Antoinette Cotton

Ensnaring webs and nets: ethical issues in Internet-based research.

The Internet is a relatively new medium for research that few nurse researchers have embraced. While it offers countless opportunities for nursing research, it also is prey to many perils. In the crucible of cyberspace, the very nature of not only the research process, but also that of the participant–researcher relationship is transmuted. This paper critically examines the major and often unique ethical issues of online research, and argues these must be adequately addressed if online nursing research is to effectively protect participants and researchers from harm, and optimally meet the profession–s and society’s best interests.

Using patterns of knowing in nursing as a possible framework for nursing care of homeless families with children.

Abstract In developed countries such as Australia, the UK and the USA, homeless families are amongst the fastest growing subpopulations of the homeless. This paper seeks to explore the major issues involved in the health and nursing care of such families, and proposes that the patterns of knowing in nursing offer a pertinent, guiding framework for nurses to understand the phenomenon and to optimize holistic nursing care for homeless families with children.

Barriers to breast and cervical cancer screening for women with physical disability: A review

ABSTRACT This review critically examined the barriers to breast and cervical cancer screening services for women with physical disability and discussed ways forward to change practice. When compared to the rest of the community, women with disability were less likely to use preventive health screening services for multiple reasons. Moreover, women with disability live longer than in previous years, and as age is linked to an increased risk of developing cancer, it is imperative that the barriers to screening for these women become a focus of discussion. We designed an integrative literature review to investigate this. Multiple databases were systematically searched for literature published between 2001 and 2013. Search terms used were a combination (AND/OR) of key terms. After excluding duplicates and articles not meeting the eligibility criteria, twenty-five articles were systematically and critically reviewed. Sociodemographic factors were associated with less access to preventive health screening for women with disability. The literature reviewed indicated that this was complicated further by three prominent barriers: health insurance, health care workers, and physical barriers. Sociodemographic, health insurance, health workers, and physical barriers impair access for disabled women to breast and cervical cancer screening, which are vital measures in the timely detection of breast and cervical cancers and preventable morbidity and mortality. Measures are needed to address these limiting factors for women with disability so that they can be active participants in health care, rather than being marginalized because of their disability.

Clinical supervision UK style: good for nurses and nursing?

Abstract British nursing has presented a particular view of clinical supervision and has made its availability an essential requirement for all nurses in the United Kingdom (UK). Through a plethora of literature, this view of clinical supervision has become widespread, as has the notion that it is good for nurses and nursing. In this paper, utilising a Foucauldian approach to discourse, power-knowledge and clinical gaze, I radically interrogate this seemingly unproblematic conceptualisation of clinical supervision and its rising popularity and influence.

Older persons’ experiences of their own decision making about their care: a systematic review of qualitative evidence protocol

REVIEW QUESTION/OBJECTIVE: The overall objective of this systematic review is to identify and synthesize the best available qualitative evidence of how older persons go about making decisions regarding their own health care. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Types of participants: This review will consider studies that include people 65 years or over who are living in the community. Studies that include participants under 65 years of age will be excluded. Studies focusing on decision making with participants with dementia, who are cognitively impaired; who are undergoing palliative care or who are terminally ill will be excluded. Phenomena of interest: This review will consider studies where the phenomena of interest are the experiences of older people in regards to decision making about their health care. Context: The review will consider studies that investigate the experiences of older persons’ living in community based settings. These settings may include: the older persons’ home, a community living environment and a retirement village setting, but exclude residential aged care facilities.