BC Nursing Health Services Research Network Launched

A new network funded through the BC Nursing Research Initiative aims to advance practice-relevant nursing health services research and knowledge.

The need for more nurses to engage in health services research is well-recognized across North America. There has been some progress in recent years in building research capacity in the nursing workforce but the challenge is sustaining the momentum, especially when it comes to applying knowledge to benefit patients, health care providers and the health system overall.

BC now has a new resource to help meet that challenge: the recently launched BC Nursing Health Services Research Network (NHSRN), which is designed to unite the academic, practice and policy communities and provide a mechanism for provincial planning and action.

"With the appropriate resources, nursing disciplines are well-positioned to address many complex health system issues and inform policy," says Dr. Noreen Frisch, Director of the University of Victoria's School of Nursing, who co-leads the network with Ms. Grace Mickelson, Corporate Director, Academic Development for the Provincial Health Services Authority.

Health services research, in a nutshell, is the study of how health services are delivered within and across health systems.

"We've adopted a broad definition, but the network is focused on the roles of nurses within the health system," says Ms. Mickelson. "BC nurses need support so they can help generate and use evidence that will improve how care is delivered, with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes for patients and clients.

The NHSRN is one of several funding strategies that will be implemented through the BC Nursing Research Initiative (BCNRI); a research and capacity-building initiative supported by the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research with funds provided specifically for that purpose by the BC Ministry of Health Services.

Network activities will include developing databases of research expertise and research activity, and creating communication tools, including a website, to enable collaboration and knowledge exchange on nursing health services research.

"One of the exciting milestones of this project will be getting the big picture of what research is actually taking place and who is doing what, so we can link people with similar interests," says Dr. Frisch. "We will also be able to identify research gaps."

"We have high expectations for the network," says Ms. Mickelson. "In the next few years, we want to be able to demonstrate increased capacity for nursing health services research in BC, a coordinated approach to planning and priority-setting, new partnerships and collaborations within BC and beyond, and outcomes based on health services research findings."

Funding for the network commenced November 1, 2009 for up to four-years initially. There is potential for an additional term contingent on the availability of funding and demonstrated progress in achieving network objectives. Key first steps include the creation of a governance oversight committee and hiring a network manager.

For more information, please contact Grace Mickelson (gmickelson@phsa.ca) or Dr. Noreen Frisch (nfrisch@uvic.ca)