SOME STATISTICS texts are written with a particular package in mind. For health care and social sciences this is often SPSS, but could be SAS, Minitab or many others. Other texts are generic and assume no package. This book is of the latter type, which means that you could use it with any package but may need to buy another to undertake statistics in practice.
Research in social science, including nursing, can be broadly split into two main types, qualitative and quantitative. Each has strengths and weaknesses. In some studies both methods are employed. In all cases the method chosen should answer the question set, rather than simply reflect the preferences of the researcher. This article outlines how the authors, one of whom was studying for a doctorate in nursing (Al-Hamdan 2008), the other who was the supervisor, determined the most appropriate research method to use for the doctorate.
A regular look at recent publications and forthcoming events, courses and information relevant to health care and nursing research
In this article, using the clinical research question: ‘what factors seem to predict who will take an overdose?’, Denis Anthony shows how a statistical computer package can make research easier and more efficient
A regular look at recent publications and forthcoming events, courses and information relevant to health care and nursing research
A regular look at forthcoming events, courses and information relevant to nursing research
Aim The objective of this study was to investigate the attitudes of community hospital staff towards clinical guidelines. Method Twenty four staff members from 11 hospitals in one community trust were interviewed. The participants, primarily F and G grade nurses, but also some physiotherapists and occupational therapists, were asked about their use of, attitudes to and sources of clinical guidelines. Results A simple gap analysis identified that participants were familiar with local clinical guidelines and generally felt positively about them, but had a few reservations. However, they were generally unaware of national guidelines. Conclusion This study has identified the reality of implementing and raising awareness of clinical guidelines in practice.
Although nurses are more knowledgeable about pressure sore healing and treatment than expected, a small scale study found that there is still room for improvement. There appeared to be similar levels of knowledge of pressure sore healing among orthopaedic and general surgical nurses, and a strong relationship between clinical grade and knowledge, with more senior grade nurses scoring higher on a pressure sore healing and treatment score, compared to more junior nurses. This has implications for who should be performing pressure sore treatment in the clinical setting.
The most senior nurses and midwives in 355 National Health Service (NHS) Trusts in the United Kingdom were surveyed to establish what computer networks were in use by nurses, and what clinical systems and network services were available on these networks, and what training and policies on networks were in place. Qualitative data were also collected; the nurses were asked to comment on network access and possible uses of these networks. This paper concentrates on the qualitative data. The results of the study are being used to influence policy and disseminate information in an action research programme.
The internet is a giant computer network linking computers all over the world, for an introduction with a health perspective see McKenzie (1996) or Anthony (1996a). It started as a response to the Russians launching Sputnik, the first satellite, in 1957. The USA created the Advanced Projects Research Agency (ARPA). And a computer network, ARPANET, to link, initially, four computer systems involved with the US Department of Defense. By 1973 it had grown considerably, was in use by many academic centres, and connected the UK and Norway. In 1982 the network started to use a form of communication called Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), which is generally considered to be the start of the Internet as we know it. TCP/IP allowed systems that were totally different (incompatible with each other) to transfer data easily, by using an agreed standard of data exchange.
This survey compares the use of computer networks in NHS trusts and academic departments. The two types of organisation have different needs and patterns of use. The author discusses the potential of the Internet, NHSNet and other networks for nurses in both clinical and educational settings.