How the QNI Community Nursing Research Forum is building much-needed research capacity in nursing

The Community Nursing Research Forum has acquired 439 members in less than a year, and is helping to support clinical academic careers and research activity amongst community-based nurses.

Only 8% of all National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) research award holders since 2013 were nurses; and community and primary care nurse-led research remains particularly scarce. Just 37 nurse-held NIHR personal awards appeared to focus on care and treatment in community settings over the last 10 years in England.

The Forum was founded in early 2022 by Dr Ben Bowers (Primary Care Unit, University of Cambridge) and Professor Catherine Evans (King’s College London) to help address this capacity gap. It includes novices and experts in research, from childhood to adulthood nursing specialties across community and primary healthcare, with members from all over the UK.

The forum is hosted by the Queen’s Nursing Institute and is building interdisciplinary research capacity in nursing through individual and collective learning and endeavour. This editorial in the British Journal of Community Nursing summarises the origins, development, and achievements to date of the Forum.

The forum is an inclusive, diverse and dynamic community that welcomes novices to experts in research, from childhood to adulthood nursing specialties across community and primary healthcare. Membership of the forum is free, and enables nurses to learn about and share research, access peer support, network, and build community and primary care nurse-led research activity.

Next steps for the Forum include facilitating more opportunities for nurses to get involved in research, strengthening networks in research in nursing and building expertise to use high-quality evidence in clinical practice.

MORE INFORMATION

Read the editorial: Ben Bowers, Lucy Pratt, Catherine Evans: Developing community and primary care nursing research | British Journal of Community Nursing. 

Join the Community Nursing Research Forum

See this announcement on our website