Nurse Practitioner Led Spinal Clinic

A new study regarding NP led Spinal Clinics at Toronto Western Hospital in Ontario was just published in the November issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing.

The aim of the study was to see whether a clinic led by a nurse practitioner could speed up the diagnosis and management of patients with certain spinal conditions pre-selected by the surgeons' offices. One other goal of this study was to determine patient satisfaction and clinical accuracy with nonsurgical nurse practitioner management of preselected spinal referrals.

Results show that nurse practitioners can play an effective and efficient role in delivering timely healthcare to patients requiring specific disease management in a specialty setting. Co-author Yoga Raja Rampersaud, MD adds that although skill levels will vary from one nurse practitioner to another, physicians can work with NPs to help them to develop expertise in their specialty area. Ongoing evaluation is also important to ensure that quality of care is maintained and that patients are satisfied with the consultation.

The questionnaire revealed that 97% of patients were satisfied with the consultation, that 94% were pleased with examination thoroughness, and that only 26% preferred to wait longer for direct consultation with the surgeon.

The article can be found at

http://journals2.scholarsportal.info/details.xqy?uri=/03092402/v66i0012/2671_npsscc.xml

Educators and Learners experience of the Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioners Course

Pam Baxter, APN Chair Affiliate Faculty and Assistant Professor in School of Nursing at McMaster University, manned a table at the NPAO conference last week sharing all kinds of APN related materials.

In particular, she shared the research summary from her study "Educators and Learners experience of the PHCNP Course" offered by COUPN. This research summary shares some important information and recommendations about the PHCNP program. Click here for the summary. 

If you or someone you know has been involved in the PHCNP program either as a student or educator, your feedback is welcome. 

APN Chair Fall E-News!

The Fall 2010 edition of the APN Chair E-News is now available on the APN Chair website. Check it out at
http://www.apnnursingchair.mcmaster.ca/APNChairENews_Fall_2010.pdf

There is information about the APN Decision Support Synthesis, new NP led clinics in Ontario, new publications, new programs and more! 

Designing Innovative Cancer Services and Advanced Practice Nursing Roles: Toolkit

This toolkit was developed and evaluated within a collaborative research study involving Cancer Care Ontario, McMaster University, Laurentian University and regional cancer centres in Sudbury and Hamilton.

The toolkit uses the PEPPA Framework, a participatory, evidence-informed patient-focused process for promoting the effective introduction and evaluation of advanced practice nursing (APN) roles.

You can find the toolkit at:

http://www.cancercare.on.ca/cms/one.aspx?pageId=9387#  

If you have had the opportunity to use the PEPPA framework, please let us know how it worked for you. Your feedback is appreciated.

6th International Nurse Practitioner/Advanced Practice Nursing Network (INP/APNN) Conference September 8-11, Brisbane, Australia

The APN Chair Program was well represented at the 6th International Council of Nursing INP/APNN Conference: “Advanced Nursing Practice responding to changing environments; Creating opportunities, enhancing services and maximizing outcomes” in Brisbane Australia. Several Chair affiliates presented both poster and oral presentations and Alba DiCenso provided the Key Note address on Friday, September 10th. 

Click here for a list of APN Chair related presentations.

If you had the opportunity to attend this amazing event, please share your experience with us.

The Canadian Journal of Nursing Research-Special APN issue

Alba DiCenso, Chair of the APN Chair Program and Denise Bryant-Lukosius, Senior Research Scientist were guest co-editors of the June edition of the Canadian Journal of Nursing Research (CJNR). This special issue features four APN related research studies, as well as commentaries and book reviews. There is also an additional paper called "Happenings: Resources to Facilitate Research in Advanced Practice Nursing" written by yours truly and my ever so competent colleagues, James McKinlay and Julie Vohra, that gives a really good description of research related resources available through the APN Chair program.  

Get your copy today!

It is here!

Clinical Nurse Specialists and Nurse Practitioners in Canada: A Decision Support Synthesis

The Decision Support Synthesis was commissioned by Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (CHSRF) and Office of Nursing Policy, Health Canada to develop a better understanding of the roles of advanced practice nurses, how they are currently being used, and the health system factors that influence their full integration in the Canadian healthcare system. Three types of advanced practice nurses were the focus of this report: clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), primary healthcare nurse practitioners (PHCNPs), and acute care nurse practitioners (ACNPs).

Clinical Nurse Specialists and Nurse Practitioners in Canada: A Decision Support Synthesis is now available on the CHSRF website. Click Here

We welcome your comments.

NB Liberals promise to double number of NPs

According to the Canadian Healthcare Network ( http://www.canadianhealthcarenetwork.ca) an election is fast-approaching in New Brunswick and Premier Shawn Graham promised to increase the number of nurse practitioners and doctors if re-elected to help cope with the province’s growing population.
Graham promised to double the number of nurse practitioners from 55 to 110. He also vowed to create 55 more physician positions over the next two years, at least 30 of which would be new family doctors. Furthermore, he promised to double the number of primary care clinics in the province to 30.
The election is set for Sept. 27.

Welcome to the APN Chair Blog!

Welcome to the new APN Chair Blog. We hope to share with you new and relevant APN related research, links to interesting and informative websites and timely and relevant APN news.