Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to L Duff.
In a companion article to their paper on clinical effectiveness (McClarey and Duff 1997), the authors discuss the issues surrounding clinical guidelines. How they are developed and how they can be adapted to local practice are described to allow practitioners to base their practice on the most up-to-date research evidence.
In the first of two articles, the authors address some of the most common questions asked by practitioners about clinical effectiveness. The second article, on clinical guidelines, will appear in Nursing Standard in two weeks.
This article reports on a study exploring the process of implementing nationally developed standards for the nutritional care of older adults. In particular, the study focused on issues which enabled or hindered the effective implementation of the standards. A multisite case study design was used. The intervention involved a two-day workshop on facilitated teamwork and implementation strategies. The standards were implemented over a six-month period and a number of semi-structured interviews were conducted in each of the homes throughout this period. Pre- and post-audit data of nutritional care were collected in each of the homes to ascertain the extent to which care had changed. The standards were used effectively as a basis for making significant changes to the way staff provided nutritional care. The research highlighted the importance of using a strategic and well planned approach which addresses four important factors: ensuring the topic area is a priority; using a teamwork approach; identifying a facilitator; and providing necessary educational opportunities.
A workshop was held in Calcutta in August 1992 by the Nurses' Research Society of India (NRSI), in partnership with the Royal College of Nursing of the UK, Dynamic Quality Improvement Programme (DQIP), to introduce an approach to quality improvement to nurses in India interested in evaluating and improving the care they provide. Since then, three sites have implemented the system for standard setting and audit (Dynamic Standard Setting System) which is the method for evaluating care used within that approach. An appraisal of the progress of the sites to date indicates that, in the clinical setting, nurses are progressing well with the writing of standards and have experienced little difficulty in understanding the theory and processes involved. They are currently revising the standards written with a view to implementing them and auditing them in the near future. This article outlines the introduction of dynamic quality improvement and the Dynamic Standard Setting System to the nurses in India and describes the progress of one of the test-sites currently working on its implementation.
Because nursing assessments may determine when autotransfusion is advised or contraindicated, it is the nurse's responsibility to understand the procedures and problems associated with autotransfusion. The OR nurse cannot only serve as trouble-shooter and educator, but also suggest protocols for adoption and selection of autotransfusion equipment and protocols for patient use.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.