The Department of Health wishes to commission a strategic initiative of linked research projects to contribute to the evidence base for nursing quality. Over 300,000 nurses and midwives work in the NHS, increasingly in new roles and in nurse-led services. The DoH are seeking to commission research within four themes:

• Workforce deployment;
• Essentials of care;
• New technologies in practice;
• New roles in nursing and midwifery.

Funds in the region of £2m are available to support this initiative.

A joint fund of Trust and Charitable Foundation monies find annual research grants and fellowships to nurses, midwives and AHPs at Barts and The London NHS Trust.

Barts and the London NHS Trust Time-Out scheme

The Trust's R&D Department run a regular scheme called Time Out'. The aim of this scheme is to provide funding for nurses, midwives and AHPs to take time out' from their clinical area to work on a research or evidence-based practice project. Up to

£1000 is available to pay for replacement salary costs per applicant. Previously funded projects have included:

• Dietetic management of patients with diabetes treated with insulin analogues a review of the evidence and guidelines for best practice (Dietitian)
• A review of the evidence on 7-day working in therapy services (Occupational Therapist)
• Development of a research proposal investigating optimal feeding positions for premature infants (Speech and Language Therapist)
• Cannulation practices within haematology (Nurse)
• Best Practice Statement for Ankylosing Spondylitis (Physiotherapist)

The Research and Development Department at Barts and the London NHS Trust are developing an in-house training programme for Trust staff At the moment training is available in basic statistics and critical appraisal (3 day course), dissemination -writing for publication (1 day), and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training for staff working on clinical trials (1-day).

Future plans include developing training in critical appraisal skills, particularly training clinical staff to be trainers in critical appraisal skills, and training in statistical software packages such as SPSS.

A free study day on 12th September 2003 titled 'Getting clinical practice research happening: from rough ideas to successful outcomes' by Professor Philip Darbyshire, Chair of Nursing, Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia was held in the Great Hall, St Bartholomew's Hospital.

The research facilitator project was officially launched by Barts and the London NHS Trust and City University on October 7th 2003 in the Robin Brook Centre, St Bartholomew's Hospital. The event included a presentation on the research facilitator role with brief presentations from research active nurses, midwives and/or allied health professionals in the Trust. A poster exhibition followed, presenting research and evidence-based practice projects that had recently been conducted by nurses, midwives and AHPs working with Barts and the London NHS patients. There were prizes totalling £200 in 'Next 'vouchers for the best three posters. The launch provided an excellent opportunity for networking with researchers and practitioners, and finding out more about local research training opportunities.

R&D E-mail list for Nurses, Midwives and AHPs

Information on national and local R&D funding and training opportunities for nurses, midwives and AHPs is disseminated regularly via a Trust R&D e-mail list.

A new multi-professional, novice researcher network will be established at Barts and the London NIIS Trust to support new researchers. The first network meeting was held this summer  to identify the research needs of novice researchers. Following this meeting a programme will be devised in the autumn to support novice researchers who are just getting started in research.

Local News

A Barts and The London NHS Trust/Tower Hamlets Primary Care Trust Nursing, Midwifery and Therapy Research and Development Strategy is currently under development to complement existing R&D strategies. Considerable progress has been made in determining the R&D needs of therapists within this strategy, but further views from midwives and nurses about their R&D needs would be welcomed.