title: Research odyssey: the evolution of a research partnership between baccalaureate nursing students and practicing nurses.
abstract: This longitudinal descriptive study evaluates the implementation of an innovative teaching strategy: a research partnership between baccalaureate nursing students and nurses in two acute care hospitals. The impetus for this partnership was to introduce a concrete, clinical dimension to a junior level introductory nursing research course. Formative analysis was used to evaluate the success and weaknesses of this innovative strategy over 3 years. Following each year, an evaluation by students and nursing unit managers led to refinement of the partnership goals and logistics for the following year. The third year culminates in a comparison between student responses to the partnership in the small community hospital and those assigned to a larger magnet status hospital. Conclusions, based on content and descriptive analysis indicate the partnership's educational benefits for students and a few logistical concerns. Future directions for this educational strategy are presented.
authors.affiliation: East Stroudsburg University, 200 Prospect Street, East Stroudsburg, PA 18301, United States. mtgray@po-box.esu.edu
authors.forename: Mary Tod
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Gray
mesh_terms: D000068:Accreditation; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D015400:Clinical Nursing Research / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D055318:Evidence-Based Nursing / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration; D017144:Focus Groups; D006764:Hospitals, Community; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007857:Leadership; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D015402:Nursing Education Research; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000523:psychology*; D010414:Pennsylvania; D015397:Program Evaluation; D036301:Qualitative Research; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology*