Involvement of Nurses in Research in Malawi

Involvement of Nurses in Research in Malawi

Alfred Maluwa, PhDResearch Director

University of MalawiKamuzu College of Nursing

Global Health Research Launch MeetingKamuzu College of Nursing

4th October, 2012.

Introduction

In the University of Malawi, promotion of faculty is based on publication in peer reviewed journals

Faculty at KCN have to teach students; supervise them during clinical and community placements; set, administer and mark examinations

IntroductionFaculty of KCN have to meet the four

essential elements of university education:

a) enabling students to acquire skills and knowledge in preparation for practice after they graduate

b) equipping students with problem-solving skills

Introduction

c. generation of new knowledge for the benefit of the nursing / midwifery profession and the wider community,

d. transmission and preservation of society’s values.

The challenge is on how to balance the importance of teaching, nursing practice, and research /publications

Importance of Research in Nursing

Enables recognition of the past through the researchers’ acknowledgment of the present / existing knowledge.

Leads to reflection, synthesis, and identification of gaps in knowledge through critical appraisal of the literature.

Importance of Research in Nursing

The research process itself allows for opportunity to think logically, communicate effectively with editors, reviewers, and readers, and therefore sharpens argumentation.

Researchers develop attributes in working systematically, dealing with conflict, truthfulness, and transparency in origins of ideas or concepts.

Research experience provides evidence that improves nursing practice

Importance of Research in Nursing

Importance of Research in Nursing

Best practices in nursing are developed through rigorous research conducted by nurse scientists

The faculty members who publish benefit from the peer-review process

Their research findings and ideas are presented to the clinical services and academic world

Importance of Research in Nursing

Status of Global Research in Nursing

Nurse scholarly productivity is not uniformly distributed across the world.

Out of 1286 articles on nursing education research in “major journals” published between 1991 and 2000,

90% of the articles were from North America and Europe.

Nursing research and publications were poorly developed in the UK and lagged behind other university disciplines.

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

Kamuzu College of Nursing was opened in 1979

The aim is to prepare most highly qualified nursing and midwifery personnel for the Malawian nation

The college focuses on total student and staff development geared towards addressing both the current and emerging health issues

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college encourages faculty to integrate the findings of vibrant research and outreach programs to inform practice

Faculty should pursue excellence in practice through own professional and personal development

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

After 27 years of its existence, (1979 to 2005) the research outputs at the college were very low;

There were 57 faculty; 6 PhD holders, 32 with Masters Degree, and 19 with B.Sc.

There were 42 publications translating to 1.4 faculty members per publication

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

A total of 16 published articles were associated with only 2 faculty members

Some of the articles were published as early as 1988 showing that research output per year was very low

Some of the publications were from faculty in the basic department

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

Most of the publications came from research projects

Most faculty did not have research projects

The situation has improved with the introduction of postgraduate programs

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college has 5 Masters programs in clinical specializations;

M.Sc. (Midwifery); M.Sc. (Reproductive Health); M.Sc. (Child Health Nursing); M.Sc. (Community and Mental Health Nursing);

M.Sc. (Nursing and Midwifery Education).

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

Students are undertaking research on different topics within each masters program

Students are encouraged to publish their research results

Hence the number of publications (research output) has increased to 23 in the current year.

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college has 66 faculty in 4 departments;Basic studies, Maternal and Child Health, Medical –

Surgical Nursing and Community.

There is 1 full professor 3 Associate professors 13 Senior Lectures 34 Lecturers 7 Assistant Lectures 8 Clinical instructors

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college continues to collaborate with the postgraduates students after they have graduated to jointly implement research programs

The college has as of August, 2012 been designated a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre (WHO CC) for Excellence in Inter Professional Education and Practice

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college is developing a PhD program in inter professional Health Sciences

The program will further strengthen research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

Kamuzu College of Nursing is collaborating with other Universities abroad, Norway, USA, UK, Ireland, Australia

Status of Research at Kamuzu College of Nursing

The college is also engaged in regional collaboration (Botswana, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia)

The college is also collaborating with institutions in the country

(College of Medicine, Luanar, FHI, NAC, Ministry of Health, CHAM Nursing Institutions, Malawi College of Health Sciences, NGOs)

Concluding remarks

Research is very important for evidence based nursing practice

Kamuzu College of Nursing has strategically placed herself to implement more research programs and increase research outputs (Publications, inventions, patents)

Thank you for your attention