Nurses are required to continue their education with the goal of improving their professional capabilities. Additionally, researchers continue to search for ways to improve the effectiveness of the nurses in the healthcare field and publish these findings in journals. Nursing researchers have several strategies they can follow when developing methodologies for superior nursing practices.
Biology and Behavior
One common focus for nurses are the emphasis on biology and behavior. Nurses not only focus on the health of the patient but must also understand how their interactions with the patients affect recovery. Nursing researchers also study how biology affects the behavior of the patients so that nurses know how to interact with the patients and also know how to treat the patients on an emotional level in response to the difficulties that the patients face. Nurses need to understand how the patient’s cultural context will affect the patient and the patient’s community’s perception of the disease.
Technological Research
Much of nursing research must focus on technology. Researchers must understand how nurses use the technology so that engineers can develop more effective technology. Researchers also study the daily work processes of the nurses so that they can come up with new tools that can help the nursing staff. Much of the nursing research has focused on developing better information technology that helps nurses efficiently communicate with different areas of the hospital.
Privacy
A major issue in nursing is patient privacy. Nurses have access to information on the patient’s health which hospitals are required by law to keep secret. Nurses not only need to carefully safeguard against patient medical information, but they must help future generations of nurses understand privacy concerns.
Interdisciplinary Approach
Nursing is a very hands-on profession and much of the research must take an interdisciplinary approach. Researchers must not only study medicine, but must also study psychology, information technology and some engineering.
Research Dissemination
Nursing researchers must not only learn about medical issues themselves, but they must also find effective ways to disseminate this information to society as a whole. Nurses must keep patients and their families informed of pertinent medical information and they are also often expected to promote general societal awareness of medical issues.
Grantmaking
Much of the nursing research must focus on the societal impacts that medical issues have. Much of the research performed by nurses impacts the decisions of policymakers and also serves as a foundation for much of the grant research that affects whether or not a particular organization receives funding from a grantmaking organization.
End-of-Life Care
Much of the research conducted by nursing researchers focus on the effects that death have on both patient’s and their families. Many medical specialists do not have the training to sensitively disclose matters related to end-of-life concerns. Also, researchers need to further investigate ways in which caregivers can improve the quality of life for terminal patients.
Disparities
A major goal of nursing research focuses on reducing health disparities. Having equal access to healthcare for quality of life and longevity purposes has lead to many medical researchers studying policies that help patients of different socioeconomic backgrounds overcome health conditions. For example, information technology helps medical professionals disseminate information that some community members might not otherwise have access to. Researchers must explore at-risk populations and ensure that members of these populations are not discriminated against on a basis of race, gender or ethnic origin.
