1. Academic Career Pathways
Christine Norton PhD MA RN
Nurse Consultant (Bowel Control) St Mark’s Hospital, Harrow
Professor of Clinical Nursing Innovation & Associate Director of Nursing
Bucks New University
& Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

2. The only certainty is change
Patients (demographics, expectations)
NHS (technology, community focus, organisation of care)
Nursing (all graduate, support workers, new roles
Research (focus, funding, governance)

3. What will your ideal job look like in:
1 year
5 years
10 years
20 years
Is it possible to plan for this?

4. The issues Much research has only a medical focus
Many important questions not answered by drugs
Many nurse academics are not clinical (focus on workforce)
Lack of career structure and progression for research nurses
Would career progress for research nurses attract and retain more + enable genuine multidisciplinary research?

7. Recommendations (Finch 2007)
Annually:
100 MRes places (35 funded 2009)
50 PhD Fellowships (5 N&M funded 2009)
20 postdoc places (6 N&M funded 2009)
10 Senior clinical academic fellowships (1st round 2010)
Lack of applicants + lack of high quality

8. Clinical Academic Careers
Aim to have clinically active nurses also having a research role
NIHR: huge new funding for research nurses
But not many have carved out own research programmes?

9. Why education? Safeguard patient Knowledge & competencies
Credibility of nurses
Equal member of multidisciplinary team
Professional and personal development
Role satisfaction
Promotion and pay??
Enabled to develop nursing service
Become a prescriber
Enabled to conduct nursing research

10. Not all Masters are the same
Accumulate credits from modules (180)
Some generic (advanced practice)
Some clinically focused (cancer nursing)
Some multidisciplinary
MSc vs. MRes
Thesis may not allow you to do original research
1 year full time: typically 2-3 years part time (£2k pa)
Choose carefully and ask lots of questions before you sign up

11. Clinical nurses doing research for MSc thesis - excited
Ward sister: RCT gum chewing after surgery
Nurse endoscopist: RCT Entonox for analgesia
Ward sister: marshmallows to firm ileostomy output
CNS: H Pylori gastric biopsies for IDA
CNS: introduce enhanced recovery
CNS: info giving improved bowel prep for colonoscopy
Need to be organised to achieve

12. Should PhD be the target?
3 years full time; 4-6 years part time
Original contribution to knowledge
1-2 supervisors, 1 project
Register with a University
Training
Thesis ,000 words + viva

13. Nursing Research – PhD Students
Maureen Coggrave – spinal bowel management
Sue Woodward – reflexology for constipation
Sarah Collings – experience of incontinence
Maggie Vance – nurse led screening for bowel Ca
Nikki Cotterill – questionnaire for incontinence
Denise Hibberts – needs of Muslim women with a stoma
Lesley Dibley – stigma in inflammatory bowel disease

14. Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust – Professor of Nursing 2010
Director of Nursing Janice Sigsworth: 1st job: work out strategy for CAC in AHSC
(+ for EBP)
Where to start?
25% nurses have BSc – target 50%
2.3% have MSc – target 10%
3 have PhD’s – target 0.5% (20+)

15. Our AHSC model: tripartite mission
Research
AHSC
Clinical
Service
Education 15

16. Career structure – nurses in an AHSC
BSc prepared students (+ MSc route)
with “research enhanced” preparation
opportunity for placement in CTU (10 units)
New staff orientation: compulsory (online) research awareness skills (+ AHPs)
PhD/Preceptorship programme
Research nurses: development programme

17. Research as a career option
3rd year student placements
Research nurse posts – often the opportunity is missed – use to develop skills and ambitions – career pathway
Build research into clinical job plans

18. Evidence-based practice (effectiveness)

19. Issues for Research Nurses
Employer: NHS or University?
Induction
Line manager and nursing reporting line?
Who is responsible for mandatory training & CPD (& pays)?
Career pathway? Short term contracts
Skills development, study leave
Isolation; possibilities for undue pressure
Not a “career”
RCN competencies a start

20. Develop research from clinical questions – grants
RfPB: £248k, radiation proctitis
Imperial Charity: £436k, improving patient experience
Crohn’s & Colitis UK: £109k: FI in IBD
Big Lottery: £481k: fatigue in IBD
Coloplast Ltd: £10k: pilot anal irrigation
NIHR: £99k, development of constipation algorithm

21. Conclusions Why try for academic progression?
Others will seldom take the initiative
It is hard work, but rewarding
Probably the only way we are going to develop genuine multidisciplinary research and enhance patient outcomes
Route to a self-confident research active profession