Barriers and Perceived Needs for Understanding and Using Research Among Emergency Nurses
In 2007, the Institute for Emergency Nursing Research (IENR) Committee was charged with surveying all ENA members to identify their research activities and needs regarding active research participation. The data obtained from this survey will serve to aid the growth and development of the IENR in order to meet the needs of ENA members. A summary article was published in the December 2008 issue of ENA Connection and a full article on the findings was published in the January 2011 issue of the Journal of Emergency Nursing.
Competencies for Clinical Nurse Specialists in Emergency Care
In 2008, the ENA Clinical Nurse Specialists in Emergency Care Work Team was convened to determine competencies for clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) practicing in emergency care. The work team conducted a literature review to explore issues affecting the validation of competencies for emergency CNSs and identified an initial list of competencies. The competencies were reviewed by a 31-member expert panel through two rounds of review. ENA hosted a stakeholder meeting in April 2010 to discuss and gain consensus on the competencies for CNSs in emergency care. Following the stakeholder meeting, the competencies for CNSs in emergency care were revised as appropriate, incorporating feedback from the stakeholders. The resulting competencies were then validated in a study with a national sample of CNSs practicing in emergency care. The final competency document is available at http://www.ena.org/IQSIP/NursingPractice/advanced/Pages/Default.aspx.
Competencies for Nurse Practitioners in Emergency Care – Delphi Study
A national Delphi study was conducted by the ENA Nurse Practitioner Validation Work Team to verify and gain consensus on competencies for nurse practitioners (NPs) in emergency care (September 2007 – May 2008). The final competency document is being disseminated through the ENA Web site and ENA publications.
Emergency Department Benchmark Study
The ENA 2005 National Emergency Department Benchmark Guide represents the sixth benchmark study and publication since 1995 for ENA. The Benchmark Guide offers managers, nurses, physicians, and hospital administrators responsible for the day-to-day operations and strategic and business planning for the nation’s emergency departments. Current, reliable, and relevant benchmark data can help emergency departments identify where they exceed performance goals, meet goals, or have opportunities for improvement. The ENA 2005 National Emergency Department Benchmark Guide is available for purchase through ENA. Additionally, the table of contents and front section as well as a sample table are available for preview.
LUNAR III: Emergency Nurses’ Understanding and Practice of Selected National Patient Safety Goals
LUNAR is the acronym for Learning and Using New Approaches to Research, which is a program at ENA involving studies designed to help nurses learn about research while being part of a national study. The LUNAR III study focused on The Joint Commission’s 2006 National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) that are related to medication safety (then known as Goals 1, 2, 3, and 8). The complete study was published in the January 2009 issue of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety in an article titled, “Barriers to Emergency Departments' Adherence to Four Medication Safety-Related Joint Commission National Patient Safety Goals.”
Quality and Patient Safety Surveys
Two surveys were conducted in 2008 by the ENA Work Team on Quality and Patient Safety. The Work Team was charged with developing a recommendation to the ENA board of directors regarding a framework for integrating the values of quality and patient safety throughout stakeholders of ENA. Summary results from the member survey were published in the February 2009 issue of ENA Connection.
Recreational Boating Injuries Treated in U.S. Emergency Departments
ENA received grant funding from the U.S. Coast Guard to conduct this study during 2001, 2002, 2004, and 2005. The purpose of this study was to (1) develop a database of information concerning individuals who are treated for recreational boating injuries in emergency departments, and (2) based on the identification of contributing factors, develop recommendations for strategies to prevent or mitigate the fatalities and injuries caused by recreational boating mishaps. The final report of this study was completed in January 2007.
Staffing Guidelines Revision Project
ENA developed the ENA Guidelines for Emergency Department Nurse Staffing in 2003 as a tool for emergency department managers to use in identifying and justifying appropriate staffing for their emergency department. The Guidelines have proven beneficial to many emergency departments in their efforts to implement appropriate nurse staffing; however, refining and strengthening the Guidelines is a key initiative for ENA. In 2009-2010, ENA conducted the Staffing Guidelines study and obtained performance and staffing-related data from approximately 200 emergency departments. ENA is currently reviewing the findings from the research.
Violence Against Nurses in U.S. Emergency Departments (2007)
The Violence in the Workplace Work Team was convened in 2006 to conduct a study on violence against emergency nurses. A total of 3,465 emergency nurses who were ENA members participated in an anonymous, online survey. An article on the study findings was published in the July/August 2009 issue of the Journal of Nursing Administration.
Additional Workplace Violence Resources