This study tested the theoretical proposition that qualified nurses lack adequate knowledge related to oral health, resulting in inadequate oral care of patients on medical wards. The research was undertaken in a local district general hospital during January 1995. The project aimed to look at local practices of qualified nurses related to oral care of patients hospitalized in medical wards. Extent of knowledge and current practice of care was examined using a questionnaire. Open and closed style questions were used. The sample comprised nurses on one elderly care ward and three general medical wards and the sample size was 34. The results revealed gaps in knowledge of oral care procedures. In particular, a lack of assessment and documentation was highlighted. However, the nurses indicated a high level of interest at updating themselves in this area of nursing. The limitations of this study are discussed.

A validated geographic search filter to retrieve research about the UK with high recall and precision has been developed. The medline UK filter can be applied to systematic literature searches in OVID medline for topics with a UK focus.

Objectives The educational alliance is argued to be at the heart of supervision in medical education. This review aims to map the research field and develop a conceptualisation of the nature of such educational alliances within postgraduate supervision for general practitioners. Methods An integrative review of the international literature on supervision from 2011 to 2018 was undertaken, and papers assessed for relevance and quality. Data analysis incorporated framework analysis techniques. Bordin's working alliance‐based model of supervision was used as a springboard for synthesis, as well as allowing for the emergence of new ideas, theories and concepts from the literature. Results A total of 49 full texts were included for analysis. There was evidence of the importance of trust, agreement and bond in accordance with Bordin's model. The results also highlighted the importance of greater clarity on supervisory goals, and the tasks to support these goals, to effectively address competing priorities and roles within supervision. Non‐hierarchical relationships were advocated, although supervisors must remain impartial in their assessment and monitoring roles. The influence of the wider practice community and situated learning through legitimate peripheral participation are documented. A model of General practice (GP) supervision is proposed that integrates the findings. Conclusions GP supervision requires a greater emphasis than is suggested by the working alliance model, both on the clarity of expectations and the appreciation of the multiple roles and competing priorities of both trainee and supervisor. Furthermore, as GP supervision develops within the rising workload of contemporary general practice, the role of the wider community of practice may become more prominent. We have adapted the working alliance model for postgraduate General practice (GP) supervision, emphasising the explicit sharing of expectations relating to goals, tasks and roles to facilitate negotiation and agreement.

Background The authors developed a validated geographic search filter to retrieve research about the United Kingdom (UK) from OVID Embase. It was created to be used alongside their previously published OVID MEDLINE UK filter in systematic literature searches for context‐sensitive topics. Objectives To develop a validated geographic search filter to retrieve research about the UK from OVID Embase. Methods The Embase UK filter was translated from the MEDLINE UK filter. A gold standard set of references was generated using the relative recall method. The set contained references to publications about the UK that had informed National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance and it was used to validate the filter. Recall, precision and number‐needed‐to‐read (NNR) were calculated using a case study. Results The validated Embase UK filter demonstrated 99.8% recall against the references with UK identifiers in the gold standard set. In the case study, the Embase UK filter demonstrated 98.5% recall, 7.6% precision and a NNR of 13. Conclusion The Embase UK filter can be used alongside the MEDLINE UK filter. The filters have the potential to save time and associated resource costs when they are used for context‐sensitive topics that require research about UK settings.

Purpose This paper examines primary care nurse practitioners' (NPs') use of information available via e-health technology (EHT) within consultations. It explores which information resources NPs use in clinical decision making, their comparative use of electronic versus paper-based and human information resources, the reasons behind their choices and how the use of different resources impacts on patient interactions. Methods Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 12 NPs recruited from 11 different general practitioner (GP) practices and five primary care trusts (PCTs) within the West Midlands South Strategic Health Authority, UK. Findings The key finding was that for NPs an effective information resource is one that provides sufficient information to generate a patient management plan rapidly. Speed, familiarity and trust are vital ingredients for regular use. Paper-based information resources therefore retain a significant role, and together with human information resources are still more frequently used than most electronic, and particularly web-based, resources. The latter are not yet well established within the context of patient consultations. Electronic clinical support systems (such as Mentor, PRODIGY and GPnotebook) are regularly used, however, because they are often linked electronically to patient records, and generate brief information in a form accessible to both nurses and patients. By contrast, searching for information from web-based resources was considered time-consuming, technically difficult and disruptive to patients. All NPs reported some negative effects on patients of using computers: mostly disrupted rapport and longer consultations. However, the majority had developed ways of working to overcome these difficulties and that helped them to maintain their patient-centred focus. Conclusions Study NPs had received only very limited information technology (IT) training, but nevertheless were enthusiastic about computer use. This suggests that with further training they could adapt their practice to embrace more EHT, which would enhance their ability to be more autonomous and to base their practice on sound clinical evidence.