Aim
This IFNA blog describes the importance of recognising how policy informs the justification for a family nursing research project and provides direction for the research process so that research outcomes can better inform policy development.
Introduction
This blog post is part of the series coordinated by Dr. Suzanne Feetham. The first blog post in the series reported the importance of the context of policy for research, practice and education concluding family nursing research can “inform policy change and advance policies that benefit families”. This blog will now explore the relationship of policy (at any level) on four stages of research. To help achieve translation of research evidence to policy, researchers need to understand how policy informs each stage of the research process.
One purpose for family nursing research is to improve the lives of families & their member’s through enhancing family health and wellbeing outcomes. Strengthening family outcomes is not achieved simply by the magnitude of the research discovery but by “translating” new knowledge into family outcomes. Enhancing translation involves understanding the implications of policy to each stage of the research process to assure relevance of the research to policy development. For example, Grech (2018) stated “(research) methodology must combine scientific robustness with policy constraints to take into account the political exigencies”. Four stages of family nursing research considered in this blog are:
- Research justification
- Research question and design
- Research implications
- Translation of the research findings (see the figure below)
Family nursing research — policy relationship cycle. Note: In the diagram, +ve indicates positive outcomes and -ve indicates negative outcomes. Created by Lindsay Smith, 2019.
Policy outcomes (positive and negative) supports family nursing research justification
In family nursing research, initial considerations include an examination of the issues influencing family health and outcomes. Suzanne’s first blog demonstrated clearly how past and current policy “drive social determinants of health and can affect the health and wellbeing of children and families”. As past and current policy positively or negatively influence determinants of health and health outcomes for families, policy outcomes should be recognised in the background and justifications for family nursing research. Policy also generates intended and the unintended impact on target and non-target population groups, including families. Understanding policy outcomes provides justification for family nursing research.
Policy intent informs family nursing research question and design
Although a research question arises purely from the identified research gap, a research gap is often an outcome of policy influences on the population or cohort of interest. Considering the relationship between policy and the research gap may enhance the salience of the research question to policy makers and enhance the transferability of the research findings. Policy has the intent to effect change in specific areas, such as health outcomes or health behaviours. Identifying research questions targeted to address issues within policy areas can help provide guidance on how to achieve change in the area of interest to policy makers. Matching research design with policy intent helps to provide efficient communication between policy makers and family nursing research, as policy makers can better understand the connection between their area of intent and family nursing research.
Policy context provides scope for family nursing research and implications
Policy context is made up of the socio-political-economic drivers governing policy and policy makers and family nursing research is conducted within the same context as policy of the day. Recognising policy context enhances the broader contextualisation of the research project to the drivers of policy. Policy context influences family nursing research in areas such as: funding priorities influencing scope of research topics supported; a willingness of key people to collaborate in family nursing research; community and media engagement with family nursing research and researchers. Alignment between policy context and scope of research implication allows policy makers to recognise the value and relevance of family nursing research to their policy interests.
Policy development influences translation of family nursing research findings to family nursing practice
The prospect of family nursing research outcomes being translated to policy increases when policy makers recognise the advantages of incorporating the evidence based and best practice recommendations of family nursing research to policy. Through family nurse researchers expressing the relationship to policy outcomes, policy intent and policy context, the outcomes of family nursing research increases its salience to policy makers for informing future policy development. Williamson et al. (2012) state “(research) outcomes need to be relevant to patients, clinicians, purchasers and policy-makers if the findings of research are to influence practice and future research” (pg 1).
Conclusion
Recognising the impact of current policy on health outcomes can be important to situate family nursing research in the current context and to place the research in the context of potential future policy development. Policy makers recognise the impacts of their past policies and are committed to developing future policy that has a positive outcome for the people the policy is designed to serve. Family nursing research designed to inform policy can increase its usability and be fit for purpose to policy makers.
For an illustration of the family nursing research—policy relationship cycleand Dr Lindsay Smith’s work with The Australian Research Alliance for Children & Youth (ARACY) please see this IFNA News item. Dr Smith’s research informing policy is one example to be presented at the IFNC14pre-conference workshopFamily Research and Advocacy to Inform Policy to Address the Determinants of Health and Advance Family Nursing Capacity around the World with presentations from Australia, Japan, Portugal, the United States and Liberia.
Lindsay Smith, PhD, BHlthSc, MNS, RN, is a Lecturer in the School of Nursing, University of Tasmania, Australia. Lindsay’s passion is to understand how family strengths can be applied in nursing care of children, young people, and families in the Australian context. He teaches child, family, and strengths-based nursing the Bachelor of Nursing program through translating Australian research findings into clinical guides and teaching strategies.
References
ARACY Report Card 2009 – The wellbeing of young Australians https://www.aracy.org.au/publications-resources/area?command=record&id=90&cid=21
ARACY (2014). The Nest action agenda: Improving the wellbeing of Australia’s children and youth while growing our GDP by over 7%. Canberra: ARACY. https://www.aracy.org.au/publications-resources/command/download_file/id/329/filename/Second_edition_The_Nest_action_agenda.pdf
Solis, K (ARACY) 2019, To have and to have not: Measuring child deprivation and opportunity in Australia https://www.aracy.org.au/publications-resources/area?command=record&id=282
Grech (2018) The development of health system performance assessment frameworks in Malta and beyond and their impact upon policy making. PhD Dissertation University of Warwick. https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.773917
Williamson, P., Altman, D., Blazeby, J., Clarke, M., & Gargon, E. (2012). Driving up the Quality and Relevance of Research Through the Use of Agreed Core Outcomes. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, 17(1), 1–2. https://doi.org/10.1258/jhsrp.2011.011131
