UBT Nursing Research Plan
Themes and framework 2016-2020.
UBT, until now, has developed a practice of research in healthcare and patient management, health informatics and biomedical engineering. The research expertise is based on multidisciplinary inputs from other areas of study including public policy management, mechatronics and computer science and information systems. The institution has organized two annual international conferences as part of its research strategy and published the proceedings. The key research topics included: E-Health and Nursing Applications, E-Nursing, Nursing Information Management, rehabilitation and prosthetics, biomaterials, bionics and medical diagnostic devices. The research themes and framework for 2016-2020 research strategy are listed below:
- Effective care and continuity across different settings for elderly people with health problems – Kosovo population is showing signs of aging. The population growth in the past four decades will soon be reflected into the population structure. This development will also be reflected into the overall health service and nursing care in particular. This research theme concentrates on ways to gain and improve the nursing services for elderly people with health problems in different settings and the interface between hospitals and community care centres.
- Effective strategies to promote healthy life styles in childhood and adolescence – Alcohol, drugs, infectious diseases and accidents are becoming serious challenges in Kosovo among adolescents. Prevention is the most effective form to combat these phenomena and the contribution to be made by nursing towards promoting healthy lifestyles is a challenged that should be dealt with. This nursing research theme focuses on children and adolescents in order to maximize future benefits. Research will be focused on nursing interventions affecting not only children and adolescents but also those that can influence them.
- Impact of variations in nursing skill-mix on quality, costs of care and patient outcomes – the cost and impact of nursing are coming under increasing scrutiny. Well qualified nurses in Kosovo are in short supply. Hence, the quality of nursing care, patient satisfaction and quality of life deserve more research focus.
- Effectiveness of nursing interventions for symptom management (e.g pain, dyspepsia, fatigue, anxiety, stress) – symptom management is a field of nursing research that is being widely developed in most contemporary nursing settings. Early detection and suitable control of the symptoms can greatly improve the well-being of the patient, bring relief and confidence to the family and significantly diminish hospital costs. Research topics in this area need to consider the psychological as much as physical aspects of care.
- Evaluation of innovative community-based partnership models for nursing and healthcare of vulnerable populations (women and minority communities) – the special social and cultural norms of some of the most vulnerable populations mean that traditional systems of health and nursing care are inaccessible and inappropriate. Nurses should engage in developing more innovative community-based nursing practices and models of care and working in partnership with vulnerable communities. Research needs to evaluate and assess innovative care models.
- Biomedical engineering solutions to nursing care – nursing practice needs to adopt the modern biomedical engineering tools and technology to improve the quality of nursing care. Instruments and technology for digital imaging (MRI, EEG, drugs) and diagnostics, computer-aided sensing and diagnostics, therapeutic devices, rehabilitation engineering and prosthetics, bionics, biomechanics and biomaterials should be researched and integrated in nursing care models.
- Integration of health informatics in nursing care – nursing and health care management informatics has found an important part of the efforts to improve the quality of nursing care. The research theme seeks to integrate information and communication technology and data science in managing and improving the delivery of nursing services. The topics should evaluate the importance and effect of clinical documentation, continuity of care records, electronic heath record, health information exchange, nursing information management, medical coding, personal health records, E-Nursing Applications and other E-health applications in improving nursing care and patient management