Building the Clinical Bridge: An Australian Success

Table 2

Changes in clinical practice following local primary, secondary, and translational research.

Clinical area involved	Change in practice
Community services	(i) Implementation and funding of the Waterworx Continence Centre. This community-based model of service provision was taken up by other Queensland health districts.
Intensive care unit	(i) Implementing and evaluating the introduction of an ICU discharge liaison nurse position.
	(ii) Production of patient/family information booklets for ICU.
Coronary care unit	(i) Implementation and evaluation of nurse-led care for heart failure patients.
General medical-surgical areas	(i) Management of peripheral IV infusions in children and in adults: removal on clinical indication.
	(ii) Followup of patients following total hip replacement surgery.
	(iii) Improved consent procedures and appropriateness of decision making for blood transfusions.
	(iv) Clinical trial of different pin-site management protocols.
	(v) Review of predischarge patient information in surgical wards.
	(vi) Production of evidence-based clinical guidelines and patient information on the management of constipation in middle-aged adults. These materials are now produced by the Australian Department of Health and Ageing.
	(vii) Development and implementation of the Renal Unit Clinical Nutrition Decision Support Algorithm.
Mental health	(i) Introduction and evaluation of patient-focused care in an acute psychiatric setting.
	(ii) Introduction and evaluation of a social development programme for young men with schizophrenia.
Aged care	(i) Design and evaluation of a dementia training program for aged care workers.
Paediatrics	(i) Introduction and evaluation of the program for adolescents with chronic illness.
	(ii) Introduction and evaluation of the Fun Not Fuss with Food program, ongoing involvement with the project suggests that this will be implemented statewide.