This chapter presents an overview of the state of the art ethnographies conducted by nurses and highlights a few works by the early generation. An extensive search of the literature was conducted to identify ethnographies completed by nurses. Nursing knowledge was a common thread throughout the literature reviewed. The literature review revealed the progress nursing is making in recognizing this gap and attempting to close it. Nursing knowledge is essential in patient care. Using the ethnographic method of inquiry, nurses have been able to identify areas of need both in knowledge and practice and make recommendations for enhanced practice. Caring and patient advocacy were other common themes in the literature. Caring is the essence of nursing and consequently should be incorporated in nursing research. The common purpose of the ethnographic studies reviewed was to explain or understand a phenomenon to increase nursing knowledge.

Research is a foundation of correctional nursing practice. Correctional nurses can apply general nursing research to the correctional patient population and environment to improve care outcomes. In addition, research specific to correctional nursing practice can provide a basis for nursing care delivery in the specialty setting. Evidence-based practice (EBP) expands upon research utilization to include clinical expertise and patient preference. EBP and best practice guidelines apply external sources of information to local clinical practice. By using research principles in practice, correctional nurses can have greater confidence when changing clinical practice to improve patient outcomes. Involvement in a clinical trial should be of benefit to the inmate and a possible treatment for a known condition. Common therapeutic clinical trial involvement includes treatments for cancer, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and Hepatitis C. Clinical issues specific to the specialty practice can be investigated to expand the knowledge base and improve patient outcomes.

There is abundant evidence of the importance of sleep and sleep disorders in nursing practice. This chapter provides a perspective on future directions in nursing research, practice, and education relative to sleep promotion and prevention and treatment of sleep disorders. It also provides an opportunity to examine some of the exciting possibilities and challenges for advancing sleep science and the implementation of this evidence in the discipline of nursing. While the contributions of nurses to sleep science are growing, the application of science to practice and pedagogy lags behind scientific progress. The chapter presents an overview of opportunities and possible directions for nursing scholarship related to sleep, and also presents an overview of current trends that intersect with the need for evidence-based practice in sleep promotion, and suggest implications for nursing curricula. The effort will require creativity, dedication, strategic planning and successful interdisciplinary collaboration, as well as collaborations within nursing.

Faith community nurses (FCN) take on a variety of roles in their practice. Recent nursing research identifies different FCN roles, all of which are related to spiritual care. In 1986, the International Parish Nurse Resource Center (IPNRC) was founded to guide the parish nurse movement and to standardize the practice of parish nursing. In 1987, the IPNRC offered its first parish nursing education courses. The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) recently announced some new expectations for the certification/recognition of any nursing specialty. These expectations involve a minimum association size and the financial resources necessary for ongoing involvement with the ANCC. Both the Health Ministries Association (HMA) and IPNRC are committed to working jointly to meet ANCC expectations. Health education is an appropriate activity for the faith community as people view their health through the lens of their faith tradition.

This chapter discusses the characteristics of sleep, factors associated with sleep, and evidence-based strategies to promote sleep in acute and critical care settings. It discusses implications for nursing practice and research. Disordered sleep is common in patients hospitalized in demographical and clinically diverse acute and critical care settings. Careful assessment for factors that increase the risk for sleep disturbance and its consequences during hospitalization is needed. Although randomized clinical trials are sparse, the available evidence suggests the promise of multimodal interventions that reduce environmental stimuli or their impact. Given the high prevalence of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in the general population and its underdiagnosis, there is a compelling need for assessment and preventative interventions for this condition. Research is needed on the short- and longer-term outcomes of sleep-promoting interventions on patients’ function, quality of life, and morbidity.

Using findings from qualitative studies that a researcher has previously conducted can be a fruitful and valuable path one can choose to further a program of research. Results from qualitative studies can provide a rich and fruitful source of items for an instrument developer. Secondary analysis of quantitative data is a common, accepted approach for maximizing the use of large national data sets. Qualitative research can represent a rich vein of valuable data for the development of middle range theories. When conducting intervention studies, the interplay with qualitative data can provide ideas for studies in a program of research. This chapter shows some of the advantages and disadvantages of the use of the Internet in qualitative research. In all the author’s qualitative studies on traumatic childbirth, she has used the Internet to collect mothers’ stories. In the past 10 years, interest in mixed methods has increased tremendously.

This chapter illustrates the different paths of the author’s research program took as it turned from a quantitative to a qualitative study and back again. In the author’s first study, she quantitatively investigated the relationship between maternity blues and postpartum depression. The meta-analysis revealed a large adverse effect size of postpartum depression on maternal-infant interaction during the first year of life. The research question centered on exploring the caring experiences of postpartum depressed women with nurses. The author conducted six qualitative studies on birth trauma. The author conducted a phenomenological study on the resulting posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to childbirth. The author focuses on the mothers’ experiences of eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR) treatment for their elevated posttraumatic stress symptoms. Research is confirming that survivors of traumatic events, such as cancer, experience posttraumatic growth. Metasynthesis can help qualitative research to take its rightful place in the hierarchy of evidence.

This chapter reviews frameworks for interdisciplinary research, follow them with specific case studies outlining some of the challenges and opportunities of such work, and close with principles of interprofessional research in the global context, with lessons for nursing in particular. It concentrates on interprofessional research capacity-building issues and examples, rather than interprofessional education or clinical practice. Although those are related and integral elements are needed to achieve optimal health for individuals, communities, and populations, the chapter emphasizes research because of its role in creating the evidence that helps improve health. Interprofessional research frameworks have received less emphasis than interprofessional education frameworks that have been developed by different groups, including the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO has outlined principles to consider when conducting global health research. The chapter demonstrates communication is a fundamental part of the entire research process, especially in the context of multidisciplinary work.