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Critical thinking has been identified as a key requirement for safe and competent practice for Nurse Practitioners. It has been suggested that it is the foundation for the development of clinical reasoning, diagnostic reasoning, and clinical judgement. Poorly developed critical thinking is linked to negative patient outcomes, diagnostic error, cognitive bias, and poor information processing. There is little literature that studies the teaching and learning activities that can be used in the development of critical thinking in Nurse Practitioners. The aim of this rapid review was to identify teaching and learning activities that promote critical thinking in Nurse Practitioners.
A rapid review was conducted to identify studies that examined different teaching and learning activities that promoted the development of critical thinking or any of its subthemes such as clinical reasoning, diagnostic reasoning or clinical judgement. Four databases were systematically searched: CINAHL, Medline, Embase and ERIC. The methodology used was guided by the Cochrane Rapid Review Methods Group. Eligible papers included peer-reviewed publications that evaluated the efficacy or effectiveness of teaching or learning strategies used for the development or promotion of critical thinking or its components. The included populations were faculty teaching in a Nurse Practitioner programme, Nurse Practitioners, Nurse Practitioner students or graduate level nursing students.
The search yielded 6421 article titles and abstracts. Of these, 12 were included in the final rapid review. Teaching and learning activities were divided into three themes: classroom, simulation, and written. Classroom activities included problem-based learning, unfolding case scenarios, self-explanation, and Socratic inquiry. Simulation was in the form of high fidelity using standardised patients, computer-based programmes, escape rooms and virtual reality. Written activities included concept mapping, evolving case studies and illness scripts. Study participants noted that using a combination of teaching and learning activities had the greatest impact on their development of critical thinking.
There is limited knowledge on the effects of teaching and learning strategies on the development of critical thinking in nurse practitioners. This review offers a perspective on strategies that were most impactful for student nurse practitioners in their development of the different aspects of critical thinking. Simulation activities were the most researched and using it in combination with other activities was preferred by study participants.
No patient or public contribution as this is a literature review.
To gain an understanding of the experiences of mentors and mentees engaging in a national mentoring programme within nursing and midwifery in Ireland.
A two-phased convergent parallel mixed methods study was undertaken.
The first phase was a quantitative non-experimental descriptive study using an online survey with mentors (n = 12) and mentees (n = 6). The second phase was a qualitative descriptive study and involved focus group discussions with mentors (n = 5). No mentees took part in the focus group discussions. There was a disproportionate representation of mentors versus mentees in the total sample across both phases of this study. Data were collected between December 2023 and April 2024.
Mentorship has a positive impact on professional growth, job satisfaction and career development for both mentors and mentees in nursing and midwifery professions. Significant challenges to effective nursing and midwifery mentorship include time constraints, irregular work patterns and a need for additional managerial and structural support. Areas identified for improvement in programme implementation include clearly defined roles, dedicated time and space for mentorship meetings and tailored support systems to address cultural diversity.
This study highlights the significant benefits of a national formal mentorship programme; however, substantial barriers continue to underscore the need for strategic improvements. Addressing these challenges through clearer role definitions, dedicated protected mentorship time and culturally responsive support systems may enhance mentorship programme effectiveness and ensure long-term sustainability.
None.
by Siobhán O’Connor, Sandra M. Malone, Joseph Firnhaber, Sinéad O’Keeffe, John McNamara, Anna Donnla O’Hagan
While mental health literacy is an important component to successful help-seeking, rural populations often face gaps in both knowledge and service provision. Informed by the Theory of Planned Behaviour and Self-Efficacy Theory, we designed the ‘Skills for Resilience’ as a brief, once-off, community-based educational intervention to increase Irish farmers’ mental health literacy and help-seeking intentions. We adopted a quasi-experimental between (group: intervention and control) and within-group design (time: baseline [T1], immediately post-intervention [T2], and ≥ 1 month post-intervention [T3]). A total of 72 participants (intervention n = 37; control n = 35) were recruited from knowledge-sharing discussion groups. Although recruitment was also open to women, all discussion groups consisted of men. A trained facilitator delivered a discussion lasting between 30 and 90 minutes. Five intervention participants also participated in a qualitative interview after T3. Our results identified intervention participants’ mental health literacy increased significantly at T2 and T3 compared to T1, but did not increase between T2 and T3. Mental health literacy was also significantly greater in the intervention group compared to the control group at T2 and T3. Help-seeking intentions and self-efficacy in seeking mental healthcare also increased significantly at T2 compared to T1, but did not increase between T1 and T3 or T2 and T3. There were no significant changes in outcome measures for the control group at any time point. Through reflexive thematic analysis we identified that the intervention also addressed stigma against mental health (Theme 1) and provided important resources for participants and their community’s present and future coping (Theme 2). At T3, 100% of participants enjoyed the discussion and would recommend the intervention to other farmers. This intervention provides a successful example of integrating the Theory of Planned Behaviour and Self-Efficacy Theory to improve mental health literacy in farmers using a brief, educational intervention.Poor chest health is the leading cause of early mortality in children with cerebral palsy (CP). It is also the most common reason to seek healthcare, accruing significant costs and reducing quality-of-life for children and families. Clinical trials examining chest health interventions in CP are characterised by inconsistent outcome measures, limiting the capacity for evidence synthesis to inform clinical application. The study aims to develop a core outcome set (COS) and related measurement instruments to assess, monitor and evaluate chest health in children with CP, both in research and routine clinical practice. The COS will reflect the views of children, young people, parent/carers, clinicians and researchers, emphasising under-represented groups in research and those at risk of poorer chest health.
A 3-phase methodology will be conducted in line with the Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials (COMET) Initiative. (1) Candidate outcomes will be identified through a qualitative evidence synthesis and interviews with key stakeholders. Findings will be mapped to COMET-taxonomy, generating a list of candidate outcomes. (2) An international e-Delphi survey will invite stakeholders to rate the importance of each outcome, followed by a consensus meeting to ratify the COS. (3) A structured review, guided by health measurement taxonomy, will evaluate relevant instruments, with a final meeting to agree on recommended measures for each COS domain.
Ethical approval was provided by the University of Plymouth Research Ethics Committee for the qualitative interview study (ID5116), e-Delphi study and consensus meeting (ID5636). Study findings will be published open access in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at relevant national and international conferences.
COMET registration: 2590 (https://www.comet-initiative.org/Studies/Details/2590)
CRD42024562735.
High quality handover is critical for patient safety and care continuity. Existing practice is based on a weak evidence base in which the patient voice is poorly captured. The aim of this study was to identify outcomes of importance to patients, families and carers regarding interventions to improve in-hospital handover between healthcare practitioners.
A rapid systematic review of qualitative literature was carried out after prospective registration with PROSPERO and was reported in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses and Enhancing Transparency in Reporting the Synthesis of Qualitative Research guidelines.
The Ovid MEDLINE database was searched.
Qualitative or mixed-methods studies reporting patient, family or caregiver perspectives on in-hospital handovers were eligible for inclusion.
Synthesis was informed by the best-fit framework approach using a published taxonomy of handover-related outcomes and the Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials taxonomy. Outcomes were reported according to two distinct types of handover: bedside (patient-involved) and provider-focused (patient-uninvolved).
A total of 34 studies, including 1262 participants across a range of specialties and predominantly high-income settings, were analysed. 53 bedside and 31 provider-focused handover outcomes were identified according to four domains; adverse events, quality of patient care, quality of handover and patient/caregiver satisfaction. Bedside handover studies frequently reported outcomes relating to patient engagement and communication with healthcare staff. One study was carried out in a low income country; however, outcomes identified were broadly similar.
These findings expand the known outcomes for evaluating handover interventions and highlight the importance of prioritising the patient and public perspective in research. This work will contribute to developing a core outcome set for trials in surgical handover but can also be applied to handover practices for any other discipline within the hospital environment.
CRD42023493367.
FreshRSS 