Bernard Mark Garrett

• BA(Hons), PhD, RN
• Professor (Associate) at University of British Columbia

Background The growing popularity and affordability of immersive virtual reality (VR), as adjunctive non-pharmacological interventions (NPIs) for chronic pain, has resulted in increasing research, with mixed results of its effectiveness reported. This randomized controlled superiority trial explored the effects of a home-based adjunctive 3D VR NPI...

Measurement tools that can assess personality traits rendering people more susceptible to engagement with and compliance in scams can help identify at-risk populations. The brief, 30-item version of the Susceptibility to Persuasion-II (StP–II–B) scale is a recently developed instrument for assessing 10 personality traits that play a role in scam co...

This paper builds on prior work exploring the use of risk-associated alternative healthcare (RAAH) in Canada. RAAH uptake was surveyed to explore the characteristics of adult RAAH users and the value of established psychometric instruments previously used in alternative healthcare studies in predicting RAAH behaviours: the Control Beliefs Inventory...

Problem: Sickle cell crises (SCC) are recurrent, severe pain episodes experienced by people living with sickle cell disease (SCD). Non-pharmacological interventions have been recommended for SCC pain management however, little is known about the impact of these interventions on SCC pain. This scoping review aims to systematically identify evidence...

Background Patient-oriented research involves extensive collaboration with patients, their families, caregivers, clinicians and other relevant stakeholders to identify and investigate problems and outcomes relevant to patients. Patient-oriented research can help develop effective patient-centred interventions. Patient-oriented research is an increa...

Defining alternative health care and the recording of associated adverse events and harm remains problematic. This Canadian study aimed to establish and classify risk-associated alternative health practices in a Delphi study undertaken with an interdisciplinary panel of 17 health experts in 2020. It provides a new functional definition of alternati...

In this paper, the historical alignment of nursing with divinity‐based perspectives and modern New Age nursing theories are explored. The nature of divinity in nursing is examined, together with the complexities and issues that arise in adopting a spiritual basis for care. The work of the key theorists in this area (Rogers, Newman, Parse, Watson, D...

Aim To synthesize the most recent evidence investigating the effectiveness and safety of therapeutic touch as a complementary therapy in clinical health applications. Design A rapid evidence assessment (REA) approach was used to review recent TT research adopting PRISMA 2009 guidelines. Methods CINAHL, PubMed, MEDLINE, Cochrane databases, Web of...

Background High quality head-mounted display based virtual reality (HMD-VR) has become widely available, spurring greater development of HMD-VR health games. As a behavior change approach, these applications use HMD-VR and game-based formats to support long-term engagement with therapeutic interventions. While the bulk of research to date has prima...

BACKGROUND Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) has shown some evidence of efficacy in the management of chronic pain. More recently virtual reality (VR) guided meditation has been used as a technique to assist MBSR. A number of studies have also explored changes in the brain during mindfulness meditation practices, but not with use of electro...

Background Mindfulness-based stress reduction has demonstrated some efficacy for chronic pain management. More recently, virtual reality (VR)–guided meditation has been used to assist mindfulness-based stress reduction. Although studies have also found electroencephalograph (EEG) changes in the brain during mindfulness meditation practices, such ch...

The management of chronic cancer pain remains challenging and complex, with the process often involving a variety of pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches. Recent studies have shown virtual reality (VR) therapy to be successful in the management of acute pain. However, it remains unclear whether VR-based applications are effective as a...

The prevalence of health scams in Canada is increasing, facilitated by the rise of the Internet as a mass communication medium. However, little is known about the nature of this phenomena. Building on previous work exploring the nature of Internet health scams (IHS), this project sought to better understand the reasons why people engaged with IHS,...

Background: Virtual reality (VR) therapy has been explored as a novel therapeutic approach for numerous health applications, in which three-dimensional virtual environments can be explored in real time. Studies have found positive outcomes for patients using VR for clinical conditions such as anxiety disorders, addictions, phobias, posttraumatic s...

The prevalence of health scams in Canada is increasing, facilitated by the rise of the Internet. However, little is known about the nature of this phenomena. This study sought to methodically identify and categorise Internet‐based Health Scams (IHS) currently active in Canada, creating an initial taxonomy based on systematic Internet searches. A fi...

Paranormal beliefs and magical thinking exist in the public, and amongst university students. Researchers have found that media can influence such beliefs. A 2012 study suggested pseudoscientific rationales can influence acceptance of reported paranormal phenomena. Using a paranormal belief survey and controlled experiment this work explores the pa...

Background Virtual reality (VR) therapy has been successfully used an adjunct therapy for the management of acute pain in adults and children. However, minimal research exists on the value of VR as an intervention for chronic pain. Objectives: This case-series examined the value of VR to be used as an adjunctive therapy for chronic pain patients in...

Fluids and Electrolytes: Essentials for Healthcare Practice is designed to give a solid understanding of fluid and electrolyte physiology and its implications for practice, including acid-base balance and intravenous (IV) therapy, in a concise and easily understandable format. Chapters incorporate physiological, developmental and practical aspects...

In this essay, I advance an argument against the expansion and acceptance of postmodern metaphysical antirealist ideologies in the development of nursing theory in North America. I suggest mystical theoretical explanations of care, the rejection of empirical epistemology, and a return to divinity in nursing represent an intellectual dead end, as th...

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore parents' perceptions of their decisional needs when considering genome-wide sequencing (GWS) for their child. This is a partial report and focuses on how parents prefer to receive education and information to support their decision making about GWS. Design: This study adopted an interpretive desc...

Despite sustained debate and progress the evolving thing that is evidence based nursing or practice (EBP) continues to dangle a variety of conceptual and practical loose threads. Moreover, when we think about what is being asked of students and registered or licenced practitioners in terms of EBP, it is difficult not to concede that this ‘ask’ is i...

Purpose – This paper aims to report on a pilot research project designed to explore if new mobile augmented reality (AR) technologies have the potential to enhance the learning of clinical skills in the lab. Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory action-research-based pilot study was undertaken to explore an initial proof-of-concept design i...

Prostate cancer support groups (PCSGs) are community-based organizations that offer information and psychosocial support to men who experience prostate cancer and their families. Nurses are well positioned to refer men to a range of psychosocial resources to help them adjust to prostate cancer; however, little is known about nurses' perspectives on...

To understand prostate cancer (PCa) specialists' views about prostate cancer support groups (PCSGs), a volunteer sample of Canada-based PCa specialists (n = 150), including urologists (n = 100), radiation oncologists (n = 40), and medical oncologists (n = 10) were surveyed. The 56-item questionnaire used in this study included six sets of attitudin...

This paper provides readers with an overview of some contemporary issues associated with nursing regulation and scope of practice in Canada. Issues with the current organizational structure of nursing regulation and its impact on nursing advocacy in Canada are explored. An argument is presented that nursing regulation needs more consistency and col...

In this paper, we reconsider the context of Barbara Carper's alternative ways of knowing, a prominent discourse in modern nursing theory in North America. We explore this relative to the concepts of realism, non-realism and nominalism, and investigate the philosophical divisions behind the original typology, particularly in relationship to modern s...

In Canada, prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common male cancer, and prostate cancer support groups (PCSGs) have prevailed for more than 20 years providing support to men with PCa and their families. While the format, focus and benefits of attending PCSGs have been reported little is known about primary physicians' (PPs) perceptions of these groups...

Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) therapy has been explored as an adjunct therapy for the management of acute pain among children and adults for several conditions. Therapeutic approaches have traditionally involved medication and physiotherapy but such approaches are limited over time by their cost and/or side effects. This review seeks to criticall...

Social media is a powerful, rapid, and popular way of communication amongst people around the world. How can health professionals and patients use this strategy to achieve optimal disease management and prevention and attainment of wellness? An interdisciplinary group at University of British Columbia, supported by a grant from UBC Peter Wall Insti...

To identify studies reporting mobile device integration into undergraduate and graduate nursing curricula. To explore the potential use of Rogers' Diffusion of Innovation model as a framework to guide implementation of mobile devices into nursing curricula. Literature review and thematic categorization. Literature published up until June 2013 was s...

This interesting new book is designed for healthcare professional students and practitioners (nurses, physiotherapists, paramedics, medical students and others) who wish to get a solid understanding of fluid and electrolyte physiology and its implications for practice, including acid-base balance and intravenous (IV) therapy. The book is designed...

This book presents a pragmatic approach to the philosophy of nursing science that underpins evidence-based practice (EBP) including research methodology. The book explains the foundational philosophical principles underpinning scientific enquiry written in an accessible manner, to enable readers to grasp the key arguments of scientific enquiry, its...

This paper reports a study undertaken to evaluate the implementation of an electronic portfolio (eportfolio) tool for the assessment of clinical competence in a Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. Baccalaureate nursing programs increasingly use information and communications technologies to support student learning, assess and record progress....

This paper describes a project to establish and evaluate online study partnerships, using social networking applications, between final year Canadian nursing students at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and second year undergraduate science education students at the University of Plymouth (UoP) in the UK. The project took place between 2009...

This editorial discusses the conclusions of a number of high-profile reports on the future of healthcare provision, and healthcare professional education. The need for the realignment of service provision, regulation, interdisciplinary healthcare and supporting education is discussed in the context of rapid technological and social change.

This paper explores our experiences in implementing and using high-fidelity simulation (HFS) over the last three years, in the context of the results of the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) health 2006 simulation survey, which explored the use of simulation across Canada in professional health education. Considerations for the prac...

This article explores a case of the implementation of high-fidelity simulation (HFS) in an undergraduate preregistration nursing program in a Canadian school of nursing. A small practice collaborative project to develop reusable simulation resources for team-based simulations is described, using HFS technology. Considerations for effective learning...

Attrition rates of male nursing students exceed those of females yet the experiences of male students in nursing school are poorly understood. This interpretive ethnographic study explored the experiences of male nursing students and female nursing instructors in the context of classroom education. Data collection consisted of participant observati...

The School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia has more than 300 nursing students engaged in supervised clinical practice in hospital and community settings around Vancouver. Likewise, the Faculty of Medicine has more than 200 medical students undertaking supervised clinical experience locally and remotely in the Prince George and Vanc...

The aims were to explore advanced practice nurses' perceptions on wireless Personal Digital Assistant technologies, to establish the type and range of tools that would be useful to support their practice and to identify any requirements and limitations that may impact the implementation of wireless Personal Digital Assistants in practice. The wirel...

This paper outlines the development and evaluation of a wireless personal digital assistant (PDA) based clinical learning tool designed to promote professional reflection for health professionals. The "Clinical e-portfolio" was developed at the University of British Columbia School of Nursing to enable students immediately to access clinical expert...

This paper focuses upon an exploration of undergraduate students' perceptions of clinical decision-making skills in their final year of a baccalaureate adult nursing programme. A phenomenological study was carried out, with a sample of 21 students undertaking their nursing management module. They produced a consensus concept mapping of clinical dec...

The School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia has more than 300 nursing students engaged in supervised clinical practice in hospital and community settings around Vancouver. Likewise, the Faculty of Medicine has more than 200 medical students undertaking supervised clinical experience locally and remotely in the Prince George and Vanc...

This paper explores a different approach to evaluating the merits of specific technical components of computer based learning applications. A traditional double blind experimental study was implemented in a new context. A computer based Clinical Decision Simulator (CDS) system was designed and implemented incorporating an intelligent agent. This wa...

In this chapter, we will explore the potential for employing artificial intelligence and adaptive methods into online learning applications. The existing and newly developing technologies for representing knowledge will be explored and the pedagogic implications for online learning discussed, including examining the roles of intelligent tutoring sy...

In this chapter, we will explore how students may be orientated and disorientated to online learning, examining some of the methods that can be implanted to make life easier for the student and facilitate learning, and also some of the pitfalls to be avoided if students are to study effectively in an online learning environment. The argument is als...

In this chapter, we will explore the potential for employing artificial intelligence and adaptive methods into online learning applications. The existing and newly developing technologies for representing knowledge will be explored and the pedagogic implications for online learning discussed, including examining the roles of intelligent tutoring sy...

There has been great interest in the potential use of multimedia computer-based learning (CBL) packages within higher education. The effectiveness of such systems, however, remains controversial. There are suggestions that such multimedia applications may hold no advantage over traditional formats (Barron and Atkins, 1994; Ellis, 1994; Laurillard,...

This paper examines the design of intelligent multimedia simulations. A case study is presented which uses an approach based in part on intelligent tutoring system design to integrate formative assessment into the learning of clinical decision‐making skills for nursing students. The approach advocated uses a modular design with an integrated intell...

This paper examines the value of using intelligent multimedia simulation for the teaching of nursing clinical decision-making skills. The possibilities of multimedia-based educational resources are examined and the rapid growth and questionable effectiveness of current multimedia computer-based learning applications for nursing students are discuss...

Acute renal failure (ARF) is a syndrome in which the kidneys are unable to excrete the products of metabolism. The failure of renal function is rapid in its onset but potentially reversible. It occurs rapidly, within 8 weeks of renal injury resulting in a rapid increase in serum urea and creatinine concentrations in patients with previously normal...

Euthanasia is once again attracting the media's attention. In September 1992, the case of Dr Cox, the Hampshire rheumatologist accused of murdering his patient, featured consistently in the national daily papers and on television news. In February 1993, both the outcome of the Tony Bland appeal and the Dutch parliamentary vote on euthanasia found t...