Difficulties in developing a nursing research culture in the UK.

摘要

Despite the obvious advantages to patient care and professional development, nursing research in the UK is relatively poorly developed and research activity in nursing lags behind many of the more established university disciplines. The reasons for this are complex and numerous. The purpose of this article is to explore the most pertinent issues. For example, there is currently a lack of appropriately qualified research-active staff, the 'research culture' in many departments is inadequately developed, dedicated research funding is insufficient and competing demands are commonly placed on nurse academics. In order for research activity to improve significantly many of these problems have to be properly addressed because patient care and professional credibility are at stake.