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Biomedical subjects

S Procter

Publications and source records attributed to S Procter.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

Developing a concept analysis of control for use in child and adolescent mental health nursing.

The need to help children and young people with significant mental health problems develop a sense of personal control in their everyday lives, in a manner which does not endanger themselves or others, was recognized by nurse practitioners working in an English regional multidisciplinary child and adolescent mental health residential unit. A concept analysis of control was undertaken and used to develop a framework for analysing control. This deductive framework was modified iteratively by nurses who developed new knowledge from a qualitative exploration of current practice and the application of the evolving framework to practice problems. The paper describes this process and highlights three main findings: (i) the evolving attributes of the concept analysis helped nurses steer a course through the complexities of practice; (ii) the research highlighted and enabled nurses to confront the paradoxical nature of control; (iii) the process enabled nurses to recognize the mutuality of feelings aroused simultaneously when both the nurse and the child are challenged to maintain personal control.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Coping strategies used by hospitalized stroke patients: implications for continuity and management of care.

This paper describes findings from an English study into the perceptions of multi-professional practice given by stroke patients, their informal carers and hospital staff. Unstructured interviews were conducted with nine stroke patients and eight informal carers. Case studies were developed from the interview data which formed the basis of a questionnaire designed to ascertain the aims of care for the case studies and the location of professional responsibility for meeting these aims. This was returned by 31 respondents from a range of professional backgrounds. The findings indicate that patients and carers sought out relationships with staff and other patients in order to gain information to help them understand their uncertain futures. Professional staff were reluctant to pass specific information on to patients as it might be misleading in each individual case. The uncertainty surrounding individual recovery means that supportive relationships initiated by patients and carers may need to be recognized and nurtured.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1999

Practice development: ambiguity in research and practice.

Practice development activity occupies an ambiguous position in relation to both clinical practice and research. In practice, it is seen at times as an added extra to normal work despite arguably being an inherent part of professional practice. In research, it fails to demonstrate the rigour of being generalisable because of its explicit location in a specific care environment. The study reported in this paper explored the implications of this ambiguity for practitioners who seek to develop health care practice. Ten focus groups were held with health care researchers and practitioners concerning the processes of developing practice in the North East of England. The results demonstrate how people manage themselves and the uncertainty that surrounds the use of research in clinical practice. The paper argues for an appreciation of reflexive forms of research, such as action and practitioner research, which do not disassociate research and practice and in which practitioners have a role in knowledge creation as well as knowledge implementation.

Culture↗
PubMed1999

Limits to employee empowerment in the UK NHS. Locality managers in a community health trust.

The concern of this paper lies with empowerment of middle managers in a community health trust. It considers the impact of traditional structures and cultures upon the level of decision which middle managers are empowered to make. The conclusion reached is one which suggests that the level of discretion available to middle managers was one of making task-oriented decisions rather than decisions about strategic change. However, even this was compromised by financial constraints and by "best practices" imposed by the personnel function.

Administrative Personnel↗
PubMed1998

Developing nurse practitioners to develop practice: the experiences of nurses working on a nursing development unit.

AIM: To elicit nurses' accounts of their involvement with nursing research and their interpretations of the meaning of these projects for their practice. BACKGROUND: The links between research and practice development in health care are poorly understood and require further exploration in the light of the emerging research and development agenda within the National Health Service. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 qualified nurses working on a Nursing Development Unit. The interviews were tape recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically. FINDINGS: Data analysis identified two distinct groups--a core group of nurses actively engaged in the research projects and a peripheral group involved in data collection. The characteristics of the core group mirror the characteristics of those involved in nonresearch-based practice development activities. CONCLUSIONS: Engaging in research activities does not always result in the development of practice, however, there appears to be a link between practice development and critical thinking.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1996

An investigation of the components used to calculate staff:student ratios in nursing and midwifery education.

This article describes the results of a census questionnaire sent to all colleges of nursing and midwifery and institutions of further and higher education undertaking English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (ENB) validated pre- and post-registration nursing and midwifery courses. The questionnaire was designed to identify the range of components, incorporated into formulae, used by the colleges and institutions to calculate staff:student ratios (SSRs), for each type of course. The results indicate that the majority of colleges and institutions use: [formula: see text] The definitions of staff and student within the formulae were either assumed or variously defined. A total of 17 different formulae for calculating SSRs were identified and 10 different formulae for calculating whole time equivalents. Each of these formulae are given in the article. The advantages and disadvantages for resourcing nurse education arising from the lack of definition surrounding the standardisation of formulae and the components within formulae are discussed. The discussion reflects both the responses given in the open-ended questions in the questionnaire and the debates surrounding the use of SSRs highlighted in the literature.

Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate↗
PubMed1995

The move to community care and the impact of long-term disability on health service provision: some implications for library services.

This paper describes the epidemiological and demographic trends underpinning the current shift to primary health care heralded by the Community Care Act. It suggests that the health service is increasingly treating people suffering from long-term disability. Hospitals no longer provide an appropriate setting for the management of long-term disability as hospital-based practitioners cannot integrate treatment modalities into the everyday life experiences of the patient. Community care introduces a social dimension to the traditional medical model of health. The paper examines the information needs generated by both the social model and the medical model of health and considers the types of information required by each model. It concludes by discussing the potential for librarians to influence health care provision via the type of information they make available to practitioners.

Chronic Disease↗
PubMed1995

Planning for continuity of carer in nursing.

The introduction of primary nursing and the named nurse reflects a growing recognition of the importance of continuity of carer in nursing rather than simply continuity of care. Continuity of carer is fundamental to the development of therapeutic inter-personal relationships with patients. Hospital nursing, however, provides a 24-hour service and therefore continuity of carer must be maintained within a system of nurse substitution. This paper identifies some of the organizational tensions experienced by nurses attempting to promote continuity of carer within a nursing development unit that is simultaneously striving to offer nurses personal development opportunities.

Continuity of Patient Care↗
PubMed1994

Using the Delphi survey technique to develop a professional definition of nursing for analysing nursing workload.

This paper describes the use of the Delphi survey technique to develop a professional definition of nursing which is used as a framework for analysing the contribution made to care by learner nurses prior to the introduction of Project 2000. A detailed account is provided of the importance of generating a theoretical nursing perspective to structure the first round of the Delphi survey. The paper goes on to question the validity of developing a consensus about nursing priorities in subsequent rounds of the Delphi survey and argues instead that priorities about nursing care needs can only be determined in the context of practice.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1993

It all depends.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Dependency, Psychological↗
PubMed1989

The functioning of nursing routines in the management of a transient workforce.

Project 2000 recommends supernumerary status for learner nurses. This recommendation is derived, in part, from research into the educational effects of the current organization of nurse training. However, little research appears to have been undertaken into how the current training programme influences the organization and implementation of patient care. The research from which this paper is taken, addresses this question. It demonstrates that the allocation of learners to wards gives rise to an unstable and transient workforce. Currently, ward sisters and charge nurses are expected to plan and be accountability for care given. This research suggests that nursing routines provide qualified nurses with a method for maintaining control, stability and accountability for the care given by an unqualified and everchanging workforce. It is suggested, therefore, that the promotion of individualized care in nursing requires a reduction in dependence on the transient workforce which results from including learners in the staffing establishment of hospital wards.

Humans↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Towards a strategy for teaching information skills to student nurses.

It is being increasingly recognised that nursing needs to be constructively and critically informed by a body of scientific knowledge, and that practitioners need to develop active and independent learning styles which enable them to access, use and evaluate such knowledge. This approach has led to many teachers reexamining their approaches to teaching and learning, with an increasing emphasis upon cultivating lifelong learning and in providing students with the skills to facilitate this process. It is against this backdrop that the authors developed a comprehensive information skills package for student nurses undertaking an ENB Diploma in Nursing Science/Registered General Nurse Course (ENB Pilot Scheme Course). The package was designed specifically for use within the Newcastle Polytechnic Library though with modifications, it could be used in other venues. This paper explores the rationale and structure of the package and its subsequent implementation and evaluation.

Curriculum↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Patient allocation and the unqualified learner nurse.

This paper presents research findings on the allocation of nurses to patients observed in three nurse training wards, each of which was attempting to introduce a system of patient allocation. Analysis of the results suggests that in each ward the sister was faced with a choice between promoting continuity in the allocation of nurses to patients and ensuring adequate supervision of unqualified staff. A review of the literature on systems of patient allocation indicates that this problem does not appear to have been addressed. It is suggested that it will not be resolved by the introduction of primary nursing in wards which are still dependent on a large proportion of unqualified staff, whether these be learners, auxiliaries or support workers.

Humans↗