thanks for some great answers from others.
two comments occur to me:
1. i'd suggest that the "correct" research architectures and methods for a
field are determined by the question posed, not by any traditions from any
other field. thus, when questions in mental health nursing have to do
with the experiences of patients who receive services from them, i reckon
the "right" architecture is derived from qualitative research methods, and
that it wouldn't make sense to do (or worry about not doing!) an RCT on
it.
2. on the other hand, if the question called for an RCT i wouldn't be
discouraged. a quick (<2 mins) and dirty ("psychiatric nursing MH",
limited to randomised trials) WinSPIRS search yielded 20 of 'em since
1990.
hope this helps.
cheers
dls
............................................................................
Prof David L. Sackett
Director, NHS R&D Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine
Consultant in Medicine Editor, Evidence-Based Medicine
Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford
Level 5, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, England
Phone: +44-(0)1865-221320 Fax: +44-(0)1865 222901
Email: [log in to unmask] WWW: http://cebm.jr2.ox.ac.uk
............................................................................
On Mon, 18 Jan 1999, Simon and Jo Fitsall wrote:
> Hi
>
> I'm knew to this list and I have to admit pretty overwhelmed by the research
> debates going on because of my relatively poor knowledge of research
> protocol and statistics. I hope i can keep up. That said, I've recently
> written an essay on evidence based practice in mental health nursing. Part
> of this essay questioned how research is carried out in nursing. I suggested
> that mental health nursing did not fit easily into the RCT and that a new or
> different paradigm was necessary. I think it is essential that mental health
> nurses base their practice on best evidence but don't believe mental health
> is an exact enough science to gain fully from current research practices.
>
> Simon Fitsall
> Deputy Charge Nurse
> Regional Secure Unit
> Runwell Hospital
> Essex
>
>
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