Community nursing research webinar held to launch a new community of practice

The webinar brought community nurses from novice to expert to share experiences and expertise in research to drive high-quality care and harness the power of a collective voice to build research capacity.

Over 100 attendees joined the event from across nursing disciplines in community and primary care, including midwives, health visitors, community nurses, district nurses, mental health nurses, practice nurses and care home nurses.

The event was co-chaired by nursing clinical academics in community palliative care: Dr Ben Bowers, University of Cambridge and professor Catherine Evans, Cicely Saunders Institute, King’s College London, ARC South London's palliative and end of life care theme. Presentations focused on diverse journeys integrating research and clinical care.

• Louise Wolstenholme, health visitor, Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust presented her journey of ‘Unlocking our research potential in community nursing services (a 0-19 Services perspective)’ as a process of gaining research knowledge, delivering on studies, facilitating communities of research practice and working collectively. 
• Dr Caroline Dickson, district nurse, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh discussed her ‘Experiences of developing as a researcher in Scotland’ showcasing studies including testing the feasibility of using person-centred key performance indicators in community nursing.
• Lee Tomlinson, registered nurse and head of research, Kent Community NHS Foundation Trust focused on ‘Aligning nurse-led research with public need’ and raising the profile of community nursing research through James Lind Alliance Partnership to identify the Top 10 research priorities for community nursing in England. Presentations available here