• A calculated risk

      Pitt, Linsey (University of Wolverhampton, 2003)
    • An evaluation of the effectiveness of a programme aimed to develop the key skills capabilities of nursing students.

      Moran, Wendy (University of Wolverhampton, 2002)
      The University’s Learning and Teaching Strategy (UoW 2000) recognises that the development of key skills and the diagnosis of key skills are central concerns. A Key Skills Strategy has been developed by the School of Health as a central theme in the School’s draft Learning and Teaching Strategy. The key skills have been seen as a major part of the curriculum in Higher Education for some years. The emphasis upon key skills development has been underlined by the Dearing Enquiry (1997). The school has completed a 2 year research project funded by HEFCE under the Teaching and Learning Technology Programme (TLTP)3 initiative. The project sought to develop information technology (IT) and numeracy skills using technology support learning(TSL). This project identified that nursing and midwifery students had significant deficits in IT and numeracy skills. The project built upon work completed on the TLTP3 Project. A range of measures were devised to assist students in development all 6 key skills. Although there has been much work completed in order to raise the profile of key skills within the School, we have limited understanding of how students perceive the benefits of the Key Skills Strategy which has been adopted. The project collected data from a range of sources in several phases. The data was collected in relation to 197 Pre-Registration Nursing Students in year 1 of RN/Dip.H.E. (Registered Nurse Diploma Higher Education) programme. Participation notes were distributed to the students at the beginning of the project by a Project Team member, who was also a Module Leader for the Key Skills Module the students were undertaking.
    • Nurses' experiences of caring for the suddenly bereaved in adult acute and critical care settings, and the provision of person-centred care: A qualitative study

      Walker, Wendy; Deacon, Kate (Elsevier, 2016-02-04)
      Aim To explore nursing interventions for person-centred bereavement care in adult acute and critical care settings. Design A descriptive exploratory study, involving focused, face-to-face interviews. Participants comprised nine registered nurses and one auxiliary nurse, working in environments where sudden death was known to occur, i.e. emergency, cardiac and critical care. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and data subjected to directed content analysis. The provision of person-centred care was examined by applying a validated Person-Centred Nursing Framework. Findings Five main themes were identified. Participants’ accounts contained descriptions of bereavement care and the presence of person-centred interventions. Contextual, professional and attitudinal factors influenced the degree to which person-centred care operated. Conclusion Caring for suddenly bereaved families was important to nurses, but also a source of tension and unrest. An important consideration for person-centred practice is movement away from sudden bereavement as a ‘here and now’ event, towards a pathway of supportive care that envisions the longer-term. Further research is required to gain a deeper understanding of person-centred care for the suddenly bereaved and the perceived effectiveness of nursing interventions.
    • The primary and secondary care interface: the educational needs of nursing staff for the provision of seamless care.

      Werrett, Julie A.; Helm, Ruth H.; Carnwell, Ros (Wiley InterScience, 2001)
      AIM: To identify nurses' perceived deficits in the knowledge and skills required to provide effective seamless care, so that appropriate training could be provided. BACKGROUND: A clear understanding of nursing staff roles, skills and resources is paramount to work at the primary/secondary care interface. Nursing staff require an educational model that will provide a clear understanding of how their roles coalesce with other healthcare professionals. There is little evidence that examines the educational needs of nurses related to changing care boundaries. DESIGN/METHODS: The study used methodological triangulation to explore these issues within current practice. Focus groups were used to generate items for inclusion in the questionnaire. Questionnaire design was based on an importance-performance analysis. This procedure has been effective in developing health care marketing strategies. A stratified random sample of nursing staff (n=722) from the participating trusts received the questionnaire, eliciting a response rate of 172 (23.8%). RESULTS: Factor analysis provided a list of seven training categories in order of training need priority: information technology, awareness of roles, communications within seamless care, working across boundaries, professional issues, practice-related issues, delivery of patient/client care issues. There were no differences in nurses' training needs across NHS trusts. However, differences were highlighted for staff located in primary or secondary settings or working across the interface. CONCLUSIONS: Despite there being a vast range of training issues the majority of nurses appear to have a clear idea of their training needs for the provision of seamless care. A training programme required which targets the specific needs of nursing staff working at different positions across the primary/secondary care interface.