Barbara Woodring

Research priorities for the nursing of children and their families: A Delphi study

To most effectively address the issues influencing the health care of children while using limited resources, some priorities for research must be established. To date, there has not been a focused effort to systematically identify and describe critical areas of inquiry needed to provide quality pediatric care in the next decade. The purpose of this study was to systematically survey a cross-section of pediatric nurse experts in a variety of settings across the nation. A three-round Delphi technique was used. In the first round, participants responded to three open-ended questions asking them to identify (a) threats affecting childrens health, (b) major societal factors that would positively influence childrens health in the future, and (c) important research questions in the field. In rounds two and three, respondents rated the importance of those topics. Of two hundred fifty respondents, 75% or more reached consensus on the importance of 35 researchable topics across five categories of research in nursing of children and their families. The focus was on patient-centered research.

Who's Moving the Children? Pediatric Transport- Selection, Education, and Management

Moving patients through the maze of available services within the health care system is, at best, complex. When the patient is a child and that child is seriously ill, the situation progresses from complex to critical. The expeditious and safe transport of a seriously ill child is generally assigned to a specifically designated and trained group of health care professionals. Although such transport is essential, only a few sources could be found in the literature that described the role preparation, function, or management of a pediatric transport team. Therefore, this study was undertaken to collect information from institutions that provide transport services for neonatal and pediatric patients. The purpose was to identify national trends, describe the composition and functional aspects of the transport team, and identify criteria used for selection, orientation, and training of team members. Representatives of 56 geographical and administratively diverse institutions responded to a structured telephone interview. Findings revealed two functionally distinct types of transport teams: dedicated (N = 38) and unit based (N = 18). Included in the data obtained were types and numbers of patients transported, average response time and distance, personnel composition, and educational and experiential standards for staff and management.

Education for the nursing of children and their families: standards and guidelines for prelicensure and early professional education.

To strengthen the preparation of nurses for care of children and families, standards and guidelines for prelicensure and early professional education were developed by a working group with broad-based input. Assumptions, theory, practice, and research underlying the standards and guidelines concerned the nature of health care, knowledge, teaching, learning, and evaluation. The 11 standards are presented and guidelines are illustrated. How they are implemented will depend on local resources and philosophies. Continued dialogue among nurse educators is needed to refine and develop the standards and guidelines.