Saint Luke's Hospital's nursing research program benefits from grant
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Aug. 26, 2010) — The nursing research program at Saint Luke's Hospital has been awarded a grant that will allow for expansion of the program and more opportunities for nurses to conduct research. The Victor E. Speas Foundation, Bank of America, trustee, has awarded $75,000 to benefit the clinical nursing research and summer internship programs at Saint Luke's Hospital.
Clinical nursing research supports and sustains the highest standards of patient care.
The active research program at Saint Luke's Hospital is one of a select few where bedside nurses actually perform research, allowing them to make practice changes to enhance patient outcomes and improve quality of care.
In addition to enhancing patient care, nursing research is important in providing highly sought after, professional growth opportunities for nurses. Saint Luke's nursing research program represents a differentiator that attracts highly talented nurses.
As a Magnet hospital, Saint Luke's places a strong emphasis on nursing research and evidence-based practice. The Magnet Recognition Program was developed by the American Nurses Credentialing Center to recognize health care organizations that provide nursing excellence and has been awarded to less than 10 percent of all U.S. hospitals. Saint Luke's Hospital, which achieved Magnet designation for a second time in 2009, is committed to enhancing nursing practice and improving patient care.
The program expansion will allow for a modest amount of paid “release time” for a select number of nurses to engage in scholarly research. Currently, nurse investigators do not have dedicated time to focus exclusively on their projects. The goal is for nurses to have designated time to perform research in their areas of clinical expertise.
In addition to providing release time, the grant will support select advanced practice nurses at Saint Luke's Hospital and faculty members from Saint Luke's College to individually mentor nurses in research design, execution, statistical analysis and presentation of findings.
More than 50 nurses participate in some aspect of clinical research at Saint Luke's. Many are members of the hospital's Nursing Research Council, which oversees and facilitates nursing research projects. The council works closely with Jacque Carpenter, R.N., M.S., Ph.D., director of nursing research, to provide a comprehensive program that impacts clinical, educational and administrative nursing practice at Saint Luke's Hospital.
“We are grateful to the Victor E. Speas Foundation for its support and excited about this wonderful opportunity to expand nursing research at Saint Luke's Hospital,” said Jacque Carpenter, R.N., M.S., Ph.D., director of nursing research.
A portion of the grant will also fund a summer internship program at Saint Luke's, which will provide an opportunity for undergraduate students with an interest in health care to spend six weeks in a clinical or research area of interest. Students who select research will be exposed to both medical and nursing research.
About The Victor E. Speas Foundation
The Victor E. Speas Foundation was established in 1947 to provide medical care for the needy, to further medical research and to support and promote quality educational, cultural, human services and health care programming. The Speas Foundation supports organizations that serve the residents of Kansas City, Missouri.