Using Nursing Science to Inform Health Policy: The Role of the National Institute of Nursing Research

A practice-based model to guide nursing science and improve the health and well-being of patients and caregivers

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this paper is to describe a model to guide nursing science in a clinical practice-based setting. Exemplars are provided to highlight the application of this nursing research model, which can be applied to other clinical settings that aim to fill evidence gaps in the literature.

BACKGROUND

Nurse scientists are well positioned to develop new knowledge aimed at identifying global health solutions to multiple disparities. The generation and application of this knowledge are essential to inform and guide professional nursing practice. While a number of evidence-based practice models exist to guide the integration of literature findings and other sources of evidence into practice, there is a need for additional models that serve as a guide and focus for the conduct of research in distinct scientific areas in practice-based settings.

DESIGN

Model development and description.

METHODS

Mayo Clinic is a large, comprehensive healthcare system with a mission to address unmet patient needs through practice, research and education. PhD-prepared nurse scientists engage in practice-based research as an integral component of Mayo Clinic's mission. A practice-based nursing research model was developed with the intent to advance nursing research in a clinical setting.

RESULTS

The components of the Mayo Clinic Nursing Research model include symptom science, self-management science and caregiving science. The generation of nursing science is focused on addressing needs of patients with complex health conditions, inclusive of caregivers.

CONCLUSIONS

While clinical settings provide rich opportunities for the conduct of research, priorities need to be established in which to focus scientific endeavours. The Mayo Clinic Nursing Research model may be applicable to nurses around the globe who are engaged in the generation of knowledge to guide practice.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

The Mayo Clinic Nursing Research model can be used by nurse scientists embedded in healthcare settings to address clinically relevant questions, advance the generation of new nursing knowledge and ultimately improve the health and well-being of patients and caregivers.

Defining the role of individuals prepared as a doctor of nurse practice in symptoms science research

PURPOSE

The Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs have grown exponentially for the last 10 years across the United States. However, the intra-professional collaboration among DNP and PhD scholars is not clearly demonstrated in the literature as it relates to frequency, training models, and the outcomes of these collaborations on translation. The purposes of this paper are to: (1) examine the role for DNP nurses in symptom science research and (2) describe training models to cultivate the PhD-DNP collaboration to strengthen the translation of discoveries from nursing research, to facilitate implementation of discoveries, and to improve clinical practice of nurses.

METHODS

A targeted review of the literature was conducted to identify, (1) the role of the DNP, (2) examples of PhD-DNP collaborations, (3) training models that support collaborations, and (4) the outcomes of these intra-professional collaborations.

RESULTS

Two articles reported on PhD-DNP collaboration within a university setting; however, they did not address how the partnership was modeled. One additional article described an academic-hospital partnership model aimed at MSN-prepared advanced practice nurses (APRN) by which outcomes were measured. No examples were found outside of academic settings. The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has established the Symptom Science Center (SSC) with an interest in training the next generation of symptom scientists. By developing a training curriculum through the NINR SSC, DNP-prepared students and practitioners can be exposed to the research enterprise and potentially develop early partnerships with PhD-prepared students and scholars that lead to research translation.

CONCLUSION

The NINR Department of Intramural Research (DIR) and National Institutes of Health Clinical Center are dedicated to building stronger ties between PhD- and DNP-prepared scientists. The SSC can serve as an optimal platform to promote the collaboration of PhD and DNP nurses to advance symptom science translation.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Nurses have a remarkable role in early detection of disease progression. Training opportunities to cultivate the PhD-DNP collaboration have significant relevance for expediting the translation of nursing science to nursing practice.