Research & Development Co-ordinating Centre Weekly EBulletin
30 June 2008
RCN Research and Development Co-ordinating Centre
1. RCN 2009 annual international nursing research conference
24 - 27 March 2009, Cardiff, Wales
As part of the 50 year celebrations of the RCN Research Society, the Steering
Committee have expressed a desire to do a 50 mile charity cycle immediately
prior to the conference, and are asking for volunteers to join in the fun! More
details will follow, but if anyone would like to be involved, please let us know.
Contact: Dave O'Carroll
Email: david.ocarroll@rcn.org.uk
Website: http://www.rcn.org.uk/research2009
2. Special updates of weekly electronic bulletin - diary dates/call for
papers
The bulletin of W/C 14 July 2008 will be a special bulletin focusing on diary dates
and call for papers. All those that are currently listed on the diary dates and call
for papers page will be listed, but please send me any other dates that you would
like including, especially from the Celtic countries, where we have relatively few
events taking place. Please send listings by Wed 9 July 2008.
Contact: Dave O'Carroll
Email: david.ocarroll@rcn.org.uk
Website:
http://www.rcn.org.uk/development/researchanddevelopment/newsevents/diary
Career Development Opportunities
3. Project Officer - Supporting practice through education resource
development, University of Glamorgan
30,013 - 34,793GBP per annum. 1 year full-time
Telling Stories, Understanding Real Life Genetics
(www.geneticseducation.nhs.uk/tellingstories) is an innovative web-based
education resource in genetics for health professionals. Launched in June 2007, it
has already attracted considerable interest and there is substantial potential for
further development. In collaboration with the NHS National Genetics Education
and Development Centre and Cardiff University, we are looking for a motivated,
enthusiastic Project Officer who would welcome the opportunity to be part of the
team to extend and enhance this valuable resource. The successful individual will
be supporting and promoting practice development of staff through the creation
of educational tools. They will also be involved in research and evaluation studies
investigating the application of stories and the use of this website within health
professional education. For informal discussion contact Dr Emma Tonkin, Telling
Stories Project Manager, Tel: 01443 483156, email: etonkin@glam.ac.uk
Contact: HR department, University of Glamorgan
Email: jobs@glam.ac.uk reference: HSS430
Website: www.glam.ac.uk/hr
Closing date for applications: 7 July 2008
4. Research Co-ordinator (x2), Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust
Agenda for Change Band 7: 28,313 - 37,326GBP p.a. Hours: 37.5 per week
The STH Research Department offers challenging opportunities for staff to work in
a centre of excellence with researchers across Sheffield’s NHS acute adult
services and its highly research-active universities. This is an exciting time for
the Research Department as it develops its new Biomedical Research Units. For
an informal discussion, contact Dr Dipak Patel, Research Manager, on 0114 226
5941.
Contact: HR Department
Tel: +44 (0) 114 271 2396. Reference: 8799C
Website: http://www.sth.nhs.uk/
Closing date for applications: 11 July 2008
Research Funding
5. Wales Office of Research and Development for Health and Social
Care (WORD) Research Funding Scheme
WORD research funding scheme is intended to promote research and evaluation
activity in health and social care in Wales. The scheme is open to researchers
from a wide range of organisations from the voluntary, public and private sectors.
Lead applicants must be based within an institution in Wales.
i) Social Care Small Grant award. Deadline for applications is 8 August 2008
Contact: Andrew Privett
Email: andrew.privett@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Website: www.word.wales.gov.uk/content/research/index-e.htm
6. Medical Research Council (MRC) Developmental Pathway Funding
Scheme (DPFS)
The MRC DPFS is a new, rigorously-assessed, funding scheme set up to help
strengthen the translation of fundamental research towards patient benefit. It
does not fund discoveries of new causes or risk factors of disease, biomarkers,
drug targets, biomaterials or research tools, but takes these as starting points
and supports their application to improve healthcare and benefits for patients.
The DPFS forms a key part of the MRC's Translational Research Strategy.
Contact: Jonathan Pearce
Email: jonathan.pearce@headoffice.mrc.ac.uk
Website:
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/ApplyingforaGrant/AvailableGrants/DPFS/index.htm
Closing date for applications: 7 October 2008, 17 February 2009, 9 June 2009
Current Research Commissions
7. NHS National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health
Technology Assessment (HTA) programme
Call for proposals for Commissioned Research - research proposals are sought on
the following topics:
Primary Research (Outline proposals)
08/58 Increasing uptake of smoking cessation services
08/59 Interventions to prevent postpartum smoking relapse
08/61 Home safety programmes for people with visual impairment
08/64 Ultrasonography in the diagnosis of Giant-Cell Arteritis (GCA)
08/66 The diagnosis of UTI in children under two years of age in primary care
08/68 The prognostic value of interferon gamma and tuberculin skin tests for the
development of active tuberculosis in people with suspected latent TB
08/71 Drug therapy to help to pass urinary stones
08/74 Immunosuppressive therapy in children with acute myocarditis
Primary Research (Full proposals)
08/70 Intravenous Immunoglobulin for Sepsis
Evidence Synthesis (Full proposals)
08/57 Using adaptive e-learning to help individuals improve their dietary
behaviours
08/60 Computer and other electronic aids for smoking cessation
08/62 Stages of change for smoking cessation
08/65 The value of PET/CT in pre-operative staging of colorectal cancer
08/67 Monitoring microalbuminuria and eGFR in patients with diabetes
08/72 Exercise referral schemes
Contact: HTA commissioning team
Email: htacmsng@soton.ac.uk. Please quote reference SC07.
Website: http://www.hta.ac.uk/funding/standardcalls/
Deadline: 30 July 2008
8. NHS National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Service
Delivery and Organisation (SDO) Programme
The NIHR SDO Programme continues to commission research on service delivery
and organisation issues in national priority areas. One of these areas is research
related to diabetes services.
i) Ref. D245: A scoping exercise on the organisation and delivery of diabetes
services in the United Kingdom. One project of up to nine months' duration may
be funded to a maximum of 90K GBP. The project is expected to start no later
than November 2008. The application process will be one-stage, with full
proposal applications being invited.
The NIHR SDO Programme also wishes to commission innovative and evaluative
research that builds on and extends the evidence base relating to the application
of pay for performance systems in the NHS.
ii) Ref. PFP256: An evaluation of the Advancing Quality Pay for Pay for
Performance Programme in the NHS North West. One project of up to five years'
duration is envisaged with provisional funding to an upper limit of 750K GBP. The
project is expected to start no later than December 2008. The application
process will be one-stage, with full proposal applications being invited.
D245 deadline for applications: 7 August 2008.
PFP256 deadline for applications: 4 September 2008.
Fellowships/Studentships
9. University of Greenwich PhD Studentships in Health and Social
Care
Bursary of 14.5K GBP p.a. plus tuition fees.
Applications are invited for two three-year, fulltime postgraduate research
studentships in the School of Health and Social Care leading to a PhD. One of the
studentships will focus on aesthetic medicine, which encompasses treatment or
procedures that affect the external appearance of the patient. The emergence of
this new specialty is an opportunity to study how important issues of risk and
regulation are negotiated by interested parties in addition to the professions. The
topic of the second studentship is open. Applications are invited in any area of
health and social care, including health services research, public health, patients
and carers experiences, and human resource management in health and social
care. Joint supervision can be arranged with other Schools for students who seek
to work across disciplines. For further enquiries and early discussion of your
research proposal please contact the Director of Research, Professor Elizabeth
West, email: e.west@gre.ac.uk. For details of how to apply,
Contact: Pauline Rogers
Email: p.r.rogers@gre.ac.uk
Deadline for applications: 31 July 2008
Consultations Documents
10. World Health Organisation public consultation: Reporting of findings of
clinical trials
When researchers embark on a clinical trial, they make a commitment to conduct the
trial and to report the findings in accordance with basic ethical principles. This includes
preserving the accuracy of the results and making both positive and negative results
publicly available. However, a significant proportion of healthcare research remains
unpublished and, even when it is published, some researchers do not make all of their
results available. Selective reporting, regardless of the reason for it, leads to an
incomplete and potentially biased view of the trial and its results. The WHO Registry
Platform Working Group on the Reporting of Findings of Clinical Trials have proposed
that "the findings of all clinical trials must be made publicly available". Please complete
our online survey and give us feedback on this proposed position.
Website: http://www.who.int/ictrp/results/consultation/en/index.html
Deadline extended: Please note the survey will be open to responses until midnight
(Geneva time) on Friday 4 July 2008.
11.National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)
consultations
NICE expects to consult on the following documents:
Consultations:
i) Looked after children: consultation on the draft scope (25 June - 23 July 2008)
ii) Hepatitis B - entecavir: final appraisal determination (24 June - 8 July 2008)
iii) Hepatitis B - telbivudine: final appraisal determination (24 June - 8 July 2008)
iv) Needle and syringe programmes: consultation on the evidence (20 June - 18 July
2008)
v) Interventional Procedures Programme Process Guide Consultation (18 June - 10
September 2008)
vi) Personality disorders - borderline: consultation on the draft guideline (9 June - 4
August 2008)
vii) Metastatic spinal cord compression: consultation (23 May - 18 July 2008)
viii) The guidelines manual: consultation on the 2008 update (1 April - 1 July 2008)
Website:
http://www.nice.org.uk/getinvolved/currentniceconsultations/current_nice_consultation
s.jsp
Research in Progress
12. LoTS-Care (Longer term stroke care system of care trial)
Adopted by the UK Stroke Research Network (UKSRN). We are looking for
community stroke care coordinators, stroke care specialists, community stroke
team leaders to take part in a national randomised trial to evaluate a toolkit for
the longer term management of stroke patients (and carers) in the community. Is
there anyone you know who might be interested in taking part?
Contact: Rachel Breen or Katie Shorter
Tel: 01274 383401/07
Email: r.breen@leeds.ac.uk or katie.shorter@bradfordhospitals.nhs.uk
Completed Research & Development - Open Access
13.Clinical Knowledge Summaries (CKS) Work programme PRODIGY
guidance latest changes to clinical topics
CKS provide a source of clinical knowledge for the NHS about the common
conditions managed in primary and first contact care. The knowledge is practical
and reliable and helps healthcare professionals confidently make evidence-based
decisions about the healthcare of their patients and provides the know-how to
safely put these decisions into action.
PRODIGY guidance on the following topics have been reviewed and converted into
the CKS Topic Review structure.
June 2008
- Dyspepsia - proven GORD
- Dyspepsia - proven peptic ulcer
- Dyspepsia - unidentified cause
- Febrile seizure
- NSAIDs - prescribing issues
Feedback on draft topics is a key part in the knowledge development process for
the Clinical Knowledge Summaries. In addition to feedback from experts,
professional organizations and patient groups, we are particularly interested to
receive feedback from healthcare professionals who use CKS. The below draft
topics are now available for feedback:
- Dermatitis - contact
- Low back pain and/or sciatica
Website: http://www.cks.library.nhs.uk/whats_new
14. The National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)
latest published guidance - June 2008
NICE is an independent organisation responsible for providing national guidance
on promoting good health and preventing and treating ill health. The guidance is
developed using the expertise of the NHS and the wider healthcare community
including NHS staff, healthcare professionals, patients and carers, industry and
the academic world. For more details on their guidance visit their website.
NICE has issued the following guidance to the NHS in England and Wales:
Clinical guidelines
i) None
Patient Safety Guidance
None
Technology appraisals
i) Head and neck cancer - cetuximab
ii) Psoriasis - adaliumamb
iii) Rimonabant for the treatment of overweight and obese patients
iv) Lung cancer (non-small cell) - erlotinib
Public health
None
Interventional procedures
i) Implantation of multifocal (non-accommodative) intraocular lenses during
cataract surgery
ii) Lumbar infusion test for the investigation of normal pressure hydrocephalus
iii) Stent insertion for bleeding oesophageal varices
iv) Surgical repair of vaginal wall prolapse using mesh
v) Transcatheter aortic valve implantation for aortic stenosis
Website: http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/index.jsp?action=byDate
Completed Research & Development - Subscription Based
15. RCN Publications
RCN members can download all electronic publications from the RCN free of
charge. RCN members and non-members can order a hard copy of a publication
but this will entail a small charge. Recent publications include:
i) The work-life experiences of black nurses in the UK (Publication code: 003 249,
Publication date: 30 May 2008)
ii) Defending Dignity - Challenges and opportunities for nursing (Publication code:
003257, Publication date: 25 June 2008)
iii) Make IT safe (Publication code: 003 253, Publication date: 2 May 2008)
iv) Preventing infection in post-anaesthesia care units. Guidance for health care
staff (Publication code: 003 224, Publication date: 24 April 2008)
Contact: RCN Direct
Tel: 08457-726100, option 1
Website: http://www.rcn.org.uk/development/publications
Disseminating Your Research - Call for papers
16.ICN 24th Quadrennial Congress
19 - 25 June 2009, Durban, South Africa
Contact: ICN
Email: icn2009@congrex.com
Website: http://www.icn.ch/congress2009/
Abstract deadline: 15 September 2008
17.RCN Joint Education Forums' 2nd International conference,
"Beyond the borders: innovations for international excellence in
nurse education"
11 - 13 June 2009, Glasgow, Scotland
Contact: RCN Events
Website: http://www.rcn.org.uk/newsevents/events
Abstract deadline: 29 September 2008
18. 4th International Conference on Community Health Nursing
Research (ICCHNR), "Health in transition: researching for the
future"
16 - 20 August 2009, Adelaide, South Australia.
In collaboration with The Royal District Nursing Service (RDNS) of South
Australia, this international nursing and community health care conference will
examine the contribution of research towards the understanding and impact of
transitions on the health care of individuals, their families and communities.
Contact: All Occasions Management
Tel: +61 8 8354 2285
Email: conference@aomevents.com
Website: http://www.healthintransition2009.org.au/
Abstract deadline: 30 September 2008
Events
19. University of Stirling Dementia Services Development Centre
conference, "Celebrating innovation & excellence: making change
happen"
1 - 3 September 2008, Stirling, Scotland
The conference is aimed at all those who support people with dementia, whether
their background is in medicine, social care, planning or service provision. The
content will be of interest to those from the public, private and voluntary sectors,
as well as community representatives such as faith leaders. People with dementia
and their carers are also welcomed.
Contact: Jemma Galbraith
Tel: 01786 467 740
Email: jemma.galbraith@stir.ac.uk
Website: www.dementia.stir.ac.uk
20. First international nurturing conference, "Womb to world - innate
behaviours"
11 October 2008, London, England
This event offers a unique opportunity to hear 4 international speakers discussing
physiology and instincts. The conference will appeal to anyone interested in the
nature of birth and breastfeeding.
Contact: Joelle Dufur
Email: joelledufur@yahoo.co.uk
Website: http://www.biologicalnurturing.com/