Implementing a ventricular assist device program. A partnership between nursing and clinical engineering

VAD programs continue to expand as research evolves and this treatment modality becomes more available. Implementation of these programs requires a strong commitment to team development, collaboration, and ongoing education. We believe that the partnership between nursing and clinical engineering captures these key aspects. This alliance facilitates learning and professional growth and supports overall program goals. Beyond VAD programs, medical and technologic advances will continue to have an impact on the critical care environment, increasing the complexity of patient care. Our successful partnership has set the stage for essential collaboration between nursing and clinical engineering in the future.     

Enhancing the quality of home health care

A strong partnership between clinical practice and nursing education is essential to innovative home health care services. Nevertheless, these two components have not always worked in close association for mutual benefit--bringing the two together has been a continuing challenge. Recently, such an alliance was achieved in Edmonton, Alberta, brought on by necessity and triggered by rapid and substantial changes in both home health care and nursing educational environments.     

An academic-community partnership: a model of service and education.

To meet the challenge of preparing nurses for delivery of health care that is directed toward health promotion and focused on populations at the community level, it is critical that academicians develop new methods to educate their students. In this article, I describe an innovative clinical practice model in which an academic-community partnership was created between a college of nursing and a neighborhood grade school and parish. The purpose of the partnership is to provide needed health services to clients, at the same time giving students the opportunity to practice population-focused care in the community. The benefits of the partnership are numerous, including improved client health status, increased access to health promotion services, and enhanced student learning.     

Impact of a care coordination and support strategic partnership on clinical outcomes

A strategic partnership between a nursing care coordination telephone support program and a home healthcare agency was evaluated. The study was supported by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. According to the results, the partnership was a clinically effective service that proved satisfactory to family caregivers, improved the use of community services, and reduced inpatient use and costs without affecting mortality.     

Partnership in research: a tandem of opportunities and constraints

Partnership is a term that is occurring more and more frequently in the research lexicon, an approach that is gradually becoming a sine qua non in the field of health and healthcare research in Canada. The purpose of this article is to share thoughts and experiences regarding research carried out in partnership. The relevance and necessity of partnerships in strategic health research will be examined, and the contribution of partnerships to the development and "re-centring" of intra- and interdisciplinary knowledge and knowledge transfer will be discussed. Based on the nursing and related-fields literature, the key elements of partnership, and the advantages and disadvantages of this strategy to pursuing research projects will be presented. An important issue in a professional discipline such as nursing will be discussed, i.e. the intra-disciplinary partnership between researchers and clinicians. Strategies that could enhance this particular type of partnership and avenues for catalyzing the synergy that must perforce develop, over the coming years, will be proposed.     

Social Justice or Market Justice? The Paradoxes of Public Health Partnerships with Managed Care

Public health is increasingly joining forces with managed care, yet the effect of this partnership on public health nursing (PHN) has received little scrutiny. The feasibility and consequences of a public-private alliance raise questions about whether the mission of public health can be sustained in a managed care system and whether managed care's approaches to health care are conducive to providing population-oriented care. Expanding the links between PHN and private organizations is both problematic and promising. Managed care organizations have much to offer, including coordination of services and comprehensive care. However, they may also restrict coverage and create bureaucratic obstacles to obtaining services. The growth of for-profit health care corporations evokes questions about ways in which concern for communities and populations collide with stockholder interests. The task for PHN is to recognize and to dialogue about these complexities so that nursing's voice can be heard as solutions to these dilemmas are created.     

An evolutionary approach to team working in primary care

Recent government policy emphasizes that interventions to improve health should be shifted as far as possible towards addressing identified needs and that partnership working is a key part of this initiative. The needs of patients are central, and patients want consistency and continuity from nursing. However, their experiences are sometimes fragmented, as professionals often have a degree of protectiveness about roles between nursing disciplines. Our vision for primary care in Sunderland is to achieve collaborative, empowered team working with shared philosophies and goals to develop and deliver creative, effective services in primary care. The balance of power will be shifted to front-line teams supported by strong strategic and professional leadership. This article outlines how new models of practice are replacing routine patterns of work; health needs and user involvement is encouraged. The role of the facilitator and the tools developed to progress with this initiative are described, including a stage approach to team development, a benchmarking tool and achieved outcomes of team working through new service developments.     

Transitioning the practical nursing student into practice: outcomes of a geriatric initiative

Schools of nursing for practical nursing students typically follow the traditional model of acute care facilities. The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate an initiative project examining the use of a skilled nursing facility as a final clinical site in a practical nursing program. The pilot study proved to generate a successful academic and practice partnership between the school of nursing and skilled nursing facility, provide opportunities for students to gain confidence and practice in caring for older adults, and meet the goals and outcomes of the clinical practicum. Clinical experiences offered in a skilled nursing facility prepare practical nursing students to care for older adults and transition from student to graduate.     

Integrating a nursing professional practice model and nursing informatics in a collective bargaining environment.

The integration of a professional practice model of nursing and nursing informatics support for that model is congruent with the goals of a professional nursing union. Thus, the collective-bargaining unit can be a powerful ally to nursing management in achieving the integration of a professional practice model of nursing and nursing informatics. This alliance is based on a shared vision of the nature of professional nursing practice and a common concern for the quality of working life and working environment of the professional nurse. This alliance can provide the basis for decision making about the type of nursing information system to be selected or developed for installation in a particular organization. Use of a participatory decision-making process will ensure that all nursing stakeholders are committed to the decision made and prepared to assist with the resolution of implementation issues as they arise. A harmonious alliance of nursing management and the nursing union ensures a partnership that will protect the clinical nursing caregiver and provide a unified voice for nursing within the organization to resist any attempt by other stakeholders to implement an information system that will not meet the needs of nursing. If nursing management and the collective bargaining unit share the concept of a professional model of nursing practice and view nursing informatics as a tool to assist the nursing staff to operationalize the professional model of nursing, then collaboration in resolving issues related to the implementation of nursing information systems will facilitate the process of achieving the integration of a professional practice model of nursing and nursing informatics support for that model.     

Developing a health promotion program for faith-based communities

The article describes the partnership formed between community outreach programs, a school of nursing, and hospitals to implement Healthy People 2010 goals in urban, faith-based communities. To date this program has provided health promotion programs to 125 people from more than 18 congregations in the context of their faith setting. The program has allowed congregants to develop ministry strategies to meet health care needs within the congregation and community. The article provides overall program goals, specific lesson plans, and evaluation strategies. Outcome measures include an increase in health promotion knowledge, participant satisfaction, and improved health in congregations.     

Development of an academic-practice partnership model to anchor care coordination and population health

The National Academy of Medicine's The Future of Nursing 2020–2030 recommends the expansion of the role of nurses throughout the continuum of health care in an effort to improve the health of the nation while decreasing costs. To accomplish this goal, nursing students and nurses must be well prepared to perform at their highest capacity to meet health care demands. Currently the U.S. health care delivery system is undergoing rapid changes that affect approaches to delivering care services. These changes call for education and practice reforms in nursing. This article introduces an innovative academic-practice partnership model (the University of Maryland Nursing [UMNursing] Care Coordination Implementation Collaborative), including its background, development, and blueprint for a large implementation project. The implementation model integrates nursing education and practice in areas of care co-ordination and population health, which have a significant impact on the Triple Aim of health. The project also uniquely integrates education, practice, and research, with the ultimate outcome of higher quality patient care.     

Developing a dedicated education unit in long-term care: A pilot project

Within long-term care, the transitional care setting provides post-acute and short-stay rehabilitation to older adults, easing the transition between the acute care hospital and home or long-term care. The current nursing shortage makes it difficult for these facilities to attract and retain qualified nursing staff. In order to meet the rehabilitation needs for this patient population while at the same time addressing the challenge in nursing education of limited clinical placements and severe nurse faculty shortages, an academic-practice partnership was developed to establish a Dedicated Education Unit (DEU). The DEU is an innovative clinical education model in which experienced staff nurses serve as clinical teachers to nursing students. This paper describes the process of developing a DEU using the Partners in Caring Model as the framework. Formative and summative evaluation results and recommendations for program improvement of this pilot project are discussed.     

Ten Years and Counting: A Successful Academic-Practice Partnership to Develop Nursing Research Capacity

Achieving a decade long successful academic-practice partnership between a university-based school of nursing and a large private healthcare organization during a time of healthcare payment transformation is a significant accomplishment. Goals of the partnership are to provide evidence that 1. research collaboration and mentoring are instrumental in improving patient care by shaping nursing infrastructure and capacity and 2. consultation and mentoring activities will effectively engage faculty and staff nurses in an academic-practice research partnership. Nursing faculty and practicing clinicians collaborate on organizational priorities to improve patient care outcomes. Of the 28 approved studies, 17 are completed, five are in progress, and six were not completed. Dissemination products directly related to this partnership include: three publications, 23 podium presentations, and eight poster presentations delivered at local, national, and/or international conferences. Findings from seven of the 17 completed projects have been translated to improve practice. Several partnership participants have continued their academic progression and continue to conduct studies. This innovative partnership is a successful endeavor that bridges education and practice in our community, while developing research capacity in both institutions. This article adds to the emerging literature on models of academic-practice partnership to develop nursing research.     

Developing collaborative partnerships in continuing nursing education: walking the talk

The purpose of this article is to describe and analyze a reciprocal partnership developed among four university-based continuing education providers in Wisconsin. Members of this partnership collaborated in developing a statewide program to address the educational needs of nurses moving from acute or long-term care into community nursing. Components of the reciprocal partnership model were applied in developing this program. The partners identified that, despite the initial time investment, the collaborative approach was an advantage. The collaborative approach enhanced the quality of the program developed and reached a wider audience. Continuing nursing educators may want to consider partnership arrangements for program development and implementation.     

城镇高血压患者居家护理方案的制定

为了适应我国目前社区护理发展现状,满足高血压患者居家护理需求,提高高血压的控制率,预防并发症的发生,在了解城镇高血压患者居家护理需求的基础上,与高血压患者及其家属共同制定具有操作性、实用性的高血压患者居家护理方案.本文将围绕方案制定的理论依据、方案的运作流程、方案的主要特色、护理干预实施的范畴及频度等几方面进行阐述.     

Providing seamless community health and social services

This article reviews a variety of Government community health policies and initiatives, from the NHS and Community Care Act 1990 to the emergence of primary care groups (PGCs). The Labour administration abolished GP fundholding and has placed considerable emphasis on its commitment to partnership with the care professions. The Government is also expecting a commitment to partnership between the community care professions in order to reflect the entwined social and health-care needs of the individual requiring care in the community. The role of the district nursing service has been brought into focus with the opportunity of representation at PCG board level. Evaluating how a district nursing service may integrate with social services is therefore, and appropriate strategy for assessing whether recent policy initiatives go far enough at grass roots level in facilitating collaboration and quality community care.