A comparison of the public's use of PPE and strategies to avoid contagion during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia and Germany
- Authors: Moore, Kathleen , Bouchoucha, Stephane , Buchwald, Petra
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nursing and Health Sciences Vol. 23, no. 3 (2021), p. 708-714
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- Description: The SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 pandemic has raised public awareness around disease protection. The aims in this study were to recruit participants from Australia and Germany to determine their use of personal protective equipment and COVID-19 avoidance strategies using scales designed for this study. Principal components analysis with the Australian data revealed two factors in the Protection from Infection Scale, Self-Care and Protective Behaviors, and a single factor in the Infection Avoidance Scale, with each scale demonstrating strong internal reliability. Data from German participants were used to confirm the scales' structure using confirmatory factor analysis. A comparison of the two data sets data revealed that Australian participants scored higher overall on protection and avoidance strategies but at the item level there were several commonalities, including self-care behaviors people adopted to avoid contracting COVID-19. With no foreseeable end to this pandemic, it is important that follow-up studies ascertain whether the public continues to adopt high levels of PPE use and follows government advice or if pandemic fatigue sets in. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.
An exploration into suicide prevention initiatives for mental health nurses : a systematic literature review
- Authors: Dabkowski, Elissa , Porter, Joanne
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: International Journal of Mental Health Nursing Vol. 30, no. 3 (2021), p. 610-623
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- Description: Mental health and suicide prevention are national health priorities in Australia, with research currently focussed towards the ZERO Suicide (ZS) initiative. The aim of this review was to evaluate the impact of suicide prevention programmes, in particular the ZS prevention initiative. A systematic review using the PRISMA guidelines was conducted using six EBSCO Host databases; Academic Search Complete, Australian/New Zealand Reference Centre, CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE, APA PsycINFO, and APA Psyc Articles. The data extracted from the eligible papers were analysed using a thematic approach. The final data set consisted of fourteen (n = 14) peer-reviewed articles meeting the eligibility criteria, which included quantitative (n = 10), mixed methods (n = 2), and qualitative studies (n = 2). Results indicated variances between suicide prevention programmes with some papers examining single workshops and others assessing multimodal, organizational interventions. Five major themes were produced from this review including measuring the success of suicide prevention programmes, improvements to the delivery of suicide prevention programmes, barriers to implementing changes, cultural considerations, and further research required for suicide prevention programmes. This review concludes that further long-term research is required to evaluate the implementation and efficacy of suicide prevention programmes in health care. Cultural awareness in suicide prevention training is another area that may benefit from further research. A growing body of evidence establishes the need for multimodal and organizational approaches for suicide prevention initiatives. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd
Caring self-efficacy of direct care workers in residential aged care settings : a mixed methods scoping review
- Authors: Shrestha, Sumina , Alharbi, Rayan , Wells, Yvonne , While, Christine , Rahman, Muhammad Aziz
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Geriatric Nursing Vol. 42, no. 6 (2021), p. 1429-1445
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- Description: The caring self-efficacy of direct care workers in residential aged care has been explored in the literature mostly as a predictor rather than the focus of interest. This scoping review aimed to provide an overview of the existing literature on aged care workers’ caring self-efficacy and factors that influence it. A systematic search was performed in six electronic databases. All primary studies were included. A total of 41 studies met the inclusion criteria. Caring self-efficacy was most often described by aged care workers as their capacity to deal with difficult situations. The self-efficacy scores of direct care workers were high across studies. Self-efficacy was positively influenced by access to resources, relationships with residents and their families, the support of supervisors and co-workers, job satisfaction, and training opportunities, and negatively affected by work pressure and burnout. Findings indicate possible avenues for intervention to improve direct care workers’ self-efficacy in aged care. © 2021 Elsevier Inc.
Coping with chronic cardiovascular disease in Iran : a qualitative study
- Authors: Kalantarzadeh, Mozhgan , Alavi, Mousa , Yousefi, Hojatollah , Maghsoudi, Jahangir , Hungerford, Catherine , Cleary, Michelle
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nursing and Health Sciences Vol. 23, no. 4 (2021), p. 843-851
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- Description: The effects of chronic cardiovascular disease can challenge the achievement of treatment goals and recovery outcomes. This study explores the ways in which patients cope with the effects of chronic cardiovascular disease, from the perspectives of patients, family caregivers, and health professionals. The qualitative study was conducted from May 2019 to September 2020 in Isfahan, Iran. Thirteen people with chronic cardiovascular disease, 6 family caregivers, and 16 healthcare professionals participated in semi-structured individual interviews. Transcripts were analysed thematically. Findings suggest that people with chronic cardiovascular disease use a range of coping strategies, both positive and negative, to adjust to their conditions. The positive strategies include managing their health-related symptoms, drawing on religious or spiritual beliefs, and accessing social and relational supports. Negative strategies can include over-reliance on family members for support, leading to reduced activity and loss of independence. Understanding the nature of the strategies used by patients provides an important means by which health service providers can support patients to further develop positive coping strategies. This, in turn, will enable patients to achieve higher levels of wellbeing. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.
Effect of recovery-based interventions on recovery knowledge and attitudes of mental health professionals, regarding recovery-oriented practice : a quantitative narrative review
- Authors: Sreeram, Anju , Cross, Wendy , Townsin, Louise
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International journal of mental health nursing Vol. 30, no. 5 (2021), p. 1057-1069
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- Description: Mental health recovery is an enabling process encouraging consumers to live a productive life, notwithstanding the presence of debilitating symptoms of illness. The recovery model has been integrated into all areas of mental health. However, literature shows that mental health professionals are not equipped to provide recovery-oriented care to consumers. Researchers have recommended recovery-based interventions to develop knowledge, attitudes and skills to promote recovery-oriented practice in mental health, yet there is a paucity of research regarding the effect of recovery-oriented interventions on the knowledge and attitudes of mental health professionals to improve recovery-oriented practice. Therefore, the purpose of the current review is to understand the effectiveness of interventions on recovery knowledge and attitudes of mental health professionals regarding recovery-oriented practice. The papers were identified through the Population Intervention Comparison and Outcome strategy. The heterogeneity of the selected papers led to a narrative review instead of a systematic review with meta-analysis. The analysis suggested that recovery-based interventions are effective in enhancing the recovery knowledge and attitudes of mental health professionals. Recovery-based interventions have the potential to reduce the use of physical restraints and improve work satisfaction among mental health professionals. The limitations of the studies were the heterogeneity of the selected populations and the absence of strong methodologies to assess the effect of the interventions. Therefore, future investigations should be focused on the effect of interventions on a homogeneous group using randomised controlled trials. Keywords: mental health professionals, mental health nurses, practice, recovery knowledge and attitude, recovery-based interventions.
Leadership during times of crisis : towards recovery
- Authors: Hungerford, Catherine , Cleary, Michelle
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Issues in Mental Health Nursing Vol. 42, no. 10 (2021), p. 971-975
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Nursing education to enhance culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) community access to mental health services : a scoping review
- Authors: Radhamony, Reshmy , Cross, Wendy , Townsin, Louise
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Issues in Mental Health Nursing Vol. 42, no. 11 (2021), p. 1048-1063
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- Description: Research has found that training health care professionals can enhance the access of the culturally diverse community to appropriate mental health services. Yet, little research has been conducted that explicitly focuses on improving nursing knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviours that can enhance the access of the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) community. This scoping review aims to locate, summarise, and recap what is known in the academic literature about educational interventions and programs to improve mental health nurses’ cultural competence. Examining how educational interventions and programs can improve mental health nurses’ knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviours to facilitate Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) community access to mental health services can also identify gaps in knowledge to report future research areas. Fifteen studies included in the review reported a positive effect of cultural competence interventions; however, it was difficult to establish a single effective intervention method due to the significant heterogenicity in cultural competence intervention strategies. Most studies in this scoping review included nurses as participants. However, only one study solely focussed on cultural competence intervention for mental health nurses. Two other studies included mental health nurses as participants, along with other mental health professionals. Henceforth, there is a prerequisite for more research focussing on enhancing mental health nurses’ cultural competency. Additional research is required to evaluate educational interventions’ impact on improving cultural competence attributes on specific practitioner behaviours and the effects on health care and health care outcomes. This review can form a basis for future research studies that will emphasise the impact of cultural competence interventions for mental health nurses. © 2021 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
Nursing students’ perceptions and experiences of reflective practice : a qualitative meta-synthesis
- Authors: Barbagallo, Michael
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Teaching and Learning in Nursing Vol. 16, no. 1 (2021), p. 24-31
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- Description: Reflective practice is a vital component of nursing education. It allows for the integration of core theoretical knowledge and the clinical experience. Despite a small and growing body of literature exploring the nursing students’ perceptions and experiences of this process, a review of the qualitative literature has not been published. The purpose of this meta-synthesis is to examine the qualitative data of nursing students’ perceptions and experiences of reflective practice. This meta-synthesis provides a model that suggests quality reflection results in an improvement in practice. Students perceive that quality reflection occurs when all facets of this model have been met. This encompasses an understanding of knowledge including, learning and the barriers and enablers to knowledge, as well as self-discovery including, facing emotions and personal growth. Understanding these experiences and perceptions will permit further understanding of the motivations and factors that influence the quality of reflective practice. © 2020 Organization for Associate Degree Nursing
Palliative and end-of-life care in the home in regional/rural Victoria, Australia : the role and lived experience of primary carers
- Authors: Miller, Elizabeth , Porter, Joanne , Peel, Rebecca
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: SAGE Open Nursing Vol. 7, no. (2021), p.
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- Description: Introduction: Palliative support services (generalist or specialist) can provide much-needed assistance to carers who are providing palliative and end-of-life care in their homes, but access to such services in regional and rural areas of Australia is poorly understood. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the role and lived experience of primary carers who are providing palliative and end-of-life care in the home in regional/rural Victoria, Australia. Methods: Nine female participants, of whom six were bereaved between 7 and 20 months were interviewed using a semistructured interview technique. Each interview was audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed thematically. Results: Two themes emerged: “Negotiating healthcare systems” which described the needs for multidisciplinary supports and “The caring experience” which discussed daily tasks, relationships, mental and physical exhaustion, respite, isolation, medication management, and grief and loss. Findings show that regional/rural carers have an added burden of travel stress as well as feeling overwhelmed, isolated, and physically and emotionally exhausted. Carers would benefit from greater flexibility for short-term respite care. The engagement of specialist palliative care services assisted the participants to navigate the health care system. Some participants did not understand the value of palliative care, highlighting the need for general practitioners to conduct early conversations about this with their patients. Education is needed to build capacity within the primary palliative care workforce, confirming the importance of timely referrals to a specialist palliative care practitioner if pain or symptom control is not effectively managed. Conclusion: Providing palliative and end-of-life care in the home is an exhausting and emotionally draining role for unpaid, primary carers. Multiple supports are needed to sustain primary carers, as they play an essential role in the primary health care system. © The Author(s) 2021.
Relational and caring partnerships : (Re)creating equity, genuineness, and growth in mentoring faculty relationships
- Authors: Cash, Penelope , Moffitt, Pertice
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship Vol. 18, no. 1 (2021), p.
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- Description: Mentoring in academia has traditionally and currently been prescriptive and institutionally driven. The purpose of this paper is to deconstruct these current mentoring practices with a critical feminist stance. New understandings are shared and gained through dialogue, relevant literature, and performativity to (re)create and name a caring and relational partnership. This caring and relational partnership is grown through a process of mutuality and reciprocity, and based on relational ethics, authenticity, and solidarity. By embracing ideologies of caring and relational ethics, mentoring blurs the lines of mentor/mentee to a perpetual state of walking beside each other in equity to learn and strengthen each other's insights into our worlds. Material realities become illuminated through our shared journeys growing an appreciation and gift of the other. In turn, engaging in meaningful dialogue informs scholarship increasing our understandings of the human condition. © 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston 2021.
Reliability of the tools used to examine psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping amongst migrants and non-migrants in Australia
- Authors: Rahman, Muhammad Aziz , Salehin, Masudus , Islam, Sheikh Mohammed , Alif, Sheikh M. , Cross, Wendy
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: International Journal of Mental Health Nursing Vol. 30, no. 3 (2021), p. 747-758
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- Description: Study tools examining psychological distress, fear of COVID-19 and coping amongst migrants and non-migrants in Australia are very limited. The aim of this research was to assess the psychometric properties and correlation of the English version of Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCSV-19S), and Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) tools during the COVID-19 pandemic situation in Australia. Data from a cross-sectional survey (n = 516) were utilized to examine reliability; 299 (57.9%) were migrants. High internal consistency, as evidenced by Cronbach’s alpha, was found for the K-10 (0.92), FCV-19S (0.87) and BRCS (0.66) tools. The corresponding values for migrants and non-migrants were (0.92, 0.87, 0.67) and (0.92, 0.86, 0.63), respectively. Item-total correlations ranged 0.57-0.78 for K-10, 0.62–0.69 for FCV-19S, and 0.39–0.50 for BRCS tools. EFA retained a single factor for each tool with adequate factor loadings. The scoring of K-10 was significantly predicted by the scoring of FCV-19S (r = 0.284, P < 0.001) and BRCS tool (r = 0.132, P < 0.01). Therefore, these tools can be used reliably amongst both migrant and non-migrant population in Australia. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Muhammad Aziz Rahman and Wendy Cross" is provided in this record**
Self-regulation for and of learning : student insights for online success in a Bachelor of Nursing Program in regional Australia
- Authors: Peck, Blake , Smith, Andrew , Terry, Daniel , Porter, Joanne E.
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nursing Reports Vol. 11, no. 2 (Jun 2021), p. 364-372
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- Description: The blended online digital (BOLD) approach to teaching is popular within many universities. Despite this popularity, our understanding of the experiences of students making the transition to online learning is limited, specifically an examination of those elements associated with success. The aim of this study is to explore the experiences of students transitioning from a traditional mode of delivery to a more online approach in an inaugural BOLD Bachelor of Nursing program at a regional multi-campus institution in Victoria, Australia. Fifteen students across two regional campuses participated in one of four focus groups. This qualitative exploration of students’ experience contributes to contemporary insights into how we might begin to develop programs of study that help students develop self-regulation. A modified method of thematic analysis of phenomenological data was employed to analyse the focus group interview data to identify themes that represent the meaning of the transition experience for students. This qualitative exploration of students’ experience contributes to contemporary insights into how we might begin to develop programs of study that help students develop self-regulation.
The TEAM instrument for measuring emergency team performance: validation of the Swedish version at two emergency departments
- Authors: Karlgren, Klas , Dahlström, Anders , Birkestam, Anderz , Norling, Annelie , Forss, Gustav , Cooper, Simon J.
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Scandinavian Journal of Trauma, Resuscitation and Emergency Medicine Vol. 29, no. 1 (2021), p.
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- Description: Background: The Team Emergency Assessment Measure (TEAM) questionnaire is designed for rating the non-technical performance of emergency medical teams during emergencies, e.g., resuscitation or trauma management. Originally developed in Australia it has today been translated and validated into eleven languages, but a Swedish version is lacking. The aim was therefore to cross-culturally translate and evaluate the reliability and validity of the TEAM questionnaire in a Swedish health care setting. Methods: The instrument was forward and backward translated and adapted into a Swedish context according to established guidelines for cross-cultural adaptation of survey-based measures. The translated version was tested through 78 pairwise assessments of 39 high-priority codes at the emergency departments of two major hospitals. The raters observed the teams at work in real time and filled in the questionnaires immediately afterwards independently of each other. Psychometric properties of the instrument were evaluated. Results: The original instrument was translated by pairs of translators independently of each other and reviewed by an expert committee of researchers, nurses and physicians from different specialties, a linguist and one of the original developers of the tool. A few adaptations were needed for the Swedish context. A principal component factor analysis confirmed a single ‘teamwork’ construct in line with the original instrument. The Swedish version showed excellent reliability with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.955 and a mean inter-item correlation of 0.691. The mean item-scale correlation of 0.82 indicated high internal consistency reliability. Inter-rater reliability was measured by intraclass correlation and was 0.74 for the global score indicating good reliability. Individual items ranged between 0.52 and 0.88. No floor effects but ceiling effects were noted. Finally, teams displaying clear closed-loop communication had higher TEAM scores than teams with less clear communication. Conclusions: Real time observations of authentic, high priority cases at two emergency departments show that the Swedish version of the TEAM instrument has good psychometric properties for evaluating team performance. The TEAM instrument is thus a welcome tool for assessing non-technical skills of emergency medical teams. © 2021, The Author(s). **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Simon Cooper" is provided in this record**
What helps, what hinders? Undergraduate nursing students’ perceptions of clinical placements based on a thematic synthesis of literature
- Authors: Cant, Robyn , Ryan, Colleen , Hughes, Lynda , Luders, Elise , Cooper, Simon J.
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: SAGE Open Nursing Vol. 7, no. (2021), p.
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- Description: Introduction: Clinical placements are a mandatory component of nursing students’ education internationally. Despite clinical education being a key to nursing students’ achievement of nursing competencies, few studies have reviewed students’ narratives to describe their experiences of learning during clinical placement. Such studies may be important in offering a deeper insight into clinical learning experiences than quantitative surveys. Methods: A systematic thematic synthesis of qualitative studies between 2010 and June 2020 was conducted. English language studies that offered a thematic analysis of undergraduate nursing students’ experiences of learning during placement were sought. A search was made of five databases PubMed, Ovid Medline, CinahlPlus, SCOPUS, and Google Scholar. The study was guided by the ENTREQ statement for enhancing transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative research. Results: Twenty-seven qualitative studies were included in the review. A thematic synthesis showed over 100 themes and subthemes across the studies. A cluster analysis revealed positive elements and others that were seen in the studies as a barrier (hindrance) to clinical learning. Positive elements included supportive instructors, close supervision, and belonging (in the team). Unsupportive instructors, a lack of supervision and not being included were seen as a hindrance. Three key overarching themes that could describe a successful placement were revealed as “Preparation,” “Welcomed and wanted” and “Supervision experiences”. A conceptual model of clinical placement elements conducive to nursing students’ learning was developed to enhance understanding of the complexities associated with supervision. The findings and model are presented and discussed. Conclusion: The conceptual model presents positive elements that influence students’ clinical placement experiences of learning. This model may provide a framework to guide professional development programs and strategies to support students and supervisors alike, an important step forward in moving beyond the current clinical placement rhetoric. © The Author(s) 2021.
Work experiences of nurse academics : a qualitative study
- Authors: Singh, Charanjit , Jackson, Debra , Munro, Ian , Cross, Wendy
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nurse Education Today Vol. 106, no. (2021), p.
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- Description: Background: The evidence suggests that heavy workloads, pressure to publish, lack of recognition and job insecurity has led to increased job stress among nurse academics. Lack of proper mentoring, reorientation and transition into an academic role are contributory factors towards the lack of retention and recruitment among nurse academics. Internationally, the sustainability of the nurse academic workforce is an area of great concern. The experiences of nurse academics have not been extensively investigated. Objectives: To explore the work experiences of nurse academics. Design: Qualitative Exploratory study. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Participants: A purposive sample of nurse academics (n = 19), recruited from all states and territories of Australia, lecturer to professor level and work experiences from 2 to 30 years. Methods: Data were collected using semi-structured face to face and telephone interviews. Data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed based upon Braun & Clark's model. The study is reported in accordance with the COREQ guidelines. Ethical approval was granted by the relevant University Human Research Ethics Committee. Results: Four main themes were identified (a) Helping students achieve, finding satisfaction through student engagement, (b) working with challenging students, (c) increased workloads, lack of support and resources and (d) difficulty with retention of newly appointed staff. Conclusions: Although the findings highlighted the interactions with nursing students were a positive experience, many of the participants raised great concern about the challenging, difficult, academically weak, rude, and manipulative students. The growing workload increased non-academic administrative work, and the inability to sustain newly appointed staff were areas of great concern. Doing more with less and not being recognized were pertinent factors that needed to be addressed. © 2021
‘High trust’ and ‘low trust’ workplace settings : implications for our mental health and wellbeing
- Authors: Hungerford, Catherine , Cleary, Michelle
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Issues in Mental Health Nursing Vol. 42, no. 5 (2021), p. 506-514
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A unified call to action from Australian nursing and midwifery leaders : ensuring that Black lives matter
- Authors: Geia, Lynore , Baird, Kathleen , Cross, Wendy , Hungerford, Catherine , Shields, L.
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Contemporary Nurse Vol. 56, no. 4 (2020), p. 297-308
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- Description: Nurses and midwives of Australia now is the time for change! As powerfully placed, Indigenous and non-Indigenous nursing and midwifery professionals, together we can ensure an effective and robust Indigenous curriculum in our nursing and midwifery schools of education. Today, Australia finds itself in a shifting tide of social change, where the voices for better and safer health care ring out loud. Voices for justice, equity and equality reverberate across our cities, our streets, homes, and institutions of learning. It is a call for new songlines of reform. The need to embed meaningful Indigenous health curricula is stronger now than it ever was for Australian nursing and midwifery. It is essential that nursing and midwifery leadership continue to build an authentic collaborative environment for Indigenous curriculum development. Bipartisan alliance is imperative for all academic staff to be confident in their teaching and learning experiences with Indigenous health syllabus. This paper is a call out. Now is the time for Indigenous and non-Indigenous nurses and midwives to make a stand together, for justice and equity in our teaching, learning, and practice. Together we will dismantle systems, policy, and practices in health that oppress. The Black Lives Matter movement provides us with a ‘now window’ of accepted dialogue to build a better, culturally safe Australian nursing and midwifery workforce, ensuring that Black Lives Matter in all aspects of health care. © 2020 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. *Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliates “Wendy Cross, Catherine Hungerford and L. Shields” is provided in this record**
Academic and clinical performance among nursing students : what's grit go to do with it?
- Authors: Terry, Daniel , Peck, Blake
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Nurse Education Today Vol. 88, no. (2020), p.
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- Description: Background: Nursing is both a science and an art and requires students to develop sound scientific foundations for artful application. The at times binary nature of how the way in which the knowledge and skills of nursing are delivered in higher education can be difficult for students to comprehend initially and synchronise for practice and can lead to feelings of being overwhelmed, withdrawal or failure. Understanding what influences student performance in bachelor level nursing studies is imperative so educators can develop programs that straddle the art and science conundrum and lead to graduate success. Grit is a non-cognitive trait, a drive that keeps an individual on task through difficult circumstances for sustained periods of time. Grit might well represent a key factor in our understanding of why one student succeeds while another withdraws. Objectives: To examine measures of grit in the context of demographic characteristics of nursing students and their impact on student self-perceived academic and clinical performance. Design: A cross-sectional design. Setting: A single School of Nursing at a multi-campus, regional, peri-urban Australian University. Participants: All nursing students (n = 2349) studying a three-year bachelor of nursing degree were invited to participate. Methods: Data were collected using a questionnaire that included several demographic items, questions relating to the student's perceived level of academic and clinical performance, and the eight-item Short Grit Scale (Grit-S) used to measure trait-level perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Results: Students, regardless of their year of study or any other demographic factor, showed grit was the only significant predictor of clinical and academic performance. Conclusions: The strength between grit and perceived performance both academically and clinically, makes grit a valuable factor for development in students as a vehicle for success in nursing programs of study. This paper culminates in suggestions for creative approaches to grit development. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd
Balance in writing a life : some issues in biography
- Authors: Hamilton, Helen
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Collegian Vol. 27, no. 6 (2020), p. 585-588
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- Description: Background: Biographers aim to create a balanced interpretation of an individual life, both in the narrative of the life and the portrayal of the circumstances in which it was lived. Problem and method: Factors that may distort balance in the account of a life are identified in a review of selected literature of experienced biographers. Findings: Biographical evidence, the biographer's relationship with the protagonist and ethical and privacy matters and are discussed in relation to the quality, adequacy and accessibility of records; maintaining distance from the protagonist; keeping the life in perspective; selecting an appropriate approach and dealing with private or intimate matters. Conclusion: Partiality in the form of prejudice or bias and inaccuracy to the point of being untruthful, are threats to creating a balanced narrative. The credibility of a biography depends upon its honesty. © 2020
Communities of practice : a systematic review and meta-synthesis of what it means and how it really works among nursing students and novices
- Authors: Terry, Daniel , Nguyen, Hoang , Peck, Blake , Smith, Andrew , Phan, Hoang
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Journal of Clinical Nursing Vol. 29, no. 3-4 (2020), p. 370-380
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- Description: Aims and objectives: To evaluate the enablers, barriers and impact that communities of practice have on novice nurses and students learning to become registered nurses. Background: Communities of practice have formed the basis for conceptualising the process of learning that occurs among groups of people within a place of work—a mainstay of healthcare practice. There is a dearth of literature that focuses specifically on the outcomes from student and novice engagement with existing communities of practice. Design: Systematic review and Meta-synthesis. Methods: MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, ProQuest, Scopus and PsycINFO databases were accessed between 1997–2019. The screening and selection of studies were based on eligibility criteria and methodological quality assessment using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme tool for qualitative research. Meta-synthesis was grounded in the original experiences and collectively synthesised into meaningful themes. The review follows the PRISMA reporting guidelines and PRISMA checklist. Results: The findings highlight three major themes and included enablers for successful communities of practice, barriers to successful communities of practice, and success in action as described by students and novice nurses. Discussion: We suggest successful communities of practice occur when safe and supported spaces ensure students and novices feel comfortable to experiment with their learning, and we emphasise the benefits of having more novice nurses situated within close proximity and under the direct influence of the established practices of more experienced or core group of peers. Relevance to clinical practice: Communities of practice that function successfully create an environment that prioritises the embedding of novices into the broader group. In so doing, students and novice nurses feel supported, welcomed, empowered, and able to make the transition from student to colleague and novice nurse to more experienced nurse. It allows them to experiment with ever new ways of fulfilling the role, while aiding better clinical outcomes. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd