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This paper gives a brief description of a research project carried out to test the assumption that there is a relationship between a student nurse's description, on paper, of how she would care for a patient, and the actual observed behaviour. No relationship was found in more than two-thirds of subjects in 19 hospitals. The paper goes on to look at the possible reasons for this phenomenon and suggests alterations in the training programmes for nurses in England and Wales which could create a greater correlation between the theory and practice of nursing. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of any organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper gives a brief description of a research project carried out to test the assumption that there is a relationship between a student nurse's description, on paper, of how she would care for a patient, and the actual observed behaviour. No relationship was found in more than two-thirds of subjects in 19 hospitals. The paper goes on to look at the possible reasons for this phenomenon and suggests alterations in the training programmes for nurses in England and Wales which could crate a greater correlation between the theory and practice of nursing. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of any organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent emphasis on community care for those with mental illness has changed working patterns and modified inter-professional role boundaries within multi-disciplinary teams. Clients with serious mental illness are usually prescribed medications, which have a wide range of side effects. However, it is uncertain who is responsible for monitoring clients for the side effects of their medications, ensuring clients' and carers' understandings of their prescribed medications and optimizing compliance with medication. This paper discusses the findings of the first phase of an ongoing study designed to assess the role of community mental health nurses (CMHNs) in managing clients' medication and the provision of appropriate continuing professional education. Our respondents were 14 CMHNs, seven of whom were preparing to undertake a pharmacology module as part of a higher education diploma, and seven who were to act as comparators. Data from questionnaires, interviews and clinical observations were triangulated. All respondents felt that issues surrounding clients' medication were not accorded a sufficiently high profile and that it was, in part, their responsibility to expand their roles to meet these unmet needs of clients. Administering and managing clients' medications were considered to be the main area of 'occupational territory' which distinguished CMHNs from social workers. However, the nurses felt that their practice was limited by lack of appropriate educational preparation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past 15 years, the 'theory-practice gap' has been a recurrent theme in the nurse education literature. Numerous explanations are put forward for its existence, along with many suggestions as to how the apparent divide can be bridged. A key component of nursing practice is problem-solving but not all nurses are competent at finding suitable solutions to the problems they face in practice settings. Therefore ways of developing learner proficiency in problem solving is crucial and should occupy a substantial part of teacher activity. One recent educational method for promoting problem-solving skills is problem-based learning [PBL] using the hypothetico-deductive technique. This approach encourages students to work through problem situations, generating hypotheses and testing these against the relevant literature and personal experience. The process itself is seen as the essential element in developing problem-solving skills, so that when the students are qualified they can apply the same methods to patient care. This paper explores the use of the PBL approach with a group of 11 fourth-year undergraduate students. The method employed was a case study design using observation as the main data collection technique. Subsequent analysis focused on: (a) practice; (b) teaching method; (c) knowledge attainment; and (d) the role of the teacher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]