Research is an orderly, coherent search for knowledge, analytical reflection and continuous confrontation of empirical data and abstract thinking, in order to explain natural phenomena.
If we apply this definition to our profession, the result is the following: Nursing research focuses primarily on the development of knowledge about Nursing and its practice, including care for healthy and sick people. It is aimed at understanding the fundamental mechanisms that affect the ability of individuals and families to maintain or increase optimal activity and minimize the negative effects of the disease.
Research in Nursing provides us with foundations, it is a guide for the practice of the profession, it updates knowledge and seeks the best answers. Research in Nursing is essential because it ensures quality cures. It also gives us greater credibility and professional recognition.
In 1988, the World Health Organization was already talking about the importance of nursing research to improve patient care. In health, research is the improvement of patients and a key element to evaluate results. If Nursing does not publish, it does not exist. Therefore, research is a necessary element that must be made available to the entire nursing community.
Good nursing research must answer the questions that arise in daily practice to help improve them. Two key elements for good research are responsibility and innovation.
The Research Project (PI) is a written document that explains with rigor and detail the planning and organization of the research and includes its stages and chronology; It is like a “navigation chart” for the entire research team. The methodological plan includes the summary, a glossary (optional), the introduction (justification, background, current state of the topic, etc.), bibliography (sometimes presented at the end of the PI), the objectives, hypotheses, methodology (scope of the study, design, participants, variables, etc.) and limitations (anticipated difficulties in carrying out the study).
It is important to specify which indicators (morbidity and mortality, quality of life, satisfaction, safety…) will be used to measure the benefit or gain of acquiring knowledge, the ultimate purpose of any research. It is an essential section to convince who should evaluate the PI in order to allocate resources or authorize its implementation.
The scientific journal of Nursing, Nure Research, contains research projects that have been presented in a training course (and therefore reviewed by experts), to a funding body, or that are being carried out. An interesting section is the one where authors of research projects are invited to submit them for consideration by the journal for possible publication.