An Integrative Review of Engaging Clinical Nurses in Nursing Research

Abstract

The evidence from this review offers EBP recommendations as well as reports on the gaps in the literature related to best practices for engaging clinical nurses in nursing research.

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“…9 Involvement of clinical nurses through all phases of the research process will not only facilitate the conduct of a study, but is essential to the translation of results to evidence-based nursing care. 3 Also, inclusion of clinical nurses in the research process from the beginning ensures that the research team will benefit from the clinical nurse’s expertise in identifying potential practice related obstacles and in developing a workable clinical plan to ensure the successful implementation of the planned research study.…”

“…10 For the academic nurse researcher, collaborative partnerships that include cohesion, contribution, communication, commitment, consensus, and compatibility from both the academic and clinical sides have been shown to effectively enhance the goals of a study and lead to successful outcomes. 3, 5 Expert clinical nurses often lack comfort and experience with core concepts of intervention research that are necessary for study implementation and intervention fidelity. However, academic nurses have skills in grant writing that are necessary to secure funding for the clinically relevant research study.…”

“…3, 11 Some identified factors that may enhance academic and clinical partnerships include: (a) shared governance between the patient care centers and affiliated academic medical centers; (b) leadership by nurse-scientist investigators, and (c) a strong rapport among all involved nurse collaborators. 3, 5 Some of the identified challenges to effective collaborative partnerships include: (a) the need for investment of considerable time by front-line nurses and APNs to coordinate patient-care responsibilities with participation in a research study in the hospital setting; (b) lack of clear communication channels among the study collaborators (i.e., nurses in the hospital setting and the academic nurse researchers); and (c) lack of effective leadership among collaborators. 3,12 Hinds et al 13 also described an innovative model to foster collaborative research partnerships in pediatric oncology by pairing academic nurse researchers with nurses who were actively involved in the Children’s Oncology Group (COG).…”

“…Major barriers that inhibit participation of hospital-based nurses in a research study often center on the lack of time and support during daily work-related responsibilities. 3 Too frequently, front-line nurses are not granted adequate release time or given a reduction in patient care responsibilities to participate on research teams. Other identified barriers in the literature include: (a) lack of confidence in their ability to participate in a research study, (b) lack of understanding of nursing research design and methods, (c) perceived role conflict as both a researcher and clinical nurse, (d) challenges of gaining the cooperation of clinical nursing staff to comply with clinical trial protocols, (e) difficulties in maintaining clinical research team motivation, (f) lack of relevant, clinically focused research findings to implement (i.e., results are viewed as not useful for their practice), and (g) limited mentorship opportunities with a nurse scientist who has release time from other academic responsibilities.…”

“…2 These partnerships are essential to the design and implementation of nursing research studies that are relevant and feasible and generate findings that swiftly translate into clinical practice. 3 As nurses strive to provide care grounded in empirical evidence, the conduct of research in clinical settings becomes paramount.…”