Values are not enough: qualitative study identifying critical elements for prioritization of health equity in health systems

Background

Health system policies and programs that reduce health inequities and improve health outcomes are essential to address unjust social gradients in health. Prioritization of health equity is fundamental to addressing health inequities but challenging to enact in health systems. Strategies are needed to support effective prioritization of health equity.

Methods

Following provincial policy recommendations to apply a health equity lens in all public health programs, we examined health equity prioritization within British Columbia health authorities during early implementation. We conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews and focus groups with 55 senior executives, public health directors, regional directors, and medical health officers from six health authorities and the Ministry of Health. We used an inductive constant comparative approach to analysis guided by complexity theory to determine critical elements for prioritization.

Results

We identified seven critical elements necessary for two fundamental shifts within health systems. 1) Prioritization through informal organization includes creating a systems value for health equity and engaging health equity champions. 2) Prioritization through formal organization requires explicit naming of health equity as a priority, designating resources for health equity, requiring health equity in decision making, building capacity and competency, and coordinating a comprehensive approach across levels of the health system and government.

Conclusions

Although creating a shared value for health equity is essential, health equity - underpinned by social justice - needs to be embedded at the structural level to support effective prioritization. Prioritization within government and ministries is necessary to facilitate prioritization at other levels. All levels within health systems should be accountable for explicitly including health equity in strategic plans and goals. Dedicated resources are needed for health equity initiatives including adequate resourcing of public health infrastructure, training, and hiring of staff with equity expertise to develop competencies and system capacity.

What Is Missing from "Patient-Oriented Research?" A View from Public Health Systems and Services

Patient-oriented research (POR) aims to increase patient engagement in health research to improve health research and health services. In Canada, the Strategies for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) framework provides guidance for conducting POR. We critically review the SPOR framework through the lens of public health systems and services research. The SPOR framework is primarily focused on engaging individual patients in health research without attention to broader structural forces that shape health and participation in healthcare systems. Shifting from patient to public involvement and from patient to community engagement and being explicit about the range of health research that SPOR encompasses would enhance the framework and strengthen the potential of SPOR to improve health systems through health protection, promotion and prevention of disease and injury.

Characteristics of the collaborative learning unit practice education model for undergraduate nursing students: a scoping review protocol

What evidence on characteristics and processes of the collaborative learning unit practice education model for undergraduate nursing students is available?

Bibliometric and Textual Analysis of Historical Patterns in Maternal–Infant Health and Nursing Issues in The Canadian NurseJournal, 1905–2015

Study background

Journals are key learning mechanisms for nursing organizations. Analysis of publications provides opportunities to explore influences, priorities, and perspectives of nurses over time.

Purpose

To identify historical trends in maternal–infant health and nursing practice.

Methods

Historical bibliometric and content analysis of articles in The Canadian Nurse, 1905–2015. Six hundred sixty-eight lead publications in the journal were identified. Data were extracted on authorship, writing style, geographical distribution, and language, and content themes were determined.

Results

Five hundred twenty-five publications were written by nurses, and 272 came from the Ontario and Quebec. Nine key content areas were identified, including changing families, women’s bodies, prenatal care, birth care, postpartum care, when things go wrong, and keeping babies healthy. The number of maternal–infant publications in this national journal has been decreasing since the emergence of specialty journals.

Conclusion

Advances in perinatal nursing practice over the past 115 years in Canada reflect emerging scientific developments and evolving social values. These articles traced the medicalization and reclamation of pregnancy and childbirth, the shifting role of nurses in relation to other health and social care providers, and the impact of determinants of health on the well-being of mothers, infants, and families.

Neonatal abstinence syndrome in countries with no to low medical opioid consumption: a scoping review

AIM

To describe the current state of evidence on the care of neonates with neonatal abstinence syndrome in countries with low to virtually no medical opioid analgesic consumption.

BACKGROUND

While access to opioids for medical use improves globally, misuse grows as a health concern. One unintended consequence has been an increase in the incidence of neonatal abstinence syndrome. Because most evidence is generated in countries with adequate opioid analgesic consumption, a picture of evidence in lower opioid-consuming countries is not available.

DESIGN

A scoping review methodology was employed and augmented with principles of international development literature review. Electronic database searches (PubMed and CINAHL) located 1106 articles. Google was employed to access an additional 17 non-indexed articles. From the total of 1123 articles located, 27 articles from 15 countries were included.

RESULTS

Minimal evidence was produced in low to virtually no medical opioid-consuming countries. Sources were primarily review articles, descriptive, comparative or case reports. Seventy-one per cent of the articles identified at least one specific clinical practice related to the care of infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome.

CONCLUSIONS

As opioid analgesic use increases globally, a subsequent increase in neonatal abstinence syndrome is likely. It will be beneficial for providers and policymakers to be proactive in considering implications for neonatal and maternal populations and collaborate with providers who have been gaining experience in this area. A number of these countries are heroin-growing regions and already experiencing issues.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE AND HEALTH POLICY

Policymakers may use these findings to support data collection and reporting, context and resource relevant guideline development, and advocacy for inclusion of the maternal-infant population in global opioid research priority setting. International collaboration for establishing gender and culturally appropriate practices globally is critical.

Rural Postpartum Women With Substance Use Disorders

The incidence of perinatal opioid use and neonatal withdrawal continues to rise rapidly in the face of the growing opioid addiction epidemic in the United States, with rural areas more severely affected. Despite decades of research and development of practice guidelines, maternal and neonatal outcomes have not improved substantially. This focused ethnography sought to understand the experience of accessing care necessary for substance use disorder recovery, pregnancy, and parenting. Personal accounts of 13 rural women, supplemented by participant observation and media artifacts, uncovered three domains with underlying themes: challenges of getting treatment and care (service availability, distance/geographic location, transportation, provider collaboration/coordination, physical and emotional safety), opportunities to bond (proximity, information), and importance of relationships (respect, empathy, familiarity, inclusion, interactions with care providers). Findings highlight the need for providers and policy makers to reduce barriers to treatment and care related to logistics, stigma, judgment, and lack of understanding of perinatal addiction.

Student and educator experiences of maternal-child simulation-based learning: a systematic review of qualitative evidence protocol

REVIEW QUESTION/OBJECTIVE

The overall aim of this systematic review is to identify the appropriateness and meaningfulness of maternal-child simulation-based learning for undergraduate or pre-registration nursing students in educational settings to inform curriculum decision-making.1. What are the experiences of nursing or health professional students participating in undergraduate or pre-licensure maternal-child simulation-based learning in educational settings?2. What are the experiences of educators participating in undergraduate or pre-licensure maternal-child simulation-based learning in educational settings?3. What teaching and learning practices in maternal-child simulation-based learning are considered appropriate and meaningful by students and educators?

BACKGROUND

Maternal-child care is one of the pillars of primary health care. Health promotion and illness/ injury prevention begin in the preconception period and continue through pregnancy, birth, the postpartum period and the childrearing years. Thus, lifelong wellness is promoted across the continuum of perinatal and pediatric care which influences family health and early child development. Registered nurses (RNs) are expected to have the knowledge and skills needed to provide evidence-based nursing with childbearing and child-rearing families to promote health and address health inequities in many settings, including inner city, rural, northern, indigenous and global communities. The Canadian Maternity Experiences survey and the Report by the Advisor on Healthy Children and Youth provide information on current shortages of perinatal and child health care providers and stress the importance of the role of nurses as providers of rural and remote care. From a global health perspective, continued concern with both perinatal and child health morbidities and mortalities highlight the importance of maintaining and strengthening the presence of maternal and child health learning opportunities within undergraduate nursing curriculum.Despite this importance, educators in many countries have acknowledged difficulties providing nursing students with maternal-child hospital learning experiencesdue to declining birth rates, women's changing expectations about childbirth (i.e. birth as an intimate experience), increased outpatient and community management of early childhood health conditions, and increased competition for clinical placements. Canadian nurse educators and practice leaders have also identified gaps in recent RN graduates' readiness to provide safe, competent and evidence-based care for childbearing and child-rearing families. Newly graduated RNs working in acute care hospitals and in rural/remote community practice settings report feeling unprepared for providing maternity, neonatal and early childhood care.Recent concerns about the clinical reasoning skills of new graduates and the link to poor patient outcomes (e.g. not recognizing deteriorating patients) have led to calls to reform nursing education. In the Carnegie report, Benner, Sutphen, Leonard and Day identified four essential themes needed in the thinking and approach to nursing education, including: (1) a shift in focus from covering decontextualized knowledge to "teaching for a sense of salience, situated cognition, and identifying action in particular clinical situations"; (2) better integration of classroom and clinical teaching; (3) more emphasis on clinical reasoning; and, (4) an emphasis on identity formation rather than socialization. Brown and Hartrick Doane propose that nurses need to draw on a range of knowledge that enhances the nurse's "sensitivity and ability to be responsive in particular moments of practice". Theoretical or decontextualized knowledge becomes a "pragmatic tool" used to improve nursing practice. Simulation has been identified as a promising pragmatic educational tool for practice learning that can be integrated with theoretical knowledge from nursing and other disciplines.Bland, Topping and Wood conducted a concept analysis and defined simulation in nursing education as:They also proposed that "simulated learning is a dynamic concept that deserves empirical evaluation not merely to determine its effects but to uncover its full potential as a learning strategy".Simulation usually involves student(s) providing nursing care to a simulated patient who might be a manikin or actor based on a standardized scenario. Following the experiential learning opportunity the scenario is debriefed and the clinical situation analyzed with opportunities for reflection on performance. In nursing education, simulation is usually used in a way that complements learning in practice settings. However simulation has also been used: to make up some clinical practice hours, to provide opportunities to practice and assess particular clinical skills, and for remedial learning when students encounter difficulties in practice settings. In addition simulation provides the opportunity to focus on quality and safety competencies (QSEN) that have been identified for nurses. New forms of simulation are being developed with multiple patients so that nursing students can learn to prioritize care needs and delegate care to other team members.Nurse educators have identified several advantages for learners using simulation, including: providing a safe environment to improve nursing competence, allowing learners to become more comfortable with receiving feedback about their clinical performance, providing consistent and comparable experiences for all students, and learning a mix of technical and non-technical skills including communication, teamwork and delegation. Within the Canadian context, students and instructors have reported positive learning experiences with simulation, particularly in understanding complex patient care scenarios, multidisciplinary team scenarios, team-based learning, and reflective debriefing. Furthermore, simulation technology has been proposed as a strategy for developing clinical reasoning skills, enhancing nurses' abilities to build upon previous knowledge and past experiences, and manage new or unfamiliar situations.Simulation has previously been integrated into nursing curricula in a "piecemeal" fashion that lacks an integrative pedagogy or theoretical approach. More recently a number of theoretical and pedagogical frameworks and best practice standards have been published. In April 2014 a preliminary search of literature (in CINAHL, Medline, Academic Search Complete and Web of Science) was conducted with guidance from our library specialist to test the search strategy and ensure that there would be enough qualitative findings to include in the systematic review. A preliminary scan of the abstracts from these searches demonstrated that many experiential case reports with qualitative findings were missed with the use of research limiters (including our search strategy specifically constructed to retrieve qualitative research) so the decision was made to err on the side of caution by searching more broadly and review a larger number of abstracts for inclusion in the study. However, a number of reports with qualitative findings were identified. For example, from a review of the abstracts from a CINAHL search dated April 17, qualitative research papers (including two dissertations), 12 evaluation study reports, six mixed methods studies and nine case reports with qualitative findings were identified. It is timely then to review qualitative studies to better understand the meaningfulness and appropriateness of integrating maternal-child simulation-based learning activities in undergraduate nursing education programs.A search of both the Cochrane Library of Systematic Reviews and the Joanna Briggs Institute Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports has been conducted. No systematic reviews of qualitative studies of maternal-child simulation-based learning for undergraduate or pre-registration nursing students in educational settings are evident in the literature. Although a systematic review of the meaningfulness and appropriateness of using human patient simulation manikins as a teaching and learning strategy in undergraduate nursing education had been planned and a protocol registered in October 2009, we learned from contacting the lead author that this systematic review was not completed. Currently little is known about how nursing students and/or educators have experienced maternal-child simulation or their understandings of the appropriateness and meaningfulness of particular simulation-based learning practices. Our proposed systematic review therefore fulfills all requirements for the PROSPERO database.

DEFINITIONS

For this review we will use the definition of "simulation-based learning experience" adopted by the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL):We will include any use of simulation in an educational setting (with pre-registration or pre-licensure or undergraduate nursing or health professional students) with a focus relevant for maternal-child nursing.Maternal-child nursing has been variously defined in literature to include maternity care and pediatric nursing. For the purposes of this review, we will include perinatal, neonatal and pediatric contexts of care that focus on families with children under the age of five. We will exclude studies that focus on school age children, adolescents and/or youth.We have adapted an earlier definition of "appropriateness" as the "best conditions under which simulation can be integrated into undergraduate nursing education". In this review "meaningfulness" refers to the experiences and reflections of undergraduate nursing or health professional students and educators as presented in the studies reviewed.

Health Equity Talk: Understandings of Health Equity among Health Leaders

INTRODUCTION

Reducing health inequities is a stated goal of health systems worldwide. There is widespread commitment to health equity among public health leaders and calls for reorientation of health systems towards health equity. As part of the Equity Lens in Public Health (ELPH) program of research, public health decision makers and researchers in British Columbia collaborated to study the application of a health equity lens in a time of health system renewal. We drew on intersectionality, complexity and critical social justice theories to understand how participants construct health equity and apply a health equity lens as part of public health renewal.

METHODS

15 focus groups and 16 individual semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 55 health system leaders. Data were analyzed using constant comparative analysis to explore how health equity was constructed in relation to understandings and actions.

RESULTS

Four main themes were identified in terms of how health care leaders construct health equity and actions to reduce health inequities: (1) population health, (2) determinants of health, and (3) accessibility and (4) challenges of health equity talk. The first three aspects of health equity talk reflect different understandings of health equity rooted in vulnerability (individual versus structural), determinants of health (material versus social determinants), and appropriate health system responses (targeted versus universal responses). Participants identified that talking about health equity in the health care system, either inside or outside of public health, is a 'challenging conversation' because health equity is understood in diverse ways and there is little guidance available to apply a health equity lens.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings reflect the importance of creating a shared understanding of health equity within public health systems, and providing guidance and clarity as to the meaning and application of a health equity lens. A health equity lens for public health should capture both the production and distribution of health inequities and link to social justice to inform action.

Student and educator experiences of maternal-child simulation-based learning: a systematic review of qualitative evidence

BACKGROUND

Although maternal-child care is a pillar of primary health care, there is a global shortage of maternal-child health care providers. Nurse educators experience difficulties providing undergraduate students with maternal-child learning experiences for a number of reasons. Simulation has the potential to complement learning in clinical and classroom settings. Although systematic reviews of simulation are available, no systematic reviews of qualitative evidence related to maternal-child simulation-based learning (SBL) for undergraduate nursing students and/or educators have been located.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this systematic review was to identify the appropriateness and meaningfulness of maternal-child simulation-based learning for undergraduate nursing students and nursing educators in educational settings to inform curriculum decision-making. The review questions are: INCLUSION CRITERIA TYPES OF PARTICIPANTS: Pre-registration or pre-licensure or undergraduate nursing or health professional students and educators.

PHENOMENA OF INTEREST

Experiences of simulation in an educational setting with a focus relevant to maternal child nursing.

TYPES OF STUDIES

Qualitative research and educational evaluation using qualitative methods.

CONTEXT

North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

SEARCH STRATEGY

A three-step search strategy identified published studies in the English language from 2000 until April 2016.

METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY

Identified studies that met the inclusion criteria were retrieved and critically appraised using the Joanna Briggs Institute Qualitative Assessment and Review Instrument (JBI-QARI) by at least two independent reviewers. Overall the methodological quality of the included studies was low.

DATA EXTRACTION

Qualitative findings were extracted by two independent reviewers using JBI-QARI data extraction tools.

DATA SYNTHESIS

Findings were aggregated and categorized on the basis of similarity in meaning. Categories were subjected to a meta-synthesis to produce a single comprehensive set of synthesized findings.

RESULTS

Twenty-two articles from 19 studies were included in the review. A total of 112 findings were extracted from the included articles. Findings were grouped into 15 categories created on the basis of similarity of meaning. Meta-synthesis of these categories generated three synthesized findings.Synthesized finding 1 Students experienced simulated learning experiences (SLE) as preparation that enhanced their confidence in practice. When simulation was being used for evaluation purposes many students experienced anxiety about the SLE.Synthesized finding 2 Pedagogical practices thought to be appropriate and meaningful included: realistic, relevant and engaging scenarios, a safe non-threatening learning environment, supportive guidance throughout the process, and integration with curriculum.Synthesized finding 3 Barriers and enablers to incorporating SLEs into maternal child education were identified including adequate resources, technological support and faculty development. Students and educators recognized that some things, such as relationship building, could not be simulated.

CONCLUSIONS

Students felt that simulation prepared them for practice through building their self-confidence related to frequently and infrequently seen maternal-child scenarios. Specific pedagogical elements support the meaningfulness of the simulation for student learning. The presence or absence of resources impacts the capacity of educators to integrate simulation activities throughout curricula.

A Grounded Theory of Mothering in the Early Years for Women Recovering From Substance Use

Women in recovery from addiction experience significant sociostructural barriers to reestablishing self, family, and home after having a baby. The aim of this grounded theory study was to describe pathways that women and their families followed and how transitions were experienced in the early years after receiving services through an integrated community-based maternity program. Eighteen women completed questionnaires and participated in a series of semistructured interviews over 2 years. The overall process women experienced was that of holding it together, which women did by restoring their sense of self during recovery, becoming a strong center for their family, and creating a sense of home no matter what the circumstances. Key elements supporting women in their transition to recovery and parenthood included longer term health, social, and recovery programs and services that addressed determinants of health (in particular, gender, housing, and income), and receiving support provided from strengths-based perspectives.

Adding to Our Practice Toolkit: Using the ACTS Script to Address Stigmatizing Peer Behaviors in the Context of Maternal Substance Use

Infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) are a growing population in the NICU setting, and nurses report that caring for families can be challenging. Women who are pregnant and newly parenting who use drugs and alcohol typically face significant negative attitudes, judgment, and stigma within their communities and from providers when they access health care. When nurses witness biased behavior or communication from their peers, they may feel distressed and unprepared to address the situation. Using script guides or structured communication frameworks (e.g., SBAR) is one helpful strategy for rehearsing actions and responses. The ACTS script was developed specifically to address peer attitudes and stigma in relation to substance use during pregnancy.

Complicating the dominant morality discourse: mothers and fathers' constructions of substance use during pregnancy and early parenthood

Introduction

Consumption of substances is a highly controversial behaviour, with those who do so commonly viewed as deviants, even criminals, or else as out of control addicts. In other work we showed that the use of substances by women who are pregnant or have recently become parents was mainly viewed by health and social care providers as morally wrong. Problematic substance use was framed through the narrow lens of gendered responsibilisation, resulting in women being seen primarily as foetal incubators and primary caregivers of infants.

Methods

In this follow-up paper we examine descriptive and qualitative data from a convenience sample of biological mothers and fathers (N = 34) recruited as part of a larger mixed methods study of the development and early implementation of an integrated primary maternity care program. We present a description of the participants’ backgrounds, family circumstances, health status, and perception of drug-related stigma. This is succeeded by a thematic analysis of their personal views on substance use during both pregnancy and the transition to parenthood.

Results

Our results show that while many mothers and fathers hold abstinence as the ideal during pregnancy and early parenting, they simultaneously recognize the autonomy of women to judge substance use risk for themselves. Participants also call attention to social structural factors that increase/decrease harms associated with such substance use, and present an embodied knowledge of substance use based on their tacit knowledge of wellness and what causes harm.

Conclusions

While these two main discourses brought forward by parents concerning the ideal of abstinence and the autonomy of women are not always reconcilable and are partially a reflection of the dissonance between dominant moral codes regarding motherhood and the lived experiences of people who use substances, service providers who are attuned to these competing discourses are likely to be more effective in their delivery of health and social services for vulnerable families. More holistic and nuanced perspectives of health, substance use, and parenting may generate ethical decision-making practice frameworks that guide providers in meeting and supporting the efforts of mothers and fathers to achieve well-being within their own definitions of problematic substance use.

Reenvisioning success for programs supporting pregnant women with problematic substance use

Community-based, integrated, primary care maternity programs for pregnant women affected by problematic substance use are emerging as effective models for engaging women affected by multiple health and social issues. Although addictions services have historically been evaluated by individual achievement of abstinence, new definitions of program success are required as addiction comes to be viewed as a chronic illness. We conducted a mixed-methods study to follow the formative development stages of a community-based program, identifying key evaluation indicators and processes related to this program, program team members, and women and families served. As this program model develops, it is critical that providers, community partners, and health system leaders collaborate to frame definitions of success in ways helpful for guiding program development.

Tobacco and alcohol use in the context of adolescent pregnancy and postpartum: a scoping review of the literature

Adolescent girls are more likely than women of other ages to smoke tobacco or drink alcohol during pregnancy. The health impacts of smoking and drinking for girls and the interconnections between alcohol and tobacco use with adolescent pregnancy underscore the urgent need for integrated approaches to prevent and reduce alcohol and tobacco use among pregnant girls/young women. This article reports on the results of a scoping review of the literature focused on adolescents' use of tobacco and alcohol during pregnancy and postpartum. A search of CINAHL, Medline, Social Science Index and Web of Science identified 40 articles published in the two decades between 1990 and 2012 that met our inclusion criteria related to this age group, pregnancy/motherhood status, and use of both alcohol and tobacco. The review points to compelling gaps in our knowledge and our responsiveness to adolescents aged 19 and under who use alcohol and tobacco during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Research has been primarily descriptive, with separate, parallel streams of investigation to identify trends and predictors of alcohol and tobacco use, prior to, during and following pregnancy. There is a marked lack of effective interventions described in the literature that are designed to prevent or reduce alcohol and tobacco use during pregnancy among adolescent girls; and there are few examples of gender-informed prevention or treatment programmes for this population. Research is needed on interventions that attend to the context of adolescent girls' substance use as well as their preferences and developmental needs for support that encourage sustained behaviour change throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period and that effectively address the influence of partners and friends on use.

Supporting women with substance use issues: trauma-informed care as a foundation for practice in the NICU

Infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome and their mothers require extended support through health and social service systems. Practitioners are interested in exploring innovative approaches to caring for infants and mothers. There is now compelling evidence linking women's substance use to experiences of trauma and violence. A significant shift in the fields of addiction and mental health has been awareness of the impact of trauma and violence on infants and children, women, their families, and communities. In this article, the current state of knowledge of trauma-informed care is reviewed, in particular for application to practice within the NICU. Trauma survivors are at risk of being retraumatized because of health care providers' limited understanding of how to work effectively with them. Recognizing the impact of trauma and implementing evidence-based trauma-informed practices in the NICU holds promise for improving outcomes for women and their infants.

Providers' constructions of pregnant and early parenting women who use substances

The research literature indicates that problematic substance use as a form of health behaviour is poorly understood, being sometimes viewed as deviance, at other times as a disease, and most often as a combination of these states. The use of substances by women who are pregnant or new parents is often conceptualised within an individualised framework. Yet drinking alcohol and using other drugs during pregnancy and early parenthood cuts across social divisions and is shaped by socio-structural contexts including health care. There is a growing body of literature that critically examines public health interventions that are aimed at implementing harm reduction and health promotion techniques in service delivery to help pregnant and early parenting women who are identified as problem substance users. We examine qualitative data from representatives of a recent harm reduction intervention, focusing, in particular, on providers' individual conceptualisations of the problematic behaviour. Our results show that most study participants regard any substance use during pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period as fundamentally unacceptable. This framing of problematic substance use is accomplished via gendered responsibilisation of women as foetal incubators and primary caregivers of infants. We discuss our results in light of the current literature and suggest policy implications.

Quality improvement for neonatal nurses, part II: using a PDSA quality improvement cycle approach to implement an oral feeding progression guideline for premature infants

The development of clinical practice guidelines involving multiple health care providers presents a challenge in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Implementation and evaluation of the guideline is as important as the development of the guideline itself. We explored the use of a quality improvement approach in the implementation of a feeding framework. A Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) quality improvement cycle model was used to implement and evaluate a stepwise oral infant feeding guideline with emphasis on parent and care provider satisfaction. Three PDSA cycles were conducted, with each cycle resulting in modifications to use of the framework and development of knowledge translation and parent education techniques and tools. A PDSA cycle approach can be used effectively in guideline implementation and evaluation involving multidisciplinary health care professionals. This is Part II of a two-part series. Part I introduced the concept of quality improvement and tools for advancing practice changes.

Quality improvement for neonatal nurses, part I: a framework for advancing the quality and safety of care

Quality improvement (QI) and patient safety are becoming increasingly powerful drivers for health care planning and delivery. In this two-part series, the concept of QI will be introduced and implications for neonatal nursing care will be discussed. Part I reviews trends in the fields of QI and patient safety and introduces how neonatal practitioners are currently taking up QI and patient safety in their practice. Part II, to come, is titled "Using a Plan-Do-Study-Act Process to Introduce a Step-wise Framework for Establishing Oral Feeds in Premature Infants" will present the QI process "in action" by describing a QI project conducted in a Level III NICU on introducing and testing a new process for improving the transition from tube to oral feeding for preterm infants.