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Background: There is a direct link between job satisfaction, nurses' job performance and improved patient outcomes. Understanding what job characteristics influence job satisfaction is vital if health organizations are to optimize individual employee satisfaction and performance. This is particularly necessary in the Nurse Consultant role, which is a multifaceted role that has evolved to meet the dynamic and changing needs of health services. This study aims to examine how job characteristics influence Nurse Consultant job satisfaction and identify differences across metropolitan and rural contexts. Methods: This paper presents quantitative findings that are part of a larger prospective cross sectional mixed method study. An online survey consisting of a variety of job characteristic factors was administered to all NCs working in a large Local Health District in New South Wales, Australia over an 8-week period in 2010. Descriptive analysis identified NC's perceptions of job satisfaction and job characteristics in their current role and factor and regression analysis identified relationships between these factors. Results: Job satisfaction was identified as high (mean 4.3) and is strongly correlated with job autonomy, role clarity, role conflict and job support. A high level of role clarity has a moderating effect on the relationship between job autonomy and job satisfaction. Conclusions: Study findings inform how we prepare nurses for the NC role and how managers engage with and support NCs in their role taking into account context. Understanding the factors that influence job satisfaction and role effectiveness gives managers valuable information to assist in positioning and supporting these roles to maximize effectiveness across integrated and contemporary models of health care delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Improving health, patient and system outcomes through a practice-based research agenda requires infrastructural supports, leadership and capacity building approaches, at both the individual and organisational levels. Embedding research as normal nursing and midwifery practice requires a flexible approach that is responsive to the diverse clinical contexts within which care is delivered and the variable research skills and interest of clinicians. This paper reports the study protocol for research being undertaken in a Local Health District (LHD) in New South Wales (NSW) Australia. The study aims to evaluate existing nursing and midwifery research activity, culture, capacity and capability across the LHD. This information, in addition to input from key stakeholders will be used to develop a responsive, productive and sustainable research capacity building framework aimed at enculturating practice-based research activities within and across diverse clinical settings of the LHD. Methods: A three-phased, sequential mixed-methods action research design underpinned by Normalization Process Theory (NPT). Participants will be nursing and midwifery clinicians and managers across rural and metropolitan services. A combination of survey, focus group, individual interviews and peer supported action-learning groups will be used to gather data. Quantitative data will be analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation and regression, together with thematic analysis of qualitative data to produce an integrated report. Discussion: Understanding the current research activity and capacity of nurses and midwives, together with organisational supports and culture is essential to developing a productive and sustainable research environment. However, knowledge alone will not bring about change. This study will move beyond description of barriers to research participation for nurses and midwives and the promulgation of various capacity building frameworks to employ a theory driven action-oriented approach to normalisation of nursing and midwifery research practice. In doing so, our aim is to make possible the utilisation, generation and translation of practice based research that informs improved patient and service delivery outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]