Expanding perioperative nursing knowledge

AORN Journal,  March, 2006  by Nancy J. Girard

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AORN is preparing for Congress this month, and a major goal of Congress is to expand perioperative nursing knowledge. Congress presentations, poster sessions, and exhibits build on past knowledge and add new information as our profession moves forward. Building on the existing body of knowledge is essential if perioperative nursing is to remain a viable specialty.

PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE

Every profession functions using theories or concepts that pertain to its role and purpose in society. Consider the medical profession. New information about diagnostic, treatment, or biobehavioral developments appears in the news daily. Theories and hypotheses of care are expanded through research, case studies, and practice findings. New theories of disease and new surgical techniques all build on past experiences and findings. Thus, medical knowledge is continually expanding in breadth and depth. The profession of medicine is poised to take a giant leap forward with new technological and research advances. (1) Some of these are nanotechnology, personalized medicine (ie, determining which medication and dosage is best for an individual or a population), molecular targeting (ie, design of medications that specifically attack diseased or cancerous cells), and of course, new surgical interventions. Will perioperative nursing knowledge keep up with the knowledge explosion in medicine?

Most of the knowledge on which nurses based their practice in the past came from professions other than nursing. We used medical and biological concepts from medicine, psychosocial information from psychiatry and social science, and teaching and learning information from education. This history makes it more difficult to identify the uniqueness of nursing, let alone build on specific information from nursing practice.

Often, nurses expend considerable energy reinventing something that already exists. This happens for two reasons. First, nurses are hesitant to publicize what they do. They do not consider their innovative practices important enough to write about, so the information is not shared. Second, when nurses start a project, they often fail to consider what other nurses have already done. This is evident in literature reviews and references in the manuscripts the AORN Journal receives. Too often the citations are from only medical or hospital literature, with few or no nursing references used or nursing resources given. It is amazing how many manuscripts are submitted without a single substantial nursing reference. The combination of these two factors can lead to a stagnant profession, one that not only does not move forward but that also becomes suspect as a profession.

BUILDING ON NURSING KNOWLEDGE

More and more AORN members are conducting clinical projects that build on past information, or they are conducting empirical research using a theoretical or conceptual base. We can do better, though. As nurses, we can be braver about sharing information with each other, with other professions, and with the community. For any project, using research and findings from other sources is important. References from nursing literature should be included, if possible, when writing articles for journals, especially nursing journals. Nurses should not hesitate to write about a new nursing activity, a new surgical procedure for which nursing has adapted preparation or implementation, or even a revision of an old process. This issue of the Journal contains the first of a series of articles on writing to provide members with more support and guidance in sharing their information and knowledge.

MOVING FORWARD

For those of you who are fortunate enough to attend the AORN Congress, carefully examine the research posters and presentations. What past information was used? Does new information build on past knowledge? How could the knowledge presented be used to move perioperative nursing forward?

Information sharing will increase understanding of why we do what we do and is the foundation of evidenced-based practice to provide the highest quality and safest patient care. We need to move forward from where we are as nurses and continue to expand the unique knowledge base of nursing.

NANCY J. GIRARD

RN, PHD, FAAN

EDITOR

NOTES

(1.) "Future of innovation," Innovation.Drg, http://www.inno vation.org/index.cfm/FutureofInno vation (accessed 30 Jan 2006).

COPYRIGHT 2006 Association of Operating Room Nurses, Inc.
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