NP role in the ED examined

Australian study to investigate the impact of nurses practitioners in Eds.

Four universities and five state health authorities are collaborating in a major study to examine the effectiveness of nurse practitioners in emergency department teams. Between 2007 and 2009 there was a 60 per cent increase in the number of nurse practitioners working in emergency departments throughout Australia, however there has been no robust research to test the benefit of this, said lead investigator Queensland University of Technology Professor Glenn Gardner. The three-year project will survey around 150 hospitals and study in-depth 56 emergency department teams to compare the effectiveness of those with and without nurse practitioners. There are some 500 nurse practitioners Australia-wide. Collaborating universities include Australian Catholic University, Deakin University and Curtin University. Industry partners are the Centre for HealthCare Improvement and the Nursing and Midwifery Office Queensland, Queensland Health, and Chief Nursing Officer departments in the NSW Department of Health, Victorian Department of Health, SA Department of Health and WA Department of Health.

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