance, and managing "difficult" behaviours. Therapeutic relationships present as a paradox to the control assumed. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗