Publications

Plain Words for Nurses: Writing and Communicating Effectively

By Alison Turnbull

This book, published by FoNS in September 2001, aims to help nurses and other healthcare professionals write and communicate more effectively. Written in a friendly, informal style and containing lively illustrations, topics include clear research writing for journals and other publications, challenging jargon, patient communication, public speaking, more effective use of statistics and writing for the internet. The author, Alison Turnbull, a freelance editor, wrote the book with the assistance of a large team of health care professionals, the Plain English Campaign and Helen Scott, Editor of the British Journal of Nursing. Alison says: "I'm concerned that nursing research and best practice sometimes don't reach a wider audience because they are wrapped up in complicated words and phrases. I hope this publication will help busy practitioners and researchers to communicate better with each other and with the people in their care." The publication was supported by 3M Healthcare Ltd.

Tuberculosis Control: A Nurse-Led Model with Case Management

By Frederick Marais

Drawing on experiences in London and the USA, this book, published by FoNS in July 2002, provides a descriptive and reflective account of the development and impact of a fully integrated nurse-led tuberculosis control programme with a case management approach. This model for tuberculosis control provides the TB Nurse with an enhanced role. As Case Manager, the TB Nurse, is the interface for fully integrated individualised patient-focused care and effective tuberculosis control, functioning across traditional barriers such as those between medical specialities and hospital and community settings. This ensures continuity of care, sustains a consistent, co-ordinated and supportive approach and fosters adherence to treatment, promoting both individual and public health. From 1995 to 1997 the author, Frederick Marais, was employed at St Mary's NHS Trust Hospital as TB/HIV Clinical Nurse Specialist to develop and manage a TB Service specifically for individuals co-infected with tuberculosis and HIV, and from 1997 until the end of 2000 as Manager and Lead Nurse to develop and manage a seamless Trust-wide nurse-led TB Service.

Taking Action: Evidence-based Nursing Report

Foundation of Nursing Studies

Over a period of seven years (1994-2000), FoNS was involved in the development, organisation and evaluation of a number of activities to assist nurses to critically appraise and apply research/evidence in their everyday practice. Taking Action reports on the evaluation of a UK-wide programme of work: • The organisation of nine critical appraisal skills/research utilisation workshops and a short term evaluation of these which is reported in full in Reflection for Action (FoNS, 1996) • A long-term evaluation of the impact of these workshops • A consultation exercise designed to validate and update the findings of the evaluations Implications for the evolution of evidence-based practice are drawn out for the R&D agenda, education and professional development, trust management, individual practitioners, and for FoNS itself. Taking Action and a series of associated reports are available to download in PDF format by clicking on the links below: