Insights on leadership from early career nurse academics: Findings from a mixed methods study

© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Aim: To explore the perceptions of early career nursing academics on leadership in academia. Background: There is growing emphasis on leadership capacity building across all domains of nursing. However, there is limited evidence on leadership capacity in early career academics. This study tested an intervention to develop leadership capacity amongst early career nursing academics in two Australian universities. Methods: A sequential mixed methods design, using online surveys and semi-structured interviews, was used to collect data. Results: Twenty-three early career nursing academics participated. Most had experience of formal leadership roles and were aware of its importance to them as they developed their academic careers. Participants were able to discuss their own views of themselves as leaders; their perceptions of their own needs for leadership development, and ways in which they could seek to develop further as leaders. Conclusion: There is a need to provide initial and ongoing opportunities for leadership development amongst nurse academics. These opportunities should be contextualised and recognise factors such as gender, and the effects of structural oppression. Implications for nursing management: Nurse academics are involved in the preparation of the next generation of clinical leaders and it is imperative that they are able to articulate a clear view of leadership

Physiotherapy students' perspectives of online e-learning for interdisciplinary management of chronic health conditions: A qualitative study

© 2016 Gardner et al. Background: To qualitatively explore physiotherapy students' perceptions of online e-learning for chronic disease management using a previously developed, innovative and interactive, evidence-based, e-learning package: Rheumatoid Arthritis for Physiotherapists e-Learning (RAP-eL). Methods: Physiotherapy students participated in three focus groups in Perth, Western Australia. Purposive sampling was employed to ensure maximum heterogeneity across age, gender and educational background. To explore students' perspectives on the advantages and disadvantages of online e-learning, ways to enhance e-learning, and information/learning gaps in relation to interdisciplinary management of chronic health conditions, a semi-structured interview schedule was developed. Verbatim transcripts were analysed using inductive methods within a grounded theory approach to derive key themes. Results: Twenty-three students (78 % female; 39 % with previous tertiary qualification) of mean (SD) age 23 (3.6) years participated. Students expressed a preference for a combination of both online e-learning and lecture-style learning formats for chronic disease management, citing flexibility to work at one's own pace and time, and access to comprehensive information as advantages of e-learning learning. Personal interaction and ability to clarify information immediately were considered advantages of lecture-style formats. Perceived knowledge gaps included practical application of interdisciplinary approaches to chronic disease management and developing and implementing physiotherapy management plans for people with chronic health conditions. Conclusions: Physiotherapy students preferred multi-modal and blended formats for learning about chronic disease management. This study highlights the need for further development of practically-oriented knowledge and skills related to interdisciplinary care for people with chronic conditions among physiotherapy students. While RAP-eL focuses on rheumatoid arthritis, the principles of learning apply to the broader context of chronic disease management

Can lay responder defibrillation programmes improve survival to hospital discharge following an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest?

Introduction The importance of early defibrillation in improving outcomes and reducing morbidity following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest underscores the importance of examining novel approaches to treatment access. The increasing evidence to support the importance of early defibrillation has increased attention on the potential for lay responders to deliver this therapy. Aim This paper seeks to critically review the literature that evaluates the impact of lay responder defibrillator programs on survival to hospital discharge following an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the adult population. Method The electronic databases, Medline and CINAHL, were searched using keywords including; first responder , lay responder , defibrillation and cardiac arrest . The reference lists of retrieved articles and the Internet were also searched. Articles were included in the review if they reported primary data, in the English language, which described the effect of a lay responder defibrillation program on survival to hospital discharge from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in adults. Results Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. The small number of published studies, heterogeneity of study populations and study outcome methods prohibited formal meta-analysis. Therefore, narrative analysis was undertaken. Studies included in this report provided inconsistent findings in relation to survival to hospital discharge following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Conclusion Although there are limited data, the role of the lay responder appears promising in improving the outcome from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest following early defibrillation. Despite the inherent methodological difficulties in studying this population, future research should address outcomes related to morbidity, mortality and cost-effectiveness

Appraising Mixed Methods Research

There is increasing interest in the use of mixed methods research approaches among health researchers. While mixed methods research has the potential to reveal rich data and deeper understandings of complex phenomena, it needs to be evaluated with the same level of critical appraisal as other methodologies. To date, however, much of the discourse around the critical appraisal of mixed methods research has discussed the challenges and considerations underlying critical appraisal. There has been limited agreement reached on optimal methods of evaluating this body of literature. This chapter will synthesize the literature on critically appraising mixed methods research and provide advice to those reviewing mixed methods papers around considerations in critical appraisal for this type of research