A Leap in the Dark: The Origins and Development of the Department of Nursing Studies, The University of Edinburgh

Weir, Rosemary I.; Woolley, Alma S.

doi:10.1891/1062-8061.7.1.216

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…(1984 ) found that a high percentage of respondents who graduated between 1958 and 1975 showed career mobility. In order to come into line with the postgraduate educational standards set by the University ( Weir 1996), the Department replaced the certificated courses and established Masters degree courses. These MSc courses were increasingly refined over the years to reflect the ever‐changing needs of the profession and, indeed, such modification continues on an ongoing basis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10‐year follow‐up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh

Whyte

Lugton

Fawcett

2000

Journal of Advanced Nursing

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Continuing education is now recognized as essential if nursing is to develop as a profession. United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) consultations are currently seeking to establish appropriate preparation for a 'higher level of practice' in the United Kingdom. The relevance of Masters level education to developing professional roles merits examination. To this end the results of a 10-year follow-up study of graduates from the Masters programme at the University of Edinburgh are reported. The sample was the entire cohorts of nurses who graduated with a Masters degree in the academic sessions from 1986 to 1996. A postal questionnaire was designed consisting of mainly closed questions to facilitate coding and analysis but also including some open questions to allow for more qualitative data to be elicited. The findings indicated clearly that the possession of an MSc degree opened up job opportunities and where promotion was not identified, the process of study at a higher level was still perceived as relevant to the work environment. This applied as much to the context of clinical practice as to that of management, education or research. The perceived enhancement of clinical practice from a generic Masters programme was considered a significant finding. Also emerging from the data was an associated sense of personal satisfaction and achievement that related to the acquisition of academic skills and the ultimate reward of Masters status. The concept of personal growth, however, emerged as a distinct entity from that of satisfaction and achievement, relating specifically to the concept of intellectual sharing, the broadening of perspectives and the development of advanced powers of reasoning.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10‐year follow‐up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh

Whyte

Lugton

Fawcett

2000

Journal of Advanced Nursing

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“…The relationship with Rockefeller was nurtured by Professor Francis Crew, a man of expansive vision and interests in science and public health. Not surprisingly the Edinburgh course bore the imprimatur of its community medicine and public health origins; as students were dual trained both in acute and community nursing with the result that working in the community became the preferred destination of the Edinburgh graduates in follow-up studies of the early cohorts (Weir, 1996). Graduates seemed to value the autonomy they experienced in the community where they could use their initiative, exercise their discretion, judgement and critical thinking in decision-making, rather than feeling hemmed in by the hospital.…”

Section: Nursing and The Early Nhsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nurses as change agents for a better future in health care: the politics of drift and dilution

Rafferty

2018

HEPL

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This paper takes the 70th Anniversary of the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom as an opportunity to reflect upon the strategic direction of nursing policy and the extent to which nurses can realise their potential as change agents in building a better future for health care. It argues that the policy trajectory set for nursing at the outset of the NHS continues to influence its strategic direction, and that the trajectory needs to be reset with the voices of nurses being more engaged in the design, as much as the delivery of health policy. There is a growing evidence base about the benefits for patients and nurses of deploying well-educated nurses at the top of their skill set, to provide needed care for patients in adequately staffed and resourced units, as well as the value that nurses contribute to decision-making in clinical care. Yet much of this evidence is not being implemented. On the contrary, some of it is being ignored. Policy remains fragmented, driven by short-term financial constraints and underinvestment in high quality care. Nurses need to make their voices heard, and use the evidence base to change the dialogue with the public, policy makers and politicians, in order to build a better future for health care.

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“…Elsie Stephenson's influence on nursing can be seen throughout the 1960s and her role in Edinburgh's story cannot be over‐emphasized. Her organizational flair and dynamic enthusiasm were matched by a warm personality, which enabled her to develop good working relationships externally, with the NHS and professional bodies, as well as internally within the University's academic community (Weir ).…”

Section: Stephenson's Legacymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Margaret Scott Wright (later to become the first Professor of Nursing at Edinburgh, and in the UK), was the second nurse to be awarded a PhD in entitled A study on the performance of student nurses . These early doctoral awards confirmed that nursing was gradually being seen a researchable subject, and it was soon being argued that nursing research needed to be conducted by those with insight and experience of the profession (Weir , p. 15–17). To date, there have been 109 PhDs awarded from Nursing Studies at the University of Edinburgh.…”

Section: Stephenson's Legacymentioning

confidence: 99%

Leaps in the dark: 60 years of Nursing Studies at the University of Edinburgh

Kelly

Pollock

Rodgers

et al. 2016

Journal of Advanced Nursing

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A Leap in the Dark: The Origins and Development of the Department of Nursing Studies, The University of Edinburgh

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10‐year follow‐up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh

Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10‐year follow‐up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh

Nurses as change agents for a better future in health care: the politics of drift and dilution

Leaps in the dark: 60 years of Nursing Studies at the University of Edinburgh

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