Involvement of Nurses in Research
in Malawi
Alfred Maluwa, PhD
Research Director
University of Malawi
Kamuzu College of Nursing
Global Health Research Launch Meeting
Kamuzu College of Nursing
4th October, 2012.
Introduction
In the University of Malawi, promotion of
faculty is based on publication in peer
reviewed journals
Faculty at KCN have to teach students;
supervise them during clinical and
community placements; set, administer and
mark examinations
Introduction
Faculty of KCN have to meet the four
essential elements of university education:
a)
enabling students to acquire skills and
knowledge in preparation for practice
after they graduate
a)
equipping students with problem-solving
skills
Introduction
c.
generation of new knowledge for the benefit
of the nursing / midwifery profession and the
wider community,
d.
transmission and preservation of society’s
values.
The challenge is on how to balance the
importance of teaching, nursing practice, and
research /publications
Importance of Research in Nursing
Enables recognition of the past through the
researchers’ acknowledgment of the present
/ existing knowledge.
Leads
to
reflection,
synthesis,
and
identification of gaps in knowledge through
critical appraisal of the literature.
Importance of Research in Nursing
The research process itself allows for
opportunity to think logically, communicate
effectively with editors, reviewers, and readers,
and therefore sharpens argumentation.
Researchers develop attributes in working
systematically, dealing with conflict, truthfulness,
and transparency in origins of ideas or
concepts.
Research experience provides evidence that
improves nursing practice
Importance of Research in Nursing
Importance of Research in Nursing
Best practices in nursing are developed through
rigorous research conducted by nurse scientists
The faculty members who publish benefit from
the peer-review process
Their research findings and ideas are presented
to the clinical services and academic world
Importance of Research in Nursing
Status of Global Research in
Nursing
Nurse scholarly productivity is not uniformly
distributed across the world.
Out of 1286 articles on nursing education research in
“major journals” published between 1991 and 2000,
90% of the articles were from North America and
Europe.
Nursing research and publications were poorly
developed in the UK and lagged behind other
university disciplines.
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
Kamuzu College of Nursing was opened in 1979
The aim is to prepare most highly qualified
nursing and midwifery personnel for the
Malawian nation
The college focuses on total student and staff
development geared towards addressing both
the current and emerging health issues
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college encourages faculty to integrate the
findings of vibrant research and outreach
programs to inform practice
Faculty should pursue excellence in practice
through own professional and personal
development
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
After 27 years of its existence, (1979 to 2005)
the research outputs at the college were
very low;
There were 57 faculty; 6 PhD holders, 32 with
Masters Degree, and 19 with B.Sc.
There were 42 publications translating to 1.4
faculty members per publication
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
A total of 16 published articles were associated
with only 2 faculty members
Some of the articles were published as early as
1988 showing that research output per year
was very low
Some of the publications were from faculty in
the basic department
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
Most of the publications came from research
projects
Most faculty did not have research projects
The situation has improved with the
introduction of postgraduate programs
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college has 5 Masters programs in clinical
specializations;
M.Sc. (Midwifery); M.Sc. (Reproductive Health);
M.Sc. (Child Health Nursing); M.Sc.
(Community and Mental Health Nursing);
M.Sc. (Nursing and Midwifery Education).
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
Students are undertaking research on different
topics within each masters program
Students are encouraged to publish their
research results
Hence the number of publications (research
output) has increased to 23 in the current
year.
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college has 66 faculty in 4 departments;
Basic studies, Maternal and Child Health, Medical –
Surgical Nursing and Community.
There is 1 full professor
3 Associate professors
13 Senior Lectures
34 Lecturers
7 Assistant Lectures
8 Clinical instructors
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college continues to collaborate with the
postgraduates students after they have
graduated to jointly implement research
programs
The college has as of August, 2012 been
designated a World Health Organization
Collaborating Centre (WHO CC) for
Excellence in Inter Professional Education
and Practice
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college is developing a PhD program in inter
professional Health Sciences
The program will further strengthen research at
Kamuzu College of Nursing
Kamuzu College of Nursing is collaborating with
other Universities abroad, Norway, USA, UK,
Ireland, Australia
Status of Research at Kamuzu
College of Nursing
The college is also engaged in regional
collaboration (Botswana, Uganda, Zimbabwe,
Zambia)
The college is also collaborating with institutions
in the country
(College of Medicine, Luanar, FHI, NAC, Ministry
of Health, CHAM Nursing Institutions, Malawi
College of Health Sciences, NGOs)
Concluding remarks
Research is very important for evidence based
nursing practice
Kamuzu College of Nursing has strategically
placed herself to implement more research
programs and increase research outputs
(Publications, inventions, patents)
Thank you for your attention